Mount Mawson is a small, volunteer-run club ski field high in Tasmania's Mount Field National Park — one of only a handful of downhill areas in Australia's southernmost state.
- 1,220 m Base
- 1,245 m Top lift
- 25 m Vertical
- 3 Lifts
Best known for
Après & vibe
Facilities are deliberately basic — a day lodge and volunteer camaraderie rather than bars, with Hobart's cafes and restaurants the place to unwind afterwards.
The snow centre
Mount Mawson is a genuine but tiny alpine ski area set among the snow gums and dolerite peaks of Mount Field National Park, roughly an hour and a half's drive from Hobart. It is a club field run by volunteers of the Southern Tasmanian Ski Association rather than a commercial resort, with simple nutcracker-style rope tows and an atmosphere to match. Being in the Southern Hemisphere, the season falls in the middle of the year and snow is famously variable — good dumps can give fine cover, while lean winters leave the field closed for stretches. It suits adventurous skiers and families happy to trade lift-served polish for solitude, raw scenery and a slice of old-school ski culture. Cross-country and backcountry touring around the plateau are as much a draw as the downhill runs.
The slope
Gentle practice slopes make it a low-key place to try snow, conditions permitting.
A handful of short groomed trails cover most of the modest vertical.
Limited pitch, though fresh snow and off-piste lines add interest.
Backcountry touring across the surrounding plateau is the real reward for strong skiers.
Club-field skiing in a national park
Skiing here means rope tows, volunteer lift crews and snow-gum wilderness inside Mount Field National Park — a rare, unpolished experience found almost nowhere else in Australia.
Plateau ski touring
The high country around Mount Mawson offers excellent cross-country and backcountry touring when snow lies deep.
On the map
Legend
Run difficulty
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced / Expert
- Freeride / Extreme
- Unknown
Run types
- Downhill — groomed
- Downhill — ungroomed
- Downhill — gladed
- Nordic (groomed)
- Ski tour
- ☾Lit (night)
- △Not patrolled
- →One-way
- ❄Snowmaking
Lifts
- Operating
- Operating (private)
- Non-operating
- Lift station
Slope-gradient grading
Downhill / ski tour
- Flat<3°
- Easy3–14°
- Intermediate14–22°
- Advanced / Expert22–45°
- Freeride / Extreme>45°
Nordic
- Easy<6°
- Intermediate6–9°
- Advanced>9°
Aspect (sun exposure)
- N — least sun
- E — morning
- S — most sun
- W — afternoon
Legend after OpenSkiMap
Stay near Mount Mawson
There is no on-mountain accommodation; most visitors come for the day from Hobart or stay in the Mount Field / National Park village nearby.
A base in town — the snow centre is a day trip, not a resort stay.
Self-catering flexibility for a family visit or a longer city break.
Handy if the centre is a stopover between flights.
Book access to Mount Mawson
Snow sessions, lessons and slope passes for Mount Mawson.
Online access tickets for Mount Mawson will be bookable here shortly. In the meantime, book direct on the venue's own site.
How to get there
Hobart Airport is the gateway; the field is around a 90-minute drive on into Mount Field National Park.
A scenic sealed-then-gravel park road climbs to the car park, from where a walk reaches the tows; chains may be needed in snow.
Best time: Best in the depths of the Southern-Hemisphere winter, roughly July to early September, when snowfalls are most likely.
Nearby resorts
Other resorts within reach.
Faces south-east © malinhett / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0) Mount Buller
- Vertical
- 389 m
- Pistes (mapped)
- 83
- Lifts
- 21
Getting to Mount Mawson
Book an airport transfer up to the resort, or pick up a car at Melbourne (MEL) — search and compare without leaving the page.
Ski data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via OpenSkiMap & Skimap.org. Basemap © OpenFreeMap / OpenMapTiles. Editorial: mynext.holiday. Accommodation via Stay22; transfers via Kiwitaxi; car hire via Travelpayouts.