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

Before you go, buy 1 Standard Hut Ticket (blue for adults, yellow for youth) for each night's stay. Put this in the honesty box at the hut. Or buy a Backcountry Hut Pass that gives unlimited use at most Standard and Serviced huts for a 12 month period.

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

Maungahuka Hut is best accessed from Otaki Forks on the western side of the Tararua Ranges, or Holdsworth Road-end on the eastern side.

From Otaki Forks

Ōtaki Forks is 19 km inland from Ōtaki township – approximately 1 hr 30 min drive from Wellington or Palmerston North. The easiest turnoff from SH1 is at Ōtaki Gorge Road, just south of the SH1 bridge over the Ōtaki River. The last 5 km of the Gorge Rd is closed due to a slip. Access is by walking only.

There is an emergency track that you can walk to gain access to Ōtaki Forks. It is 5 km long and can be accessed 200 m past the locked gate on the Ōtaki Gorge Road. 

• Ōtaki Gorge emergency track
• Map of the emergency track (PDF, 2,290K).

From Otaki Forks, tramp to Kime Hut (5-6 hours) then cross the peaks to Maungahuka Hut (another 4 hours).

From Holdsworth Road end

2 km south of Masterton, turn off SH2 into Norfolk Road, which turns into Mt Holdsworth Road. Follow signs to Tararua Forest Park, about 15 km from SH2.

From here, climb to Neill Forks Hut via Totara Flats and Cone Ridge (8 hours), then continue on to Maungahuka Hut (another 3 hours).

Mangahuka Hut is 6 hours from Anderson Memorial Hut.

There is no heating at Maungahuka Hut so it can get quite cold. Go prepared with extra layers/warm clothing.

Visibility is often very poor on the Main Range. Only experienced and properly equipped trampers should attempt to cross the Tararua Peaks, especially during winter conditions.