Fox Glacier or Franz Josef?

You do not have to choose between Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier: the two villages are 23.4 km apart by road, about 25 minutes’ drive, and several helicopter flights cover both glaciers in one trip, such as Glacier Helicopters’ Franz Josef & Fox Glaciers Helicopter Flight & Snow Landing from Franz Josef village, from US$279 a person (checked November 2026). You choose only if you want to walk on the ice: each glacier has its own heli-hike, run by its own guiding company.

The calendar above is Glacier Helicopters’ flight over both glaciers from Franz Josef, with 416 reviews (checked November 2026).

The short answer

Pick by where you sleep. Both glaciers come down from the Southern Alps into Westland Tai Poutini National Park, and both are seen close up only from a helicopter or on a guided heli-hike. If you are staying in Franz Josef, fly from there; if you are in Fox Glacier, fly or heli-hike from there. If you want both, a twin-glacier flight from either village does it in about 35 minutes.

The two glaciers side by side

Prices are per person, from the listings. A twin-glacier flight from either village shows you both glaciers from the air; what differs between the two is the heli-hike.

The heli-hike on each

Fox Glacier Guiding's heli-hike is the longer walk: up to 3 hours on the ice of Fox Glacier, with leather boots, crampons, walking poles and rain gear supplied, in groups of up to 11, from 9 years old. Franz Josef Glacier Guides flies walkers to the Pinnacles area of the Franz Josef Glacier for about 2 hours 15 minutes on the ice, with a Gore-Tex jacket, overtrousers, a hat, gloves, boots and crampons supplied, from 10 years old. It asks for a moderate level of fitness and gives no refund to anyone who cannot take part on the day for lack of it; it also sells a longer 5.5-hour trip from age 14.

Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026; Viator checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.

On foot from each village

Neither glacier can be reached on foot: DOC says helicopters are the only safe way onto the ice, and the valley walks stop at viewpoints. On DOC’s daily glacier access update of 3 November 2026 both were open:

The Franz Josef walk is the quick one; the Fox walk is longer and runs through rainforest most of the way. At Franz Josef, DOC notes the river has cut off the valley floor, so the viewpoint is as far as you go. Fox Glacier walks covers the Fox side in full.

Getting between them

The drive between the villages is 23.4 km on State Highway 6, about 25 minutes. Glacier Valley Eco Tours, for one, runs its Fox Glacier walks from its base in Franz Josef with the drive included, and the Franz Josef helicopter companies fly over Fox Glacier from Franz Josef. Heli-hike or scenic flight lists every flight from Fox Glacier village.