An adventurous activity in mountainous terrain has launched in Wanaka.

It's called the Via Ferrata and it's a stairway of iron rungs designed for rock climbers who want the added feature of extreme safety.

The idea came from the mountains of Europe where it was once used by farmers and soldiers to access higher ground.

The rungs are drilled into the rock and Mark Morrison from Wildwire Wanaka says safety is paramount.

Morrison says pretty much anyone can do it as long as they're physically active and keen.

There's two levels of climbing difficulty available at the moment, but there are plans to take the Via Ferrata even higher in the future.