Ski Chile

One of the four leading ski areas in the southern hemisphere, there are just over a dozen Chilean ski centres stretching along the Andean mountains from north to south in the country.

The ski season here typically lasts from early June to late September.

Chile’s ski resorts have built a reputation for great powder and spectacular heli-skiing with several resorts marketed particularly heavily in North America as summer skiing destinations.

One difference from other southern hemisphere ski nations is that there are several major ski areas within a comparatively short drive of the capital, Santiago so visitors can combine skiing in Chile with a city break or business.

Most of Chile’s ski areas were established after the second world war, but the oldest, El Colorado, still the closest to Santiago (45km/28 miles), built its first lift way back in 1936 – one of the world’s first dedicated ski lifts.

People had however been able to ski Chile for more than four decades before, using the then newly-built Argentina-Chile railway line in the 1890s as a ‘ski lift’.

At the other extreme, although linked to El Colorado by lifts and piste in Chile’s version of the famous French ‘3 Valleys’ is Valle Nevado, which has a more cutting edge design very reminiscent of the more stylish French purpose built ski areas. It opened in 1988 and has been arguably the most innovative Chillean ski area over the past few decades and continues to expand both on the slopes, quite frequently adding new lifts and runs, and resort facilities.

The third ski area in this ‘3 Valleys’ is La Parva which was built by Europeans in the 1950s before being commercialised by Americans and then run by Chileans since the late 1980s. Originally Chile’s highest resort it was also home to the country’s first quad chairlift.

The most famous of Chile's ski resorts, its original ski area and later destination resort, is Portillo in the north of the country. Particularly popular with North American guests, it has a kind of private club ambience from the early years of ski vacations, although with all modern conveniences. All catering and facilities are focused primarily in the resort’s main hotel complex. Today there's one employee for every guest resulting in high service standards.

Host of the 1966 World Alpine Skiing Championships, Portillo has easy and intermediate groomed slopes plus some of the toughest skiing in the southern hemisphere, with heliskiing an option, giving views of the Western Hemisphere's highest mountain - Aconcagua.

In the south of the country Termas de Chillan mixes a five star hotel and warm thermal springs with one of the country’s six leading ski resorts. On the downside the area has had problems with seismic activity including earthquake damage in the past decade, on the upside there are 10,000 hectares of heliskiing terrain around the main resort.

Villarica-Pucon located on the slopes of the still active Villarica volcano which gives it the highest ski area in southern South America, has similar problems. Lift towers incorporate rubber bungs to absorb minor quakes from volcano, and ash which sometimes issues from the summit tends to drift away from the ski slopes on the prevailing winds.
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Chile: latest snow conditions round-up


CHILE REPORT There's been colder and sometimes snowy weather in Chile too but as yet without quite the big falls that have been reported in southerly Argentina. El Colorado Farellones posted its first snow covering of the autumn, a light dusting, on Tuesday morning.

Summary of forecast snowfall and ski conditions for resorts in Chile.

Fresh snow is forecast at 7 resorts. Powder is reported at 0 resorts and 0 are reporting good piste conditions.

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All resorts

Ski resorts of Chile, alphabetically

Resort
snow depth
top and bottom

on-piste

off-piste

Last Snow

Next 9 Days
0–3 | 3–6 | 6–9
snow (cm)
Next 5 days weather forecast.
Freezing level (m)
Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

(1954m — 3349m)

snow report 4 days ago

1.0 cm
4 days ago
19.0
cloud part cloud part cloud light snow light snow
Mid station 2652 m
3200m 3150m 2800m 2400m 2500m

(1040m — 1540m)

snow report 3 days ago

opens in 32 days 13 cm
4 days ago
11.0
mod rain rain showers light rain light snow light snow
Mid station 1290 m
1950m 1850m 2150m 1250m 1200m

(1449m — 1899m)

snow report 3 days ago

11 cm
4 days ago
25.0
cloud rain showers light rain light snow mod snow
Mid station 1674 m
2150m 2200m 2550m 1750m 1750m

(357m — 576m)

snow report 6 days ago

2.0 cm
6 days ago
5.0
part cloud light rain clear cloud cloud
Mid station 466 m
1350m 950m 1050m 1100m 600m

(2246m — 2871m)

snow report 4 days ago

2.0 cm
5 days ago
1.0
cloud part cloud clear rain showers cloud
Mid station 2558 m
3600m 3550m 3300m 2650m 3050m

(1530m — 2399m)

snow report 3 days ago

opens in 25 days 5 cm
4 days ago
10.0
49.0
10.0
light snow rain showers light rain light snow mod snow
Mid station 1964 m
1800m 2050m 2300m 1500m 1600m

(2340m — 3480m)

snow report 4 days ago

opens in 32 days 6 cm
5 days ago
cloud part cloud clear rain showers light rain
Mid station 2910 m
3700m 3550m 3450m 2950m 3350m

(978m — 1280m)

snow report 4 days ago

4 cm
5 days ago
33.0
16.0
light rain clear part cloud light snow snow showers
Mid station 1129 m
2050m 1500m 1350m 950m 750m

(2434m — 3333m)

snow report 8 days ago

1.0 cm
5 days ago
part cloud part cloud clear part cloud cloud
Mid station 2884 m
3850m 3800m 3650m 3000m 3500m

(1100m — 1600m)

snow report 3 days ago

12 cm
4 days ago
4.0
33.0
4.0
light rain light rain mod rain light snow snow showers
Mid station 1350 m
1750m 2000m 1800m 1350m 1350m

(2699m — 3669m)

snow report 3 days ago

opens in 11 days 7 cm
5 days ago
cloud part cloud clear part cloud light rain
Mid station 3184 m
3700m 3600m 3500m 2950m 3350m

(1896m — 2201m)

snow report 6 days ago

opens in 32 days 3.0 cm
9 days ago
cloud part cloud clear rain showers cloud
Mid station 2048 m
3700m 3700m 3500m 2800m 3300m

(1500m — 1800m)

snow report 3 days ago

8 cm
4 days ago
10.0
31.0
10.0
light snow rain showers light rain light snow mod snow
Mid station 1650 m
2000m 2100m 2250m 1500m 1650m

(1540m — 2400m)

snow report 3 days ago

opens in 32 days 11 cm
4 days ago
17.0
cloud rain showers cloud light snow light snow
Mid station 1970 m
2450m 2450m 2550m 1800m 1850m

(2548m — 3310m)

snow report yesterday

opens in 17 days 1.0 cm
2 days ago
cloud part cloud part cloud part cloud light rain
Mid station 2929 m
3600m 3350m 3150m 2850m 3300m

(2800m — 4500m)

snow report yesterday

1.0 cm
yesterday
1.0
cloud part cloud clear snow showers light snow
Mid station 3650 m
3700m 3600m 3450m 2900m 3300m

(2015m — 4845m)

snow report 3 days ago

1.0 cm
4 days ago
5.0
light snow part cloud clear snow showers cloud
Mid station 3430 m
3350m 3300m 3000m 2650m 2750m

(2690m — 3740m)

snow report 4 days ago

3.0 cm
5 days ago
part cloud part cloud clear clear cloud
Mid station 3215 m
3900m 3900m 3750m 3100m 3600m

(2859m — 3669m)

snow report yesterday

opens in 24 days 1.0 cm
yesterday
cloud part cloud clear snow showers light snow
Mid station 3264 m
3700m 3600m 3450m 2900m 3300m

(1480m — 1960m)

snow report 3 days ago

opens in 39 days 10 cm
4 days ago
14.0
36.0
10.0
light snow rain showers light rain light snow snow showers
Mid station 1720 m
1950m 2050m 1850m 1400m 1400m

(1230m — 1760m)

snow report 3 days ago

10 cm
4 days ago
4.0
23.0
3.0
light snow rain showers light rain light snow light snow
Mid station 1495 m
1950m 1800m 1600m 1200m 1250m