Aoraki Mt Cook from the Hermitage Hotel lounge c.1960. Photo: Alexander Turnbull LibraryFor more than 130 years Aoraki Mt Cook has been a cornerstone of New Zealand tourism, since the first Hermitage hotel was built at the base of the mountain in 1884. Tourism in the South Island was pioneered by a man called Rodolf Wigley, who founded the Mount Cook Group of tourism and transport companies, Sarah Johnston from Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision told Jesse Mulligan. Photo: Alexander Turbull LibraryWigley realised the potential of using motor transport to get people to the southern alps, she says. “When the first crossed the Crown range and stopped at Cardrona, it was considered such an occasion that the school children were granted a holiday.”NZ Railways Mt Cook tourism brochure 1934: Credit: Alexander Turnbull LibraryThe Heritage at Mt Cook has gone through various iterations since it was first built in 1884, Johnston says.

Source: Otago Daily Times May 28, 2020 01:41 UTC