Skiers and snowboarders took their first trips up the new Soho Lift yesterday (July 5).

The high-speed six-seater chairlift unlocks access to 150ha of skiable terrain in Soho Basin, expanding Cardrona Alpine Resort’s ski area from 465ha to 615ha.

Snowmaking facilities are not in place at Soho Basin for this winter season so skiers and snowboarders have had to wait for enough snowfall before their first ride in the new chairlift.

Cardrona held a Soho Lift blessing ceremony last month (June 29) ahead of its opening, with speeches from representatives of Ngāi Tahu including Komene Cassidy, RealNZ CEO Dave Beeche Doppelmayr’s Garreth Hayman and tourism minister Louise Upston.

The new lift has capacity for 3,000 passengers per hour. PHOTO: Belle Grace

“It was incredible to celebrate with all the generations of Cardrona and RealNZ, including both the Lee and Hutchins families,” Cardrona and Treble Cone chief mountains officer Laura Hedley said.

"To get this lift and terrain open, after decades of dreaming of what could be... it's a pretty emotional moment for our entire team."

Early-season conditions still exist, so the terrain was mostly ungroomed and for advanced level skiers and snowboarders only.

The Soho Lift is 1,237m long, with 75 chairs, and a vertical rise of 379m.

It has 11 towers and is the same model as the $23M Shadow Basin chairlift by Doppelmayer at The Remarkables.