French Ridge Hut
Serviced Alpine hutMatukituki Valley area, OtagoDOC data as at 20 September 2026
About this place
This is an alpine serviced 20-bunk hut in the Wanaka/Makarora area. This hut is an NZ Alpine Club hut.
Know before you go
Large group bookings
A single group can only book up to 50% of the hut – 10 beds. If you are a group of 10 people, you need to fill in a large group notification form as well as making your online booking. Contact wanakavc@doc.govt.nz at least two weeks before your departure date to ask for the form. The form is not a booking.
Radio communications
From October to the end of April, there will be a hut ranger present at Aspiring Hut. They will call French Ridge on the radio each evening between 7:30 pm and 8:00 pm to provide an up-to-date weather forecast. The radio and instructions for use can be found in the kitchen/dining room.
Source: DOC Te Papa Atawhai.
Trip options
Walking times computed leg by leg from DOC track descriptions, from car-accessible trailheads.
1 option · 1 night
Raspberry Creek car park
Walking in
7 hr 30 min (via Aspiring Hut)
Walking out
7 hr 30 min to Raspberry Creek car park (via Aspiring Hut)
Source: DOC Te Papa Atawhai track descriptions.
Fees and bookings
Backcountry Hut Passes and Backcountry Hut Tickets cannot be used at this hut.
Pay when you book online. Bookings are required all year. Book French Ridge Hut online . Bookings are open for stays up to 30 June 2027. If no availability shows online for your dates, the hut is fully booked. No spaces are kept for visitors arriving without a booking. Phone and in‑person bookings made at a visitor centre incur a $10 service fee. Same‑day bookings are available online until 8 pm if spaces remain. A $10 service fee applies to all phone, email and in-person bookings. New Zealand Alpine Club (NZAC) members applying for their discount will not be charged this fee.
Source: DOC Te Papa Atawhai.
Getting there
- Topo map
- Topo50 sheet CA11
- Grid reference
- E1257248, N5071498
Source: DOC Te Papa Atawhai.
On these tracks
Source: DOC Te Papa Atawhai.
Contact
Wānaka Tititea/Mount Aspiring National Park
Regional DOC service centre.
Nearby stops
Aspiring Hut
Serviced Alpine • 32 bunks • Otago • 6 km
Heating • Mattresses • Lighting
Liverpool Hut
Serviced Alpine • 10 bunks • Otago • 2.3 km
Mattresses • Toilets - non-flush • Water from tap - not treated
Spot for a tent
Otago • 5.8 km
Aspiring Campsite
Backcountry • Otago • 5.9 km
['Water from tap - not treated • boil before use' • 'Toilets - non-flush'
Colin Todd Hut
Serviced Alpine • 10 bunks • Otago • 6.3 km
Mattresses • Lighting • Toilets - non-flush
All details
- Facilities
- MattressesLightingToilets - non-flushWater from tap - not treatedboil before useWater supply
- Bookable
- Yes
- Category
- Serviced Alpine
- Location
- Matukituki Valley area
- Fireplace
- No
- Mattress
- Yes
- Capacity
- 20
- Toilets
- Yes
- Drinking water
- untreated
- Reservations
- No
- Fee
- Yes
- Website
- This place on doc.govt.nz
- Source data
- View source data
Map and tracks
Track lines: DOC Te Papa Atawhai. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.44.42866° S, 168.69386° E
Something not right?
Closed, moved, wrong facts, or you know something we do not. Change only what you know is wrong or missing; a person checks it before it goes live. Or email us about this place.
Sources
- OpenStreetMap Huts · ODbL (Open Database License)Contains information from OpenStreetMap, made available under the ODbL.
- DOC Huts · CC BY 4.0Data sourced from the Department of Conservation (DOC), New Zealand.
- DOC Huts (API) · CC BY 4.0Crown Copyright: Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai. Data sourced from the DOC Developer Portal (api.doc.govt.nz).