Hundreds headed up the mountain on Friday and Saturday night to enjoy the official start of Night Skiing, which coincided with the last weekend of Queenstown Winter Festival.

DJs playing on the outdoor deck kept guests entertained and added to the atmosphere while outdoor heaters kept fingers and toes warm in-between runs.

Developments over the summer to install 80 new lights meant twilight visitors to Coronet Peak had 4km of extra lit terrain to choose from.

New lights that give higher light output and improved uniform coverage have extended the Night Ski area to include Million Dollar, Wall Street, The Hurdle and Eighth Basin.

Coronet Peak ski area manager Ross Copland was “thrilled” to welcome guests up the mountain to celebrate the start of the night ski season.

“There was plenty of snow for everyone to enjoy the slopes as well as new lit terrain to explore -- by all accounts guests had a fantastic night up the mountain.”

“We’ve had some unseasonably warm temperatures, so it’s a huge credit to our snowmaking and grooming teams to have Night Ski up and running,” he said.

“We’ve got some cold weather in the forecast this week so Mother Nature should give us a nice top up of fresh snow.”

Night Skiing is available at Coronet Peak Friday and Saturday nights 4pm to 9pm until September.