1990AJ Hackett code of practice
Written with the adventure, construction and tourism industries two years after the first commercial jump at Kawarau; “now an industry standard for Australia and New Zealand”.
Source: AJ Hackett Bungy NZ, Safety
Guide · 8 sites · 7 grounds · operators' own rules
Bungee jumping: weight limit, age, cost and safety
The cord is chosen for your weight.
That is the whole safety system.
A bungee cord is not one-size-fits-all: the crew weighs you, writes the number on your hand and picks the cord for that band. That is why every site publishes a minimum and a maximum, and why the numbers differ – 35 to 150 kg at Kawarau, 50 to 105 kg at the Europabrücke. This guide lists the rules at every bungee on our grounds, what a jump costs, and what is genuinely known about how often it goes wrong.
Who can go
Operators' own limits on 8 grounds
Weight is the safety system. The elastic cord is calibrated for a band of body weights: too light and you don't stretch it far enough to dampen the rebound, too heavy and you stretch it too far towards the water or the ground. Sites therefore run several cords and publish the band they cover – typically 35–45 kg at the bottom, 105–150 kg at the top. The crew weighs you on arrival and writes the figure on your hand; it is not negotiable, and the cord is rigged for it. Tandem jumps have their own, higher combined limit.
Age follows the waiver: 10 in New Zealand with a parent's signature, 14 in Switzerland and at Victoria Falls, 16 in Austria, 18 in Costa Rica. Medical exclusions are the same everywhere and are checked on the form: pregnancy, heart conditions, high blood pressure, epilepsy, recent surgery or dislocations, eye conditions such as high myopia and glaucoma – the head-down deceleration raises pressure in the eyes. Glasses come off; AJ Hackett offers prescription goggles.
| Ground | Stop | Weight | Age | Also |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queenstown | Bungy · Kawarau Bridge, the original, 1988 | 35–150 kg solo; 235 kg tandem | 10+; under 15 with adult consent | water touch on request |
| Queenstown | Bungy, swing & catapult · Nevis Valley, AJ Hackett | 45–127 kg | 13+; under 15 with consent | 8.5 s freefall |
| Rotorua, Taupō & the North Island | Bungy & cliff swing · Waikato river, Taupō | 35–140 kg solo; 180 kg tandem | 10+; under 15 with consent | NZ's highest water touch |
| Interlaken | Bungy from a cable car · Stockhorn, Erlenbach | 45–115 kg | 14+ | April to October |
| Victoria Falls | Bungee, swing & slide · Victoria Falls Bridge | 40–120 kg | 14+ | swing and slide on the same bridge |
| Tyrol & the Zugspitze | Bungee · Europabrücke, Brenner motorway near Innsbruck | 50–105 kg incl. clothing | 16+; under 18 with guardian's consent | sports clothing required |
| Costa Rica | Bungee · Monteverde | 50–113 kg | 18+ | jump from an aerial tram |
| Whistler & the Sea to Sky | Bungee · Cheakamus River, Whistler | about 65–300 lb, must fit the harness | no age limit; under 16 with parent's signature | booked direct |
What it costs
Cheapest bookable offer per ground, as retrieved Sept 25, 2026
A bungee jump costs roughly €90–110 at the cheaper sites (Victoria Falls, Taupō) and €185–260 for the big ones – Nevis, Stockhorn, Monteverde. Whistler and the Europabrücke sell direct only. Photos and video are extra almost everywhere; a second jump the same day is usually discounted.
| Ground | Offer | From | Reviews | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria Falls | Victoria Falls: bridge swing | $100.50 | ★ 5.0 · 3 | Book → |
| Costa Rica | Monteverde: bungee jumping experience | $107 | ★ 4.9 · 14 | Book → |
| Rotorua, Taupō & the North Island | Taupō: AJ Hackett cliff-face swing | $137.33 | ★ 5.0 · 10 | Book → |
| Queenstown | Queenstown: Nevis Swing with 70-m freefall | $185.74 | ★ 4.9 · 151 | Book → |
| Interlaken | From Interlaken: Stockhorn bungy jump | €253.89 | ★ 4.9 · 140 | Book → |
| Queenstown | Bungy · Kawarau Bridge, the original, 1988 | on site | – | Sold direct |
| Tyrol & the Zugspitze | Bungee · Europabrücke, Brenner motorway near Innsbruck | on site | – | Sold direct |
| Whistler & the Sea to Sky | Bungee · Cheakamus River, Whistler | on site | – | Sold direct |
How dangerous is it
Here is the honest answer: nobody keeps a public, national bungee accident count the way the USPA does for skydiving or the DHV for paragliding. What exists is thin. A 2012 review in Medicine and Sport Science found risk “only sporadically reported in the literature, most often in connection with eye injuries, but also rare events of serious, life-threatening injuries and even death” – the eye injuries come from the pressure spike when you hang head-down and rebound. The industry's answer is process, not statistics: AJ Hackett wrote a code of practice in 1990 that became the Australian and New Zealand standard, cords are retired after a fixed number of jumps, and every jumper is weighed and double-checked before the count. The deaths that make the news – and there are a handful worldwide each year – cluster at unregulated pop-up operators, not at the sites listed here. Choose the operator by its licence and audit, not by its price.
2012only systematic medical review
Søreide, Stavanger University Hospital: bungee risk is “only sporadically reported”, mostly eye injuries, with “rare events of serious, life-threatening injuries and even death”.
8,100searches per month for “bungee jumping accidents”, USA
The most-searched safety question of any adventure activity in our research – ahead of “skydiving weight limit”. The answer above is as much as the data allows.
Source: DataForSEO keyword data, Sept 2026 (Thrillgrounds research)
What to wear
- Closed shoes that lace up – the ankle harness sits over them at most sites. No sandals, no slip-ons.
- Empty pockets, no jewellery, no glasses. Anything loose leaves at the top of the arc. Prescription safety goggles are available at AJ Hackett sites.
- Comfortable clothes for the weather. The Europabrücke requires sports clothing – trainers, socks, long trousers, a long-sleeved top – as a condition of jumping.
- Long hair tied back. On water-touch jumps, expect to get wet to the shoulders.
Source: AJ Hackett Bungy NZ FAQs; Rupert Hirner Bungy Jumping, AGB
First time
- The weigh-in is public: the number goes on your hand in marker pen and the crew reads it out when they rig the cord. That is the check.
- Look at the horizon, not down, and jump out, not off. The crew counts you down; hesitating on the edge makes it harder, not easier.
- The freefall is short – 4 seconds at Victoria Falls, 8.5 at the Nevis – and the rebound is the part nobody expects. You bounce three or four times.
- Water touch is optional at Kawarau and Taupō: say so at the weigh-in.
- Book the swing as well if you are unsure: same site, same height, a fraction of the fear.
Before you go
Is there a weight limit for bungee jumping?
Yes, and it works both ways. Minimums are 35–50 kg, maximums 105–150 kg depending on the site: Kawarau takes 35–150 kg solo, the Nevis 45–127, Stockhorn 45–115, the Europabrücke 50–105 kg including clothing. You are weighed on arrival and the cord is chosen for your band.
How old do you have to be to bungee jump?
10 at AJ Hackett's Kawarau and Taupō sites (under 15 with a parent's consent), 13 at the Nevis, 14 at Stockhorn and Victoria Falls, 16 at the Europabrücke, 18 at Monteverde. Whistler Bungee has no age limit but requires a parent's signature under 16.
How much does a bungee jump cost?
From about €90–110 at Victoria Falls and Taupō to €185–260 for the Nevis, Stockhorn or Monteverde. Whistler and the Europabrücke are booked direct. Photos and video are extra. The table above shows the cheapest bookable offer on each ground.
How dangerous is bungee jumping?
There is no national accident register for bungee, so nobody can give you a rate per jump the way skydiving can. The medical literature reports mostly eye injuries from the head-down pressure spike and rare serious cases. Licensed operators working to a code of practice – AJ Hackett's dates from 1990 – have run millions of jumps; the fatalities that make the news are overwhelmingly at unregulated operators.
Who should not bungee jump?
Pregnant women, and anyone with a heart condition, high or low blood pressure, epilepsy, recent surgery, fractures or dislocations, neurological disorders, glaucoma or high myopia – every site asks on the waiver and can refuse. If you are over 45 with any of these, most operators want a doctor's letter.
Bungee or swing – which is scarier?
Bungee. The swing at the same site starts from the same height but you sit in a harness, swing through an arc and never hang head-down. Most sites sell both; the Nevis and Kawarau swings are next to the bungy platforms.