Back to main site >
Search Our News Hub
EnvironmentLifestyleRoundupsSki ResortsTechnique / SafetyTravel

Snow-Forecast’s Rolling News on Ski Resorts Re-Opening (2021)

Last Updated 4 December 2021 at 14.05 GMT (Updates so far since commenced on 5 May 2020: 1072) The web's most comprehensive guide of ski resorts opening around the world during the pandemic. An estimated 500+ Ski Areas Are Currently Open Worldwide in at least 16 Countries on 3 Continents including: Asia: China, Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan Europe: Andorra, Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland. North America: Canada, USA Browse by country: North America: Canada USA Europe: Andorra Austria Bulgaria Finland France Germany Italy Norway Scotland Spain Sweden Switzerland Asia: China Japan NEW: Canada and the US now require arrivals to have a very recent negative virus test, as well as being fully vaccinated, before entering the country. (4 Dec) NEW: Andorra requires everyone over the age of 16 to have proof of vaccination, a negative test or a…

Snowhunter 2nd December 2021 3
Ski ResortsTechnique / SafetyTravel

French 21-22 Season Starts Snowy as List of Rules To Go Skiing Grow

The main ski season in France is getting underway despite a growing list of requirements skiers need to meet to get on to the slopes. Ski resorts have reported 20-60cm of fresh snowfall in the past week and as a result, great early season conditions, particularly up high. Tignes was the first to open, back in October, and half a dozen more centres opened at the end of last month. This weekend will  see more than 20 opening, some for ‘preview weekends’ earlier than their expected opening dates, thanks to the snowfall. Snow piling up at Avoriaz Rising pandemic levels in France, in common with most of Europe, means a covid pass is now required to get on the lifts,…

Snowhunter 3rd December 2021
AdventuresSki ResortsTechnique / SafetyTravel

Canadian Resort Closed By Too Much Snow

Although much of north America has been having a slow start to the 21-22 season with warm weather and limited snowfall, Eastern BCC and Western Alberta have been enjoying some fantastic powder days. Ski resorts including Sun Peaks,  Sunshine and Lake Louise currently have the most terrain open of any ski area on the planet. But the snowfall is now starting to cause avalanche danger issues, with a numberof ski areas reporting problems with avalanche danger on access roads. Yesterday, December 1st, Parks Canada closed the access road to Sunshine Village near Banff for the entire day due to heavy snow and extreme avalanche risks. Sunshine last week The resort later announced it will be closed today, December 2nd, too,…

Snowhunter 2nd December 2021
Ski Resorts

Spanish Resort Expands Into Third Valley

The Spanish ski resort of Cerler, which is celebrating 50 years sine opening this year, will expand its ski area in to a third valley, Castanesa, this season. The new lift, one of Doppelmayr’s efficient D-Line models and able to carry 1,800 skiers per hour (expandable to 2,400), will open up four new runs and take Cerler’s total ski area size up to 80km. The new Castanesa lift climbs 352 vertical metres from 2,043m to 2,395m altitude giving access to the one blue, two red and one black new runs. 18 new snowmaking cannons have been installed along them. However, the new lift it is just the first of the resort’s planned expansion which will see three more new chairlifts…

Snowhunter 28th November 2021 1
Lifestyle

New Welsh Outdoor Centre With Major Dry Ski Slope Moves Forward

Plans for what has, in previous incarnations, been priced at a £200 million year-round leisure resort development in the Afan Valley of South Wales have been granted conditional planning approval. Originally unveiled as the Afan Valley Leisure Resort project in spring 2017, the centre was originally slated to offer a range of outdoor sports including white water rafting, rock climbing, mountain biking and what was billed as “the world’s largest artificial downhill ski slope” on 130 hectares of former forestry plantation land on the southern slopes of the River Afan Valley. People would stay in one of 600 lodges and flats or a proposed hotel with facilities also including a spa and restaurants The planned opening year was originally 2021.…

Snowhunter 26th November 2021
Technique / Safety

Covid Regulations For Hitting the Slopes in France

Ski areas are opening for the 21-22 season across the Alps.  Something that didn’t happen this time last year in countries like France, Germany and Italy. So far so good, except for the hopefully quick lockdown in Austria anyway, but each ski nation has different rules as to what they require of skiers and boarders to get on the slopes. And the rules keep changing depending on local infection levels from one week to the next. In Italy you need to show proof of vaccination, recovery from infection or of a recent negative test result. In Germany you can now only ski if you’re vaccinated or recovered from as recent infection, having a negative test result is no longer enough,…

Snowhunter 25th November 2021
Uncategorised

WORLD SNOW ROUNDUP #218

Issued: 24 November 2021 By Patrick "Snowhunter" Thorne European RoundupNorth American RoundupAsia Roundup WORLD OVERVIEW It was a key weekend in the start of the 2021-22 season on Saturday as we went from dozens of ski areas having opened to over a hundred now operating as many more open for their seasons in Asia, Europe and North America.  For quite a few of them, particularly in France, Germany and Italy, it is quite an emotional event as for most it is their first season start for two years, having lost last winter to COVID lockdowns. But, sadly, COVID lockdowns are back with Austria, which had been leading the way with the most ski areas open in the world, announcing a 20-day…

MarcD 24th November 2021
RoundupsSki Resorts

Dolomiti Superski Unveils Ride-On-The-Roof Cable Car

Italy’s Dolomiti Superski resort has become the latest to unveil a cable car with an ‘outdoor balcony’ where users can stand and ride up in the open air if they wish. Describing the new lift at Carezza as “a one-of-a-kind convertible cable car,” Dolomiti Superski say it is nearly 4km long, climbs 644 vertical metres in seven minutes connecting San Cipriano with Fromm Alm and has a capacity of 60 people.  Those on the ‘balcony’ will have an uninterrupted view of the stunning scenery of the Catinaccio. DACHSTEIN NEUE PANORAMAGONDEL 18.5.2013 FOTO. HEINZ WEEBER The lift is believed to be the third of its kind following similar installations on cable cars at the Dachstein glacier in Austria (above) and on…

Snowhunter 22nd November 2021
RoundupsSki Resorts

NZ Ski Area Plans to Double in Size Thanks to 230m Long Tunnel

One of New Zealand’s fastest growing ski areas has ambitions to become one of the country’s largest too. The operators of The Remarkables ski area, NZSki, have announced plans to bore a 230 metre long skier’s tunnel in order to access a whole new valley of skiing and more than double the resort’s available terrain. The tunnel, to be created near the top of the Curvey Basin chairlift, would provide access to backcountry terrain in an area behind the existing ski area and known as The Doolans. A 1.4-kilometre long chairlift would be constructed within the new terrain which would add more than 500 hectare’s to the resort’s existing 385 hectares to grow it to 900 hectares (2,224 acres). NZSki…

Snowhunter 20th November 2021
Lifestyle

Snowboard, Skateboard & Surf On The Same Day in Switzerland

A group that has runs an indoor freestyle multi-sports hall in the Swiss ski resort of Crans Montana, and which has recently added a surf park to its attractions is to take over the resort’s snowpark this winter, raising the possibility of its clients being able to snowboard, surfboard and skateboard on the same day. One of the company’s founders described it as a “childhood dream.” From the start of the winter season, the Alaïa group, in collaboration with the company Helvepark and its main partner Tudor, will be taking over the management of Crans-Montana’s Snowpark. Following the opening in May of Alaïa Bay in Sion and Alaïa Wake Surf in Le Bouveret, the young Valais start-up organisation has signed…

Snowhunter 19th November 2021