Holiday Programmes

Hillary Outdoors is an accredited outdoor provider for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Hillary Award offered at Tongariro and Coromandel during the school holidays.

Designed for 14 – 18 year old’s and offered at our Tongariro and Coromandel Centres (depending on dates), our school holiday programmes offer fun, action-packed challenges in the great outdoors.

Each programme has a different focus depending on student age and level of challenge required and will involve physical activity each day so a moderate fitness level will help you make the most of the programme. But you don’t need to be into sport or the outdoors, the main thing you need is a willingness to “have a go”. 

Holiday Action Challenge

The Holiday Action Challenge is a multi-day residential programme with an emphasis on building interpersonal skills while having fun. It is for students aged between 14-18 years who are keen to meet new people and try new experiences. Our instructors will work with the students to select activities that meet group and personal goals and to push them to their level of challenge. The groups will progress from doing day trips at the start of the week to doing an overnight expedition at the end of the week as a final challenge.

Hillary Leadership

The Hillary Leadership Programme is a 7-day programme for 16-18 year olds. This programme is great for (but not limited to) student prefects, sports captains, school council members and students entering the workforce as the course uses the outdoors as a medium for exploring leadership theory, skills and related issues. The programme culminates with a double overnight expedition. 

These programmes meet the requirements for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Hillary Award – Gold Residential! Find out more

Since 1972, Hillary Outdoors has worked on the philosophy that all youth, regardless of their finances or ability, should have equal opportunity to enhance their lives through outdoor education.

The Hillary Step Scholarship (HSS) programme helps make that happen for rangatahi and subsequently whānau and hapori by awarding Scholarships to help cover the cost of Hillary Outdoors programmes.

Thanks to our incredible community of Funders, we have overcome financial inequities and empowered thousands of rangatahi from across Aotearoa to have life changing experiences through outdoor and adventure education.

For more information about the Hillary Step Scholarship programme and other funding opportunities, check out our Funding Information Pack for schools, groups, organisations and individuals.

Note: You must have a confirmed booking with Hillary Outdoors to be eligible for a HSS.

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