Image: Jonathon Moake | ©
Nina Hut.
Nina Hut

Located in Lake Sumner Forest Park in the Canterbury region

This accessible hut is a good overnight option for families or new trampers who have some tramping experience. Be prepared for a wet and muddy access track.

Nina Hut sits on an open knoll surrounded by beech forest and mountains.

Facilities

  • Bunks - platform (shared) bunks with mattresses
  • Water supply - cold water from a rain collection tank
  • Heating - wood burner (firewood not provided, collect dead wood from around the hut)
  • Long drop toilet a short walk from the hut
  • Space for camping outside the hut
Huts have basic facilities. You'll need to take:
  • Sleeping bag
  • Cooking stove, pots/pans and utensils
  • Toilet paper
  • Rubbish bag
  • Newspaper/firelighters and matches/lighter for the wood burner/fire
  • Torch

Fees

  • Adult (18+ years): $10 per night
  • Youth (5–17 years): $5 per night
  • Child/Infant (0–4 years): free

Backcountry Hut Passes can be used at this hut. 

About hut tickets and passes | Retailers that sell hut tickets and passes

Bookings

Bookings are open for stays up to 30 June 2026.

All bookings are first-come first-served. We do not have waiting lists for bookings for future seasons or facilities that are already booked-out.

Bookings are required all year. Book Nina Hut online. 

A $10 service fee applies to phone and in-person booking. This is a limited service – book online first. An in-person booking is dependent on there being space available.

Your hut booking is for any bunk bed, not for a specific bunk bed – select your bunk bed on arrival.

The track to Nina Hut can be wet and boggy in places and it has several stream crossings. Even side streams can flood in very heavy rain. The track is rough under foot in places. Expect times to take longer than listed if tramping with children or after periods of rain.

Nina Valley Track

Time: 3 hr one way
Distance: 7 km from road end

Nina Hut is the first hut on the Nina Valley Track.

SH7 to Nina swing bridge

Time: 1 hr

Cross the Lewis River via the swing bridge and follow the true right bank for a short section before climbing briefly onto a terrace. The track then heads northwest away from the river and sidles through beech forest above the Nina River. The river is reached after about an hour of walking. The track continues up the true left of the river to where the Nina swing bridge crosses it.

Nina swing bridge to Nina Hut

Time: 2 hr

After crossing the bridge, the track heads up the true right of the river, gradually climbing to reach the Nina Hut.

Tracks to this hut

Location

NZTopo50 map sheet: BT23
Grid/NZTM2000 coordinates: E1544217, N5298251

Muddy track

The tracks to Nina Hut can become extremely muddy, especially after heavy rain. Expect times to take longer than listed after periods of rain.

Stay safe when crossing rivers

If you plan to cross unbridged rivers, know how to cross safely and be prepared for if you cannot cross.

Do not cross if the river is flooded, you cannot find safe entry and exit points, or are unsure it’s safe. Turn back or wait for the river to drop. If in doubt, stay out.

How to cross rivers safely

Dogs

No dogs allowed.