Outdoor Training Courses New Zealand | OENZ

Outdoor training that prepares you for the real world

Adventure-ready training for individuals, schools, and workplaces.

Is it time to start exploring our backyard?

Outdoor training courses that unlock adventure

Go places off the beaten track

Get out of town, into the wilderness and away from the crowds

Outdoor skills for everyday New Zealanders

Its time to see what's out there...

Do you know what to do if things go wrong?

Do the training; get the skills, knowledge and experience

Your next adventure is waiting

Invest in yourself and pursue the life you've always dreamed of

Discover your next outdoor training course

Welcome to OENZ- Outdoor Education New Zealand. The home of quality outdoor training in New Zealand. Our courses are open to the general public as well as schools and businesses. We operate from Governors Bay, Lyttelton. You will find that most of our scheduled courses are delivered close to Christchurch. However, We are happy to send instructors to almost any location in New Zealand.

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Alpine

Alpine courses from complete beginner to advanced technical mountaineering courses.

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Avalanche

Backcountry avalanche and avalanche awareness courses for walkers, climbers, and backcountry enthusiasts.

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Bushcraft & Navigation

Bush and navigation courses for everyone from first-time bushwalkers to avid trampers adventure racers.

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Hunting

Hunting courses available to suit any level of experience, from complete beginner to advanced private training.

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Sea Kayak

We supply all the gear and equipment needed, including boats, so you can have a go before investing in your own kit.

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River Safety

Complete a one-day river crossing course in Arthurs Pass National park or Christchurch.

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Rock Climbing

Have a go outdoor climbing or extend your climbing skills on a Christchurch local course or a longer expedition style climbing adventure.

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Weather

This course is for you to discover more about the phenomenon of weather and give useful tools and techniques to apply when you are in the field.

Online Weather Course
Family-friendly alpine course

Family-Friendly Courses

Family-friendly Courses for younger adventurers and family groups

Family-Friendly Courses

Workplace Training

Workplace training tailored to your needs

Workplace Training

Online Weather Course

Learn to read the skies and plan your adventures with confidence. OENZ’s Online Weather Course gives you practical, easy-to-understand tools to interpret forecasts, recognise weather patterns, and make informed decisions in the outdoors. Designed for trampers, hunters, and outdoor enthusiasts of all levels. Learn online from anywhere!

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Flying into town?

Free transport for outdoor training courses

We offer a free pick-up and drop-off service for most of our training courses—perfect for those flying into Christchurch. We can collect you from selected central city and airport hotels.

This transfer service is popular with out-of-town participants.
Check our FAQ page for details and hotel pick-up options.

Where to stay
Family-friendly alpine course

Family-Friendly Training Courses

Due to popular demand, OENZ now offers a range of family-friendly training courses. These courses are open to everyone—including solo adult participants.

For family-friendly courses, young people aged 12 and over are welcome, but must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Our standard courses are limited to participants aged 18 and over, or 16+ when accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Learn more about these courses

Customer Reviews

"Thoroughly enjoyed the entire 3 day bush craft and navigation course. Sarah was awesome with her experience, patience and knowledge as we all attended with varying backgrounds and experience. Content wise it covered topographic map reading so well that combined with the experiences across two days gave my partner and I a boost of confidence we didn’t previously have with navigating the outdoors safely. Would highly recommend it to anyone interested in furthering their experience with outdoor tramping."

Lilah Edmonds, Whangarei, NZ

"Just completed the 4 day Alpine & Avalanche Safety Course and had an absolute ball! Lots of skills and knowledge gained and so many takeaways that will be invaluable for my upcoming winter trips. Whether you are a hiker, snowshoer or skier, this course will give you more confidence to get out and explore the mountains and at the same time make you a safer adventurer. Thank you Sarah and Michael for sharing your decades of wisdom and experience!"

David Lack, Australia

"I would absolutely recommend OENZ to anyone I know. I recently completed the 2 day avalanche skills course with Michael and loved it. His enthusiasm was infectious and he had so much knowledge to share. Also just a great bloke! Admin process was smooth and easy also. These guys are passionate about what they do and if you book a course with them you won’t be disappointed!"

Laura Spandler, Australia

"I recently completed a 7 day Navigation & Bushcraft course to instill more confidence in myself for NZ's backcountry tramps and river crossings. The course was so enjoyable with the experience of both Jake and Sarah (my instructors) who shared their passion and knowledge in compass navigation, river crossing techniques, emergency shelter building, fire starting and scree crossing. I highly recommend anybody looking to do the Te Araroa or backcountry tramping to contact OENZ to gain skills & confidence."

Dave Smith, Australia

"Did the 9 days mountaineering course. I had such a great time. Kieran our instructor was amazing. Passionate about outdoor, he has so much knowledges and experiences. Really good at teaching and guiding. I feel way more confident from now climbing on my own. Highly recommended."

Etienne Magnin, Whitianga, NZ

"This 2-day bushcraft course was worth every dollar. I had the best time, in the most beautiful location. Sarah (instructor) was incredibly knowledgeable and was a great teacher. I left with skills that will help me in my job. I would recommend this course to anyone needing basic navigation skills and want to learn in a stunning location."

Georgia Whitehead, Stratford, NZ

"I have just completed my fifth course with OENZ, all of which I've thoroughly enjoyed! I have previously done a private customized course with them to help me build my confidence in scree. Sarah and her team have always been very supportive when I'm feeling uncomfortable in steep terrain."

Kath Weir, Leeston, NZ

"Great time on the 5 day rock climbing course. Local knowledge from Alan was great sharing all his secret spots that most people never get to see whilst having an awesome time at some newly developing crags."

Caleb Duffy, New Zealand

"I do the one-day river crossing course every two years with an added chest wader competency for work. Sarah is very informative and can tailor the course to the needs of each individual. Her experience shines through the entirety of the day -- great opportunity to practise pack floats, linked and solo crossings, while learning about good techniques walking in and around rivers."

Susan Harris, Hokitika, NZ