Last Updated 6 May 2021 at 16.00 GMT (Updates so far since commenced on 5 May 2020: 647
The web’s most comprehensive guide of ski resorts opening around the world during the pandemic.
An estimated 50+ Ski Areas Are Currently Open Worldwide in at least 20 Countries on 3 Continents including: Asia: Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Turkey. Europe: Armenia, Austria, Finland, Georgia, Norway, Russia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine. North America: Canada, USA
Ski areas in Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mongolia, Morocco, Pakistan*, Poland and Portugal wanted to open but governments in their countries or region have deemed it is not virus-safe to do so during the ski season. (*Closed due to business issues not virus).
Most ski areas in the northern hemisphere and all in Andorra, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Iraq, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Serbia, South Korea and Spain are closed due to the end of the ski season.
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North America:
Europe:
Asia:
- NEW: The EU says it will introduce a health pass by mid-June, allowing easy travel across the continent for those who had been vaccinated, had just tested negative or could prove they had recently recovered from COVID-19.
- NEW: France at lowest COVID death numbers since last October and plans easing on restrictions. Chamonix announces ski lifts will open from mid-May. (6th May)
- NEW: Italy says it will be ready for international tourism from mid-May, with its own green travel passport for those vaccinated, recently recovered from COVID or holding a negative test result (6th May).
- NEW: Winter Park in Colorado has extended its season to May 16th. (6th May) .
- NEW: Austria will offer free COVID tests to arrivals in order to encourage tourism. (6th May)
- Slovenia’s Krvevec will now stay open to ast least May 9th (2nd May).
- Slovakia’s Jasna will now stay open to at least May 9th (30 April)
- Austria’s Stubai Glacier will stay open for two extra long-weekends (Friday-Sunday) up to May 15th. (29 April)
- Austria’s Molltal glacier will re-open on 22nd May following the announcement that tourism can resume. (28 April)
- International leisure travel in to Lesotho is possible again, ahead of the 2021 ski season starting there in June. (28 April)
- Ski areas in Germany have all been closed again by a new government pandemic order. (27 April)
- Austria’s Kaunertaler Glacier says it will re-open from May 15th as Austria announces hospitality can re-open from the middle of next month. It has been closed all winter with hotels closed. (26 April)
- Austria’s hospitality can re-open from 19th May, hotels and restaurants at glacier ski areas still open then for summer skiing can re-open. (24 April).
- Ski areas in Scotland won’t be able to open any ski runs when they are allowed to reopen from Monday 26th April due to a lack of snow. (23 April)
- French ski resort Les 2 Alpes hopes to open earlier than thought – from 29th May – for summer skiing if permitted to do so by the French government (23 April)
- Austria’s Kitzsteinhorn Glacier has extended its season by two months to 24 July saying easing of Austrian tourism restrictions in mid-May has allowed it to do so. (23 April)
- Australian ski resort says strong pre-season demand, expects busy season, advises book early. (23 April)
- Only a dozen or so Swiss ski areas remain open, but diners can now get served in restaurants again, so long as outside on the terrace. (21 April)
- Crans Montana has announced it is staying open to June 6th. (April 19th)
- Ski areas in Slovenia have been allowed to re-open under new ‘red level’ restrictions following the latest lockdown there. A number, including Krvavec and Kanin – Sella Nevea/Bovec say they intend to stay open to early May. (18th April)
- Slovakian ski areas can re-open from 22nd April, with Jasna confirming they will do. (16 April)
- Glencoe is the only Scottish area that may offer lift-accessed skiing when the country’s ski areas are allowed to re-open from the 26th. (16 April)
- Whistler Blackcomb has more than 200 cases of the Brazil variant of the virus, believed to be part of the largest outbreak outside Brazil. (13 April)
- Andermatt in Switzerland has been closed suddenly as part of new restrictions across the canton where it is located (13 April)
- French resorts Les 2 Alpes and Tignes have announced they hope to open their glaciers for summer skiing and boarding from 18th June (les 2 Alpes also opening the previous two weekends), if permitted to by then. (10 April).
- New Zealand has announced a quarantine-free travel bubble which will allow Australians to visit this winter – a major boost for the country’s ski industry. (7 April)
- Ski areas in Slovenia have been closed once more as part of a new lockdown from 1-10 April. (2 April)
- More ski areas in BC are closing early due to tighter pandemic prevention measures in the province. Revelstoke say they are now closed for the season due to being unable to get adequate staff in due to new restrictions, Big White will close a week early.(1 April)
- Revelstoke say they cannot open on 31 March due to lack of staff due to new COVID restrictions in BC, Whistler say they will not now re-open for 20-21 season after 3 week closure order announced yesterday. (31 March)
- Whistler Blackcomb has been ordered to close for three weeks due to a spike in the Brazil variant of the coronavirus at North America’s largest ski area. (30th March)
- Scottish ski centre Glencoe says it hopes to open for 1-2 weeks in April/May when Scottish lockdown restrictions are due to end on 26th April. (30th March)
- The 4 Vallées have announced they’ll be closing a week earlier than planned this winter, on 18th rather than 25th April, as they face ongoing operating losses. The area has been operating what has been the largest ski area open in Europe this winter, at one point offering 370km of runs, about 80% of the maximum area, though more recently nearer 300km. (26 March)
- Ski areas in Slovenia have been allowed to re-open under new ‘red level’ restrictions following the latest lockdown there. A number, including Krvavec and Kanin – Sella Nevea/Bovec say they intend to stay open to early May. (18th April)
- Slovakian ski areas can re-open from 22nd April, with Jasna confirming they will do. (16 April)
- Glencoe is the only Scottish area that may offer lift-accessed skiing when the country’s ski areas are allowed to re-open from the 26th. (16 April)
- Whistler Blackcomb has more than 200 cases of the Brazil variant of the virus, believed to be part of the largest outbreak outside Brazil. (13 April)
- French resorts Les 2 Alpes and Tignes have announced they hope to open their glaciers for summer skiing and boarding from 18th June (les 2 Alpes also opening the previous two weekends), if permitted to by then. (10 April).
- New Zealand has announced a quarantine-free travel bubble which will allow Australians to visit this winter – a major boost for the country’s ski industry. (7 April)
(Headlines from earlier in the pandemic are archived below)
*** Scroll down to the country section below for more details and latest updates ***
Click the links below to see:
- Country-By-Country Update on what’s happening to ski resorts there.
- Operating In A Pandemic – What Has Changed?
- Common Sense
Please note ALL re-opened ski areas are exercising strict measures to reduce the risk of spread of the virus, see: ‘Operating In A Pandemic – What Has Changed?’ below.
(Please note updates are posted for each country when we hear of new developments. These are changing around the world at different times and sometimes without much publicity now so please contact us if you see something that needs updating. We run checks on all countries regularly but only update a section when we hear of something to update, with the most recent date for each country listed in its entry)
Northern Hemisphere – Summer Ski 2021
(Scroll down for info on countries with no ski areas open between mid-Spring and mid-Autumn 2021)
Austria
*** Updated 6th May, 2021 ***
Current Status: Most ski areas have now closed for the season Those that are still open are only open to locally based people only with no accommodation available until May 19th.
Austria Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metre (80 inches)
Austria Lifts Policy: No limit on the number of people using lifts (eg 6 strangers can share a 6 seat gondola cabin), but everyone must wear masks. In most areas it must be a surgical quality mask and at many a recent virus test must have been carried out.
Austria Centres Currently Open: 5
The current situation in Austria *
(*For the first year of the pandemic in Austria please scroll down):
For the start of May it is glacier ski areas open including Hintertux, the Kitzsteinhorn and the Pitztal, the latter staying open later in spring than usual. It was announced on 23rd April that the country’s hospitality industry could re-open from 19th May.
The Kaunertal glacier announced it would re-open from 15th May and the Molltal Glacier said it would from 22nd May, after both had been closed all winter due to pandemic operating restrictions.
The Stubai glacier initially said it would open in to June, then cut that back to a May 2nd closing day, but most recently switched back to offering Friday-Sunday operating to mid-May.
Canada
***Updated 6th May 2021 ***
Current Status: Most Centres Closed – end of season, A Few Still Open.
Canada Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metres (80 inches)
Canada Ski Centres Currently Open: 1
Western Canada’s ski centres saw cold temperatures and heavy snowfall in October leading Mt Norquay at Banff to announce its earliest ever opening and be the first in the country and second in North America to open for 20-21 on Saturday 24 October. Lake Louise was the second Canadian area to open, a week earlier than planned and also its earliest ever opening date, on 29th October.
Nakiska had planned to open on the 30th October but switched to 6th November and eventually opened on the 7th. Sunshine opened on the 9th and Panorama has opened to ski racers for trainers but not yet the general public.
Next to open around the weekend of 13-15 November were Marmot Basin in Alberta, the fifth in the province, and Cypress Mountain in BC, the first in the country’s far west. More areas including Big White and Sun Peaks opened soon after.
In the East of the country Mont Sainte Sauveur was the first area to open, on 30th October, following cold weather for snowmaking there. It began night skiing on the 6th November. A warm spell followed which delayed other eastern areas opening, but it’s now cooler again.
Canadian ski centres are operating with pandemic restrictions in place, stricter than in Europe including fewer people on the mountain, on lifts, social-distancing and the rest.
Pandemic restrictions were intensified in December with (among other measures across the country) non-essential travel bans in provinces including BC leading to prosecutions of skiers travelling to resorts from cities. On 15th December a cluster of 60 confirmed coronavirus cases was uncovered at Big White ski area. This later grew to well over 100, although cases were reported to be in isolation and the ski areas remained open, and a smaller cluster was uncovered at Nakiska.
At the end of December Ontario became the first region in North America to announce ski areas must close during their latest lockdown in January. Rising rates and tough restrictions have lead to fears that Quebec would also close its ski areas but to date that has not happened.
In early February Ontario’s government said they hoped to open resorts imminently and did so in the middle of that month.
As of the start of April most Canadian ski areas were fully open and operating successfully under pandemic protocols. However in the last week of March there were dramatic developments in BC. Rising cases of the Brazil variant of the virus led health officials to shut down North America’s largest ski area Whistler Blackcomb for three weeks. It then said it was closed for the season now, Other BC ski areas also closed, Revelstoke as it couldn’t find staff, Big White a week early to limit the danger of spread, it said.
Most Canadian areas had closed, largely as normal for the springtime end-of-season by mid-April. Whistler, it transpired, had over 200 cases of the Brazil variant with BC as a whole having the highest number found anywhere outside Brazil.
Some ski areas including those around Banff and Jasper in Alberta as well as Sauveur in Quebec are still open in to May, with Sunshine the only centre still open after May 2nd.
What Happened in Canada During the First 6 Months of the Pandemic
Most of Canada’s ski areas would normally have closed by the time the country eased lockdown in June. Just one, Whistler Blackcomb, normally offers glacier skiing through to early July in a normal year. This year however, it has decided not to open that facility, although it could have, and did re-open for hiking, biking and so on.
Mont St Sauveur in Quebec has opened a summer terrain park in recent years using snow left from the previous winter and they confirmed on May 20th that they have snow left this year and will open the snowpark if Quebec’s lockdown is eased in time. However so far that did not seem to happen.
China
*** Updated 23rd April, 2021 ***
Current status: Mostly Closed – End of season – some open.
China Social Distancing Requirement: 1 Metre (40 inches)
China Ski Centres Currently Open: 5+
With the Winter Olympics only a year away, China is getting ever more excited about winter sports and keen to out the virus behind them.
Several of the country’s leading ski areas including Wanlong and Thaiwoo opened first runs using snowmaking in late October. Another area was reported to have opened in late September.
Most ski areas are reported to have opened across the country’s ski regions by the end of 2020, all with pandemic-spread prevention measures in place.
January 2021 was thankfully very different to the mass lockdown and resort closures of January 2020 therefore with no reports of any ski areas being required to close.
Ski areas continued to operate through February and March without any major incidents reported internationally. as of the start of April most ski areas in China were closed due to springtime weather thawing snow cover. Some of the more snowsure continue to operate.
Unfortunately though test events ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics due to be staged in February 2021 had to be cancelled due to international travel restrictions, as they were in 2020, so it appears the Olympics will arrive without international test events having been staged – a first for a Winter Olympics in the modern era.
What Happened in China During Winter – Spring 2020
China was where it all began of course and the country’s ski areas were closed and the country largely in lockdown from mid-January to mid-March. It also became the first country where ski areas re-opened in the latter half of March, but with numerous pandemic-re-emergence-prevention measures in place.
Finland
*** Updated on April 1st, 2021 ***
Current status: Most areas open.
Finland Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metre (80 inches).
Finland Centres Currently Open: 10
The 2020-21 ski season started in Finland at 9.30am on Friday 2nd October, 2020 when two of its largest resorts – Levi and Ruka – re-opened after six months closure.
They used snow-farming, saving snow from the previous winter through the summer then spreading it back out on the slopes to create a few runs as it gets colder again in the Autumn to open and were among the first ski areas without glaciers to open in Europe for the new season in this way.
A warm spell in November followed but it turned colder later in the month and Levi hosted World Cup racing as usual on 21st/22nd November.
Finland has also so far managed to suppress the second wave of the pandemic there more successfully than many other countries in Europe. Most of the country’s ski areas opened in the first half of December and as of February were remaining open with pandemic-spread prevention measures in place.
Cases have been increasing though and at the end of February the government announced stricter lockdown rules, however ski areas have so far been allowed to stay open, stressing the need to abide by pandemic operating protocols.
A number of Finnish ski areas, including Levi and Ruka, have said they plan to stay open to early May.
What Happened in Finland In The Spring 2020 Pandemic?
Finland was one of the last countries in Europe to decide to close ski areas as the pandemic took hold in March, closing the last in early April.
Several centres here use snow farming, preserving last season’s snow under cover through the warmer months then spreading it back out on the slopes in early autumn when things cool down, to open early. Levi and Ruka aim to open in early October.
Levi, due to open on October 2nd, is pictured above in mid-August.
France
*** Updated on April 24th, 2021 ***
Current Status: All ski lifts closed due to pandemic restrictions, other than on beginner slopes for children. Most ski resorts open with runs groomed for ski touring.
France Social Distancing Requirement: 1 Metre (40 inches). Wearing a mask is compulsory in lift queues and throughout the ski lift journey for people over 11 years old.
France Ski Centres Currently Open: 0
However on 28th October President Macron announced a new lockdown from 30th October to 1st December to try to quall rising virus numbers so ski areas have unfortunately closed again (Les 2 Alpes had been due to close again through November anyway after its 2-week October opening).
On 24th November as the lockdown was nearing its end President Macron announced that the country’s ski areas would probably not be allowed to re-open for Christmas and New Year but he hoped would be able to open in January and said a final decision on that would be made by 4th December.
On 26th November the French Prime minister appeared to confirm that ski areas should be closed until January. The country is working with Germany and Italy to try to create an all-EU ban on ski areas opening until January 10th. On December 11th the Reuters news agency said French Government sources said they were looking at January 7th as the season start day.
Most French resorts have now said they plan to open for visitors at Christmas even if they could not run the ski lifts. There is growing anger in the French Alps with protests and petitions for people unable to work due to the restrictions.
On 9th December it was announced that the group which represents French ski resorts, Domaines Skiables de France, is suing the French government over its plans to shut down ski areas over Christmas and New Year
Some reports indicated French resorts will open on January 11th, others January 20th, but it was officially announced on December 11th that January 7th 2021 was the agreed date with the French government.
An update on January 20th confirmed that opening in mid or now even late February was “highly improbable”
Concerns have been raised about people hiking up to ski runs at closed resorts when they may not have been made avalanche safe during the closed period.
Les 2 Alpes in France have groomed two blue pistes, the longest with 750 metres of vertical, for ski tourers to use. Other resorts have done similar and many have opened children’s nursery slopes, but business is dramatically down.
The French Government have now closed borders to non-EU nationals and confirmed on 1st February that ski areas would not be allowed to open until at least March.
Earlier in the day around 100 ski area workers blocked access to the Frejus Tunnel between France and Italy protesting against resulting hardship.
As of the start of April there has been no direct update from the French government on their plans for ski areas. But the country continues to be hit hard by the virus with restaurants closed so reopening ski areas currently looks very unlikely.
On 10th April Les 2 Alpes and Tignes announced they hope to open their glaciers for summer skiing and boarding from 18th June (les 2 Alpes also opening the previous two weekends), if permitted to by then.
A few weeks later Les 2 Alpes brought forward the date they hope to start daily summer skiing to the end of May. Val d’Isere also confirmed plans for a four week summerski season in June and July.
French Glacier Ski Centre operations in Summer 2020
All three remaining French glacier ski areas re-opened in June for their summer ski seasons. Resorts are expected to begin autumn operations on the glacier at Tignes from 10th October.
Lifts are also running again at some resorts resorts like Chamonix, with temperature checks for users, to access high altitude ski touring terrain,
Staff in the three French glacier ski areas that open for summer skiing,
Les 2 Alpes, Tignes and Val d’Isere, were able to go back in to work since May 11th to prepare for the easing of the French lockdown.
Initially resorts focused on French visitors but borders re-opened across the EU through June and then with some other countries.
Val d’Isere was open to July 11, Tignes to August 2nd and Les 2 Alpes to 30 August.
Originally the centre had thought it too would initially only open for race team training initially then for the general public later in the month but it is now open for both with a maximum of 500 tickets a day in the first week to recreational skiers and boarders then 600 from week two.
A month in to operations a spokesperson for the centre said, ” It has all gone really well, helped by fabulous snow conditions. Social distancing for the lift, wearing masks on the lift, and booking online with numbers limited is working very smoothly.”
France had one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe with the nation coming together to stop the spread of the virus. Many initiatives were reported including ski instructors turning their talents to stitching old ski jackets into face masks; Michelin starred ski area chefs working to supply food to frontline medical staff, and French ski gear manufacturers switching to PPE manufacture.
Germany
*** Updated April 27th, 2021 ***
Current Status: All ski areas closed again due to pandemic restrictions. Most would be closed anyway now due to end of season.
Germany Social Distancing Requirement: 1.5 Metres (5 Feet)
Number of German Ski areas open: 0
Germany was due to start its 2020-21 season in mid-November at the Zugspitze glacier, which reported great autumn conditions after lots of October snowfall. However the country’s second lockdown, later extended to December 20th stopped that.
Bavaria, and later the German Chancellor, led efforts coordinated with France and Italy to close ski slopes across the EU in to January and it now looks like German slopes were closed to at least January 10th, 2021.
German ski areas say the order is unfair as they are not the sort of resorts with lively apres ski and have pandemic spread prevention measures in place.
On January 7th it was announced Germany has further delayed its opening date for ski resorts. The Zugspitze Glacier says they now hope it will be by February. The centre, the country’s highest, says they may extend the ski season if snow conditions allow in spring.
On January 20th German leaders extended the lockdown there until 14 February at the earliest and surgical or higher protection masks will now be required in shops and public transport.
The lockdown was extended again on 12th February to 7th March and ski areas remained closed.
on 15 March ski areas in the German region of Bavaria, home to most of the country’s larger resorts, said they won’t now be opening this season, even if they are eventually allowed to by the regional government.
Hopes of ski slope re-opening were raised slightly a fortnight ago when ski areas in several other German regions, including Willingen and Winterberg, were allowed to re-open.
It seemed unlikely Bavarian ski areas would be allowed to open though as Bavaria’s government was a leader in the move, back in December, to try to close all European ski areas at the start of the season. That policy was agreed with France, Italy and the rest of Germany, as well as, partially, Andorra and Austria, but ignored by Switzerland, Scandinavian ski areas and there was a 50/50 split in Eastern European ski nations.
Germany’s ski lift operators association said collectively Bavarian ski areas lost around €90 million through their closure between November and March with thousands of worked laid off and the closures impacting many more people in the wider region. Government compensation, they say, is completely inadequate due to qualification restrictions and the fact that it is based on last season’s income, which had been very poor, rather than average income.
In late April it was announced the small area that had closed should close again due to new pandemic measures by the Federal government.
The Zugspitze glacier ski area, Germany’s highest, had earlier held out hope it might re-open later in spring as it has good snow conditions later in the season than most of the other German ski areas.
Italy
***Updated 27 April 2021 ***
Current Status: All ski areas closed.
Italy Social Distancing Requirement: 1 Metre (40 inches).
Italy Ski Centres Currently Open: 0
Italy’s ski season was gathering pace in October with four areas open and great conditions thanks to early autumn snowfall by the end of the month.
Initially two of the four areas stayed open (Sulden and Val Senales) to all however, apparently as Italian regions take a different approach to the national advice. Val Senales confirmed on 28 October it plans to stay open, but then on 4th November announced from 8th November it would only be open to race teams Sulden said the same.
A third, Cervinia, closed for three days but then re-opened to race teams only from 29th October. The fourth, Passo Stelvio, had been due to close anyway from November 1st, due to its June-October season ending anyway.
Towards the end of November Italy’s Prime minister advised Italians not to go on their traditional Christmas ski holiday and joined with France and Germany in seeking a ban on ski areas opening across the eu until January 10th, 2021.
This decision led to strong objections from ski resorts and region. The hoped-for opening dates keep changing but currently Italian resorts hope to open from January 7th, 2021.
This date was then extended to January 18th in early January but as of January 12th uncertainty continued as to whether Italian ski areas will be able to re-open then. The country’s regions are currently being divided in to colour coded levels according to pandemic levels with Veneto and Lombardy in orange (the middle rating) for now, and South Tyrol in the highest, red. Currently it is being suggested maximum capacity at re-opened ski areas would be 30-40% of the norm. Ski areas are questioning whether people living in the lowest infection areas (yellow) will be allowed to travel to them and whether they will be able to cover their operating costs. Some are saying it would be better to delay and ‘open well’ for the last few months of the season than ‘open badly’ on the 18th.
On January 15th the Italian Government announced ski areas would now not be able to open at least February 15th due to the pandemic.
On January 22nd Italian ski areas began to say they were increasingly confident that the 15th February date would actually happen this time as a government agency had finally approved their pandemic operating procedures – which it had not done ahead of the earlier date. Other government groups had also given the go ahead for the February 15th opening.
On 4th February Italy announced ski areas in the country’s ‘yellow zones’ on 15th February under the country’s new tiered system will be able to re-open slopes and lifts. Most of the country’s ski areas are currently in yellow zones.
However South Tyrol is currently in an orange tier on Italy’s pandemic measure so it appears it will be not able to reopen its ski centres next week when (it appears) most of the rest of the country will be able to.
On Thursday 11th February the country’s ski areas began announcing planned season opening dates from the start of the following week.
However it was announced on the 12th that the Trentino region is also to move up to the orange tier from Monday, the day ski areas would have been allowed to open there. So resorts including so resorts including Val di Fassa, San Pellegrino, San Martino di Castrozza and Val di Fiemme will remain closed along with ski areas in South Tyrol, also in the orange tier.
Late on Sunday 14th February, just before ski areas were due to reopen on the 15th, the Italian government announced a further extension to the closure of ski areas to at least March 5th.
On Tuesday 2nd March the Italian government announced ski areas would not be able to open until at least Easter, ruling out any opening this season for many.
However on March 23rd Cervinia confirmed it would re-open in April if permitted to.
The situation continued through April with all centres remaining closed.
Side note: Late on December 16th the Saslong lift company in Italy, which runs some of the lifts in Val Gardena including the famous World Cup race course about to be hosting it’s annual races, announced it won’t open this season (although the races were still held).
Italian Ski resort Operating In First 6 Months of Pandemic
Italy, one of the worst affected countries in Europe from the virus, had a strict lockdown for nearly two months, which was then progressively eased since May 4th allowing for an ever increasing amount of outdoor activity.
The Stelvio Summer Ski Centre in Italy, the country’s only remaining summer-only destination, reopened for Italian national team athletes at the start of June and then re-opened to all skiers and boarders from 13th June – it’s due to stay open to the end of October, all being well.
A second glacier area, Val Senales, opened on September 18th for its 2020-21 season.
Besides the Italian squads, racing superstars Petra Vlhova from Slovakia and upcoming star Alice Robinson from New Zealand, were training at Stelvio back in June. There were however reports of several virus cases in the Italian team based there in late June.
Access to a second summer ski area, accessed from Cervinia but located on the Swiss side of the border above Zermatt, re-opened with summer skiing from 20th June, earlier than previously hoped.
In an interesting twist from the pandemic prevention measures, there are different social distancing requirements on each side of the border – 1 metre (40 inches) in Italy but 1,5 meets (5 feet) in Switzerland. However the resort reports all is fine with skiers sticking to the rules on each side.
A third Italian area that formerly operated through summer, Val Senales said on 5th May they were concerned there was “fake news” that they might re-open this spring/summer and said they definitely will not be and are prepping the area for their usual September season start.
Japan
***Updated 2nd April, 2021 ***
Current Status: Most centres that are normally open in April are, the rest have closed as end of season.
Japan Social Distancing Requirements: 2 Metres (6.6 feet).
Japan Ski Centres Currently Operating: 30+
What’s The Current Situation in Japan?
The first ski resort opened a run for 20-21, using entirely machine-made snow, in late October 2020.
The ski season then kind of got underway in Japan with at least two areas opening runs made from entirely all-weather snow machine snow – so it was a case of a ribbon of snow over grass and leaves down the slope. SnowJapan.com reported that Snow Park Yeti – known as Fujiyama Snow Resort Yeti last year and other names before that – was the first in the country to open on Friday 30th October.
Larger ski resorts began opening when natural snow arrived in late November and early December with Appi, Hunter Mountain and Rusutsu among the first to start their seasons.
In response to Covid-19, Hokkaido Prefecture launched the ‘New Hokkaido Style’ campaign, encouraging new lifestyle habits and business customs as part of a ‘new normal’.
In resorts, protective screens at desks, sanitation of high-touch areas, provision of hand sanitiser, floor stickers for social distancing, daily health checks for employees and temperature and travel history checks for guests are just a handful of the industry-wide approaches that have already been incorporated.
Rusutsu resort in Hokkaido is operating reduced capacity on its airport transfer buses in order to better assure social distancing and gondolas are being disinfected between each ride.
Kiroro resort has introduced digital menus in its restaurants, as well as implementing a strict guided seating process led by restaurant staff members.
Temperatures warmed and virus cases increased in mid-November throwing doubts on the start of the country’s main season at the end of November and start of December but resorts did start opening pretty much on schedule.
Since then most Japanese ski areas have stayed open despite virus cases rising in the wider community and international travel being blocked. There have also been repeated huge snowfalls for many through January and February the winter.
As of April most ski areas in japan have closed due to the normal end-of-season, some remain open through April and in to May.
What happened in Japan during the first 6 months of the pandemic?
Japanese ski areas kept operating through the initial stages of the pandemic in February and until late-April, in the cases of resorts that usually stay open to the start of May. However, a second, worse, wave on the pandemic in mid-April caused all to close by April 24th.
The country has lifted its state of emergency again in late May and the lone summer ski area Gassan opened again, ending its season at the end of July.
Initially that was for local skiers in Yamagata Prefecture only, and at one point skiers had to present ID to show they had not travelled from outside the area when buying tickets, but is now open to all once more.
Norway
*** Updated 27th April, 2021 ***
Current status: Most centres open, but only to Norwegians due to strict border controls in pandemic.
Norway Social Distancing Requirements: 1 Metre (40 Inches).
Norway Ski Centres Currently Open: 10+
Norway perhaps had the shortest closed period of any of the world’s ski areas in spring 2020 and has had ski areas open almost constantly since late April.
In November 2020 the general view was that the country was handling the second wave of the pandemic fairly well and that most ski areas should be able to re-open subject to the approval of their local health authorities.
Geilo was one of the first larger ski areas in the country to re-open, on 5th December, with most others joining it within the next week.
Most of the rest of the ski areas in the country had opened by Christmas. Norway has strict border controls with long self-quarantine requirements for anyone entering the country and as of January had lower virus rates than most European countries.
Ski areas sold out of limited availability tickets in advance at weekends and holidays with Voss saying the only way to get a lift pass after they sold out for a day was to book resort accommodation which comes with a lift ticket included.
Incoming travel restrictions blocking virtually all international arrivals in February led to some international ski competitions being cancelled but ski areas have so far stayed open.
As of April most of Norway’s ski centres were fully open however many closed through the month as they normally would at the end of the season.
The country’s three glacier areas confirmed their intention to open as usual from mid-May.
What Happened in Norway During The First 6 Months of the Pandemic?
Norway was one of the first countries in Europe to ease its lockdown, in late April, allowing smaller ski areas to re-open, if agreed by local government and health bodies and social distancing and other measures in place. About a dozen areas re-opened and some got another 4-6 weeks of the season in before closing in late-May as the snow melted.
However three glaciers ski areas stayed open until early August and two are still open.
The third glacier to open, Stryn, opening for is season on 12th June but was the first to close in August.
Fonna glacier area had had so much snow this winter and spring the main issue for them has been clearing snow, more than the pandemic, but they eventually opened after more than a month of digging out the access road with snow lying up to 15 metres/50 feet deep and also operating with social distancing and all other anti-virus-spread measures in place.
Poland
*** Updated 24 March, 2021***
Current Status: All ski centres closed – pandemic lockdown then end of season
Social Distancing Requirements in Poland: 1.5 Metres.
Polish ski centres currently operational: 0
Poland said in early December that its ski slopes will reopen this season – but only for local residents and during the school holidays, with resort hotels and restaurants remaining closed.
Białka Tatrzańska was one of the first of the country’s ski centres to open, on December 5th.
The government subsequently closed resorts but in early January several leading centres said they would open anyway in defiance of the government order.
On 28th January Poland’s government extended the closure of ski resorts to February 14th, whilst allowing shopping malls to re-open, causing some anger.
Most Polish ski areas eventually re-opened from February 12th having already opened for sports clubs. Large crowds were reported at the leading resort of Zakopane.
Ski areas were still open in the first half of March however virus cases continued to rise with the new English variant sweeping the country and resorts were closed again from March 20th.
What Happened in Poland at the Start of the Pandemic
Poland relaxed its lockdown and allowed mountain areas to re-open lifts at the start of May, one of the first countries in Europe to do so. However the season is ended there now anyway.
Scotland
*** Updated 23rd April, 2021 ***
Current Status: All ski centres closed.
Social Distancing Requirements in Scotland: 2 Metres, Mask worn in lift queues and indoors.
Scottish ski centres currently operational: 0
Most of Scotland’s ski areas opened for the season on December 19th, although limited terrain was available with snow made by all weathers snowmaking machines and inadequate natural snow cover to create runs. However Nevis Range ski area says it is shutting down operations until the trading situation is better, having made substantial losses during the pandemic. It hopes to re-open in the New Year if snow conditions and trading possibilities improve sufficiently.
On opening day most Scottish ski areas were in the low tier 1 for the pandemic, except Glenshee in tier 3 and The Lecht on the border of tiers 1 and 3. This meant only limited areas were legally able to visit.
Then on December 19th the Scottish First Minister announced all would be moving in to the country’s highest tier 4, despite low case numbers in their locations, in part of a national drive to suppress the virus from December 26th. At that point the ski areas reacted in different ways. Glencoe, Glenshee and The Lecht stayed open to local skiers only; Cairngorm closed.
Things changed once more at the start of January when Scotland went in to a stricter lockdown and the three open areas were told to close completely. So only ski tourers are currently getting out on the snow.
On 2 February the Scottish Government announced restrictions would continue through February. It announced £3m in support for ski areas. A number of ski tourers have been fined after found breaking travel restrictions to go to the mountains.
On 23 February the Scottish Government announced plans to re-open the economy which appears to allow ski centres there to potentially re-open, possibly to locally-based skiers only initially, at the end of April, should they have snow remaining and be in a position to do so.
Ski areas have expressed disappointment that golf courses and tennis courts are allowed to open, but ski slopes not.
What Happened in Scotland at the start of the Global Pandemic
Some long-time observers of Scotland’s challenging winters for ski area operators pointed to the irony that conditions from late-March and though April would have been the best in recent years for several of the country’s ski areas. On the West Coast, in particular, the snow was lying deep, the weather has been much less windy than usual and the weather service reported April was the sunniest in the country since records began. Re-opening ski slopes didn’t happen though as Britain eased its lockdown, and Glencoe had a virtual version of its famous midsummer snowsports day in late June.
Slovak Republic
***Updated 2 April, 2021 ***
Current status: Ski areas closed due to pandemic restrictions.
Social Distancing Requirement in the Slovak Republic: 2 Metres (6.7 feet)
Ski Centres Currently open in the Slovak Republic: 0
Slovakia’s leading ski area of Jasna opened for the season on 5th December, although with tickets limited to season pass holders initially. 8 lifts were running serving 7 slopes and a total of 9km of runs.
Slovakia’s ski resorts usually start opening in December. November conditions have not been ideal for a pre-season base build up with little natural snowfall and temperatures often too warm for snowmaking.
Ski areas in Slovenia operated up to January 12th, 2021 when the government announced ski areas would be closed for three weeks to try to slow pandemic spread.
Ski areas were initially closed to at least February 7th, but this date has been constantly put back, now in to March, as the pandemic continues at quite high infection levels in Slovakia.
What happened in the Slovak Republic in the first 6 Months of the Pandemic?
The Slovak Republic became the first country to re-open a major mountain resort complete with large chairlifts, gondolas, funitel and cable-car lifts on May 1st. Jasna has full social distancing measures in place, as detailed in ‘Operating In A Pandemic – What Has Changed?’ below.
Slovenia
***Updated 18th April, 2021 ***
Current status: Ski areas allowed to re-open, several are but most closed due to normal end of season.
Slovenia Social Distancing Requirement: 1.5 Metres (5 Feet)
Ski Resorts open in Slovenia: 3
Slovenian ski areas tend to start opening in December. It has been rather warm and dry in November but Kranjska Gora said towards the end of the month it hoped to open soon.
Snow conditions did improve in early December and resorts were allowed to open, although only to local people with travel between municipalities banned. Kranjska Gora opened first on Thursday 10th December followed by Pohorje above Maribor and at Krvavec on Saturday 12th, only for locals, with apres ski banned.
Shortly before Christmas the government shut down ski areas until 1st January and fined one stayed open, Krvavec, 4,400 euros.
This closure was then extended. Kope was the last are open in the country, to January 8th, but reported it had to shut down then due to government restrictions.
Ski resorts were allowed to re-open for skiers only in most areas of the country under a new-tiered system from 23rd January. The majority remained open through February and into March.
However a new lockdown with ski areas closed was announced from 1st to 10th April.
Ski areas in Slovenia have been allowed to re-open under new ‘red level’ restrictions following the latest lockdown there. A number, including Krvavec and Kanin – Sella Nevea/Bovec say they intend to stay open to early May.
What Happened in Slovenia in the first 6 Months of the Pandemic
Kanin ski area announced it was re-opening due to good conditions up high from 14th May. The Slovenian national squad were training there and organised the first national competitions anywhere since lockdown began. The centre closed again on 31st May.
Spain
*** Updated 18th April, 2021 ***
Current status: All centres closed – end of season.
Spain Social Distancing Requirements: 1.5 Metres (60 Inches).
Ski centres currently Open in Spain: 0
Ski areas in Spain appear were allowed to open by the government there in December, against the wishes of their EU neighbour nations to the east, however many Spanish ski areas won’t open for now for various logistical reasons, many virus related.
One of the country’s largest, Baqueira Beret, said they planned to open for the season on Thursday 10th December. Another, Masella, on the 9th. Both have had to delay but said on December 11th they’ll open from the 14th.
Most remain only open to skiers living in the local region and some areas haven’t opened at all.
Valle Laciana-Leitariegos ski area was the first in the country to open, to locals only, on 10th December, the first in the country to do so.
With ski areas closed in Andorra and France over Christmas and New Year Spanish resorts were the only ones open in the Pyrenees. The French Prime Minister announced border patrols to try to intercept French skiers heading to Spain or Switzerland.
Leading ski area Sierra Nevada which was due to open on 27th November said it wouldn’t open until virus conditions improved, and did so in mid-December. On 16 Jan it was announced Sierra Nevada had been allowed to stay open, to local skiers only, after Andalucia brought in tougher new pandemic restrictions. It had previously been feared the resort would have to close. There are now fears the reduced revenue will not cover operating costs.
The Spanish government has said they hope “tourism will resume by the spring” and say it is a priority.
As the season continues, with travel still severely limited in Spain few people can actually get to the open slopes and as a result only limited terrain is open, in order to stem operating losses, even though centres could probably be fully open if they had more business to justify it.
Formigal hoped to open December 23rd but said on the 19th that it would not be open for Christmas after all. It remained closed into February, eventually announcing it would not open at all this winter.
On 15th February Sierra Nevada which had closed to all but locals re-opened it’s slopes to all residents of the surrounding Andalucía region providing they live is a district with less than 500 COVID infections per 100,000 people.
As of March the situation of limited slope openings at a limited number of Spanish resorts to locally-based skiers only continues.
However some restrictions have eased in Spain from 15th March, with people able to travel further to reach the slopes. As a result some of the country’s open ski areas are hoping for a little more business and are therefore opening a little more terrain. Masella is one, increasing its open terrain to 41 runs totalling 52km (33 miles) of slopes served by 9 ski lifts.
Of the limited number of resorts to open, ski areas began closing – in many cases a few weeks earlier than usual from Easter Sunday at the start of April, with all ski areas in the Pyrenees closed by 11th April. The last in the country to close was Sierra Nevada on the 18th April.
Sweden
***Updated 4th March, 2020 ***
Sweden Social Distancing Requirements: 1 Metre (40 Inches).
Sweden Ski Centres Currently Open: 100+
Sweden’s 2020-21 ski season began on 16th October 2020 at Idre Fjall ski centre which used snow-farming – saving snow from the previous season stockpiled under cover through summer then spreading it back out on the slopes in October – to open a downhill run and cross country ski trails.
Unseasonably warm weather in November delayed some resorts opening and there were also growing concerns that increasing virus case numbers could make opening ski areas a bad idea in terms of potential virus spread.
However Swedish ski areas did start opening in December, with the largest in Scandinavia, Are, opening on December 18th.
Most of the country’s ski areas are currently operational with strict pandemic operating restrictions in place.
Pandemic cases have been increasing leading to concerns that ski areas might be closed but as of the start of March, so far that has not happened.
Sweden’s Response To The Pandemic in Spring 2020
Sweden took a different tack to most nations in locking down at a more gradual pace and still less severe than most other countries, whilst asking its citizens to behave sensibly.
Most of the country’s ski areas were closed in April however as restrictions were increased, among the last in the world to do so. Not all did though, with several agreeing with their local authorities that they could continue to operate.
The last of these to stay open and become the only resort in the world to operated its normal season through the pandemic to date was Riksgransen in the far north which remained open through to May 24th.
However skiing and boarding under the midnight sun which usually take place in May each year was cancelled in 2020 due to a lack of guests, and the annual season-ending Big Mountain Championships are a video competition this year instead.
Switzerland
*** Updated 26th February 2021 ***
Switzerland Social-Distancing Requirement: 1.5 Metres (5 Feet)
Switzerland Ski Centres Currently Open: 200+
Most Swiss ski centres are opening for the 20-21 season as normal, some earlier than normal. Zermatt has been open since June, Saas Fee since July.
Heavy snowfall at the beginning and end of September led a third area, Glacier 3000 near Gstaad and les Diablerets to open nearly six weeks earlier than planned at the start of October. It was followed by the Titlis Glacier above Engelberg on the 10th.
The Diavolezza Glacier near St Moritz opened on the 19th then Davos on the 24th. Next came Andermatt, Arosa, Laax and Verbier on 30th/31st October – some only opening initially at weekends.
There was a fear that the country would go in to a November lockdown like its neighbours but on 4th November the government decided to keep most businesses open although there were increase restrictions on restaurants and other businesses put in place. An 11th Swiss area, Crans Montana, announced it was opening on the 7th.
Swiss centres have comprehensive anti-pandemic-spread measures in place and have created a ‘Safe & Secure’ holiday label.
However many resort amenities including restaurants and shops and other facilities may be closed. the rules vary from canton to canton.
More than 100 Swiss areas were open from the weekend of 12th/13th December.
In the first month of winter most Swiss ski areas stayed open. Only the canton of Uri closed ski lifts briefly at Andermatt at the end of the year but they have since re-opened.
There are many strict limitations in place including in resort shops restaurants and hotels, many of which are closed.
The famous Lauberhorn World Cup downhill race in Wengen was cancelled in mid-January due to a local coronavirus spike. The ski centre stayed open to tourists though.
Swiss ski areas remain largely open and in early February the closures there have been have been caused by avalanche danger of strong winds. There have been outbreaks in resorts including St Moritz, Wengen and Arosa but these have swiftly been contained in individual hotels or, in one case, a school.
At the end of February Verbier said it would close its Bruson sector as operating costs are too high in the pandemic. But with cases falling cantons began announcing resorts will be able to stay open to the end of the season. The boss of Switzerland Tourism also said in an interview he felt Switzerland’s decision to open its slopes this winters had been proved correct so far.
On 24th February it was announced that shops and museums can reopen from March 1st, while restaurants can open from March 22nd. Ski resorts had been pushing for restaurants to be allowed to open sooner, if only outdoor terraces.
Switzerland During The First 6 Months of the Pandemic
Switzerland slowly eased its lockdown from May. Zermatt, usually open for snowsports 365 days a year, re-opened on June 6th.
Saas Fee opened for it’s nine month season through to April 2021 in mid-July.
However on July 6th the country made wearing face masks on public transport (previously advised but not a legal requirement) a legal requirement. In terms of ski resorts operating ski lifts, this initially only impacts skiers at Zermatt.
“Since this morning it has become mandatory on all cable car cabins and gondolas run by Zermatt’s lift company to wear face masks. We ask you to observe these for the protection of yourselves and others and thank you for understanding,” a statement from Zermatt Bargbahnen advised on July 6th, adding,
“If you don’t carry a mask with you, you can buy mouth-nose protection at the kiosks of Zermatt Bergbahnen AG as well as in the Matterhorn glacier paradise restaurant.”
Shops, bars and restaurants re-opened from May 11th although with restrictions in place.
Although now closed again, Crans Montana, announced on 28th May it would re-open its glacier slopes for a nine-day period from Saturday, 6th June.
USA
***Updated 3 March, 2021 ***
USA Social Distancing Requirement: 6 Feet (1.8 Metres)
USA Ski Centres Currently Open: 400+
Wild Mountain in Minnesota was the first ski area in the US (and North America) to open for winter 20-21 on Tuesday 20th October following low temps for snowmaking and some natural snowfall in the Midwest.
It was joined by Trollhaugen, over the state border in Wisconsin, on Sunday 25th October.
They were joined by Wolf Creek in Colorado opening a week later on 28th October after around two-feet (60cm) of snowfall there. Next to open in the state was Keystone on November 6th, then Arapahoe Basin on the 9th, Loveland on the 11th and Breckenridge on the 13th.
The ski season got underway in Montana on Halloween at the Great Divide ski area. The 4th area in the US to Open.
Lookout Pass was the first ski area to open for the season in Idaho for the new season, with fourteen trails open, five of them groomed on opening day, 14th November.
Crystal Mountain in Washington State opened on 18th November, two days earlier than planned, due to good snow conditions. Killington was first in the East on 20th November.
There have been many more areas open since then. However Taos delayed its planned opening in late November after the New Mexico state government announced pandemic operating restrictions.
Most of the country’s ski areas had opened by the start of December.
Ski areas in the US are offering a “very different” winter 2020-21.
Most opened as usual although some delayed opening for the season to ensure enough terrain is open when they do open.
Vail Resorts are limited early-season access to their Epic Pass season pass holders only, until December 8th. Pass holders now have priority booking for other days.
Many resorts are operating at 40-60% capacity limits on mountains to avoid over-crowding, the need to book lift tickets and mountain access in advance and those driving to the mountains to book car parking.
This has led to many resorts selling out of lift tickets, particularly at weekends an holiday periods.
Many other measures are being put in place to prevent the danger of spreading the virus when they open.
Even with all the safety measures resorts are subject to ever tougher operating restrictions from local and state health bodies and governments but so far all have been allowed to keep operating.
Californian ski areas seemed to come closest to closing in January when there was a stay-at-home order and hotels in resorts were closed, but this was lifted at the end of the month.
Ski areas have largely stayed open operating in this fashion through the ski season to date. A few smaller areas have even reported business numbers have actually gone up from previously low levels, whilst still remaining below limited pandemic capacity levels, as more people seek to get in to the great outdoors and perhaps forego trips to bigger destination resorts.
What happened in the US during the first 6 months of the pandemic?
The last resort still open in the US for winter 20-21 ended its season at the end of August.
It was a complex picture in the US during the period from March to June with different states having different lockdown rules, easing restrictions at different times.
All areas were closed for most of April until Mt Baldy in southern California decided that it could re-open if local golf course could. It stayed open to May 5th when the advance of spring weather appears to have led to its closure.
It later brought closing day forward to August 30th after a month of very hot weather.
For July and August Timberline was the only US resort open, although the US ski team and other private groups were reported to have been training on snow at Copper Mountain in Colorado until mid-August.
In terms of other US ski areas that are usually open in late spring and in some cases early summer:
In Vermont, although re-starting its summer mountain operations, Killington decided ‘on balance’ not to re-open for late-May snowsports on its Superstar trail, although the snow is there and it would usually open to the end of the month in a normal season.
In Minnesota Wild Mountain ski area groomed some of is remaining snow and installed rails and other features to create a hike-up terrain park which it opened on the afternoon of May 9th, charging $10 for access or free to season-pass holders.
In Colorado restrictions were eased a little in early May allowing people to enjoy outdoor recreation within 10 miles of their homes but this was quickly followed by a ban on ski areas re-opening before May 22nd. This led Aspen, which said it had been hoping to do so if permitted, to then say it wouldn’t re-open this spring. Wolf Creek had also been aiming to re-open.
On 25th May it was announced that Arapahoe Basin would re-open from Wednesday 27th May. This proved so popular the resort had to run a lottery to see who can buy lift tickers each day. It later announced it would close for the season on June 7th due to snow conditions.
Crystal Mountain in Washington State announced a similar short re-opening, just 7 days after initially saying they’d re-open for a fortnight. They were open from June 1st to June 7th.
Other US areas that typically stay open to late spring so could possibly re-open if their states deem it safe to do so and they with and are able to include Mammoth and Squaw Valley in California and Snowbird in Utah but all gave snowsports a miss in spring 2020, although re-opening for summer activities.
The small Beartooth Basin summer ski area on the Montana/Wyoming border reopened for its 2020 season on June 1st and operated for just over three weeks to around June 23rd when it closed due to thin cover.
THE A-Z OF THE ‘NEW NORMAL ON THE WORLD’S SKI SLOPES…
Apres Ski
The apres ski scene looks like it will be quieter and socially distanced this winter. Austrian resorts, infamous for their crowded, lively bars at the base of the slopes, which some say caused fast virus spread in February and March, say winter 20-21 will see these toned-down dramatically with social distancing and quiet music playing, one describing them as “more like coffee lounges”
Car Parking
For skiers arriving by car, some resorts are providing timed arrival slots which must be booked in advance to avoid gatherings of people at the base. Others are requiring cars, like people, to be socially distanced – including Caviahue in Argentina:
Early Closure Calls
Some ski areas, most notably in Argentina when areas re-opened there from late July, have introduced a policy of deciding the day before if an area will open the next day, based on the forecast rather than the actual weather on the day. The idea is to avoid the danger of a lot of people gathering waiting together at the bottom of what turn out to be closed, storm-bound slopes.
Eating and Drinking
There are different approaches being employed in different ski areas. However there are common themes. Screens to separate distanced tables are common, as are the options of food delivery services. Some are offering a counter takeaway service only and some only outdoor dining with tables spaced two metres or more apart and the same rules of social distancing we are getting used to with groups that are together anyway able to eat and sit together but separate groups and individuals well spaced out.
For ski areas that attract a lot of self-driving clientele they’re promoting a “your car is your base lodge” approach with skiers encouraged to bring their own food and drink to consume in their cars during breaks.s
Faster Lifts
A number of ski areas in Europe and North America have announced they’ll be running their lifts faster, where that’s an option, this winter, to minimise time on board. This is along with frequent cleaning, contact-less-access open windows and mask wearing. Italy’s Alta Badia and Jackson Hole in the US are among resorts announcing this.
Health Certification
It’s not yet clear how much this will be an issue next winter but skiers in China have to prove to ski centres in advance of buying a ticket that they had a certificate to say they were virus-free before they were allowed to buy a lift ticket.
Hygiene
Ski areas that are currently open are making a lot of efforts to clean And disinfect public areas including lifts regularly and continuously and hand sanitisers are being made widely available for visiting skiers.
Lift Tickets
Resorts are doing all they can to minimise human contact in the ticket purchasing process. This typically means buying your pass online and adding credit to an electronic pass. If it’s a resort with a physical pass you’ll likely pay for online or on a site with a contactless card and collect it in a way that avoids human contact.
Limited Numbers
Some ski areas that have been operating in recent weeks and months have strictly limited the number of people allowed on site. Many require you to buy your lift pass and book your time on the slopes at least a day in advance, you can no longer just roll-up. Some have sold-out for several days in advance as a result. Reports from Australia indicated tickets at some resorts were snapped up for much of the season there. Some have also staggered arrival times at the base.
Masks and Gloves
Fortunately boarders and skiers and used to having their body’s covered to keep the cold and snow out, but most resorts now require gloves and masks to be worn at all times, particularly in indoor public spaces, in line with most governments around the world, not just when skiing downhill.
Queuing for the Lift
We should see an end to any scrums at the base of the lifts as social distancing measures are put in to place with spacings generally marked on the ground 6 feet/2 metres apart. It remains to be seen if resorts will offer extended opening times for lifts in peak periods in order to get enough people up the mountain.
Riding the Lift
Family groups and other groups that are already together are able to ride on chairs and in cabins together but otherwise, there’ll be social distancing with cable car/tram and gondola cabins as well as on chairlifts so the number of people getting in any individual cabin or on a chair will be dramatically reduced and face masks must be worn.
Ski Rentals
Some ski areas have re-opened but said that only those with their own equipment could visit and that rentals would not be available – another move to minimise the risk of virus spread.
Ski School
Some re-opened resorts aren’t offering group lessons, only private classes.
Temperature Checks
A large number of ski areas are now scanning foreheads for your body temperature as well as your lift pass to check its valid.
Toilets
A few smaller ski areas that have re=-opened have said their toilets won’t be open in a move to reduce the risk of virus spread. Others have opened their toilets but with only one persona allowed in at a time and social-distancing queuing outside, and of course lots of hand-sanitisers available.H
Weekend Closures
A number of re-opened ski areas are closing midweek or at other times. Unusually in Chile when ski areas re-opened there the busiest open days at the weekend were ruled out in order to keep numbers on the slopes deliberately low.
Southern Hemisphere 2021 Season
Argentina
*** Updated 28 April 2021 ***
Argentina Current status: Closed – Season Not Yet started.
Argentina Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metres (6.6 Feet)
Argentina Ski areas Currently open: 0
As of Autumn 2021, snow has started falling in Argentinas and ski areas appear optimistic of opening for the season in June.
What happened in Argentina’s 2020 ‘Pandemic Season’
Argentina had a strict lockdown in place from mid-March which appears to have limited the spread of the virus more effectively than in many other South American countries. The lockdown was extended several times but was eased on a region-by-region basis from early August.
About five Argentinian ski areas opened during August and September 2020, the last of these closing again for the season on 28th September.
Two more areas, Cerro Bayo and Cerro Castor announced they’d open to local skiers from Saturday, August 1st and Chapelco and other Argentinian ski areas have also now opened, Caviahue from 15th August.
Earlier in July when things began to ease slightly already at Cerro Castor down near Tierra del Fuego and the world’s most southerly developed ski area. It opening its resort base and ice rink to local people in the province and also allowed cross country skiing although until 1st August its lifts were not running and downhill slopes were closed.
Argentina’s ski-season would normally have begun in mid-June and usually runs to early October. Of the half-dozen ski areas that were open, centres began closing again for the end of the season from mid-September.
Cerro Castor closed on September 25th, Catedral on the 27th.
At the still closed ski areas in Argentina they were warning backcountry skiers during the winter and spring that they should not be hiking up to ski slopes in the Andes during the ongoing lockdown there. They warned there’d been no avalanche prevention measures and there are currently no rescue or medical staff on site whilst resorts were closed. As there had been a lot of snowfall, the avalanche danger was extreme.
Australia
*** Last Updated 4 October 2020 ***
Australia Current status: Closed – Season Not Yet started.
Australia Social Distancing Requirement: 1.5 Metres (5 Feet)
Australia ski areas currently open: 0
2020 has really been a season like no other in Australia.
The country’s 2020 season got underway on 22nd June with Mt Baw Baw and Thredbo opening. This was a few weeks later than usual as Aussie ski areas normally open for the ski season around the first weekend of June, a national holiday weekend in the country. It lasted until 4th October when Perisher, the last area open, ended its season.
This year anticipation has been raised by huge autumn snowfalls at the start of May, with several smaller snowfalls and lowering temperatures since. June was drier but the snow returned in early July. However overall it was one of the warmer winters.
In the last week of May the provinces of New South Wales and Victoria, where most of the country’s ski centres are, both announced centres could start their seasons from June 22nd as pandemic restrictions are eased.
The next areas to open were Mt Baw Baw and Perisher on the 24th with fellow Vail Resorts owned Falls Creek and Hotham initially saying they’d open on the 29th June but later delaying to 6th July due to limited early snow cover.
Charlotte Pass had company operated accommodation open from Thursday 25th June with the ski slopes open from Friday 26th June. So all of the country’s leading ski areas had opened by July 6th, other than Mt Selwyn which will remain closed during the season due to bushfire damage which destroyed lifts earlier in the year.
However from July 8th operations of ski areas in Victoria (Falls Creek, Hotham, Mt Baw Baw, Mt Buller) were in some doubt following a spike in cases around the city of Melbourne. Residents from, areas of the city now in strict lockdown again who had bookings are being refunded payment and ski areas say they are reviewing operations.
Falls Creek and Hotham initially closed again for at least 6 weeks to August 19th -about 6 weeks from the end of the season, but then decided to stay closed. The state’s other two areas did stay open at that point though: Mt Baw Baw was opening weekends for snowsports and Mt Buller was open for much of July.
In an added twist, whilst operator Vail Resorts has closed the lifts at Falls Creek and Mt Hotham, the resorts themselves were still open, and other activities are available to people in Victoria, including back country skiing.
Pandemic-spread prevention measures meant the now-normal social-distancing and limited numbers on the mountain. Most areas operated at around 50% capacity and there was a 1.5 metre social distancing rule in place.
Thredbo initially put lift tickets on sale online on 10th June but had its site overloaded with more than 25,000 people trying to buy lift tickets in the first few hours they were on sale – so there was certainly demand.
There was another twist later in July as the pandemic in Victoria worsened and the state’s government reimposed restrictions meaning Mt Buller and Mt Baw Baw have had to close again.
This was reviewed on September 13th but Buller and Mt Baw Baw did not re-open, in part due to poor snow conditions after a warm winter. Vail Resorts had already said Falls Creek and Mt Hotham won’t now re-open this winter though, whatever happened in mid-September.
In the meantime a short season began at Ben Lomond in Tasmania as there was finally adequate snow cover.
Thredbo ended its season on 22nd September citing poor snow conditions. It’s also worth remembering even before the virus was a known danger, one Australian area, Selwyn, had already ruled out opening in 2020 after it was destroyed by bush fires at the very start of the year.
Chile
*** Last Updated 11 October, 2020 ***
Chile Current status: Closed – Season Not Yet started.
Chile Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metres (6.6 Feet)
Chile Ski Centres Open: 0
Chile’s season usually starts in mid-June but the country has been is a strict lockdown since the autumn which only began to be slightly eased in mid-August.
The last of the three ski areas that re-opened there in late summer ended its season on 11th October 2020.
There were signs from the start of August that ski areas might be allowed to open and resorts have been stressing they have so much snow they might be able to stay open until November – if they did get the chance to open.
Some started opening to non-skiing day visitors although lifts and runs remained closed, then on the 11th August the government announced some areas could open with restrictions.
La Parva was the first to say it would do so, to season pass holders only, from the 18th August, El Colorado followed on the 19th. A third, Corralco, opened on 29th August, Others said the remainder of the ski season was so limited and their costs to open so high with all the COVID related restrictions it was not worth them opening for the remainder of the 2020 season.
Ski areas were only open to local people with season passes or similar, and unusually they were not allowed to open at weekends. Other measures at resorts that have reopened including cutting hill capacity by up to 70%, only one person per chairlift seat, limits on numbers in mountain restaurants and so on.
In the end only the three areas opened in Chile in 2020. La Parva was the first of the three to end its season, on 25 September, followed by El Colorado on the 4th October and finally Corralco on the 11th October.
Earlier in the Pandemic in Chile
The initial three month state-of-emergency began in mid-March but in mid-June the government announced a further three month extension to mid-September, the end of the ski season.
The country has unfortunately been one of the hardest hit in South America and the entire world by the virus – in terms of known infections.
Portillo said in mid-June that it has proactively set is planned opening date back about a month to July 18th and was offering 100% refund guarantee or free re-booking for 2021 for those who want to reserve a place in the hope that they would be able to open then.
However on June 23rd it announced it had suspended its opening date indefinitely” – until it had “better news” on being able to open.
In May Chile’s Asociacion de Centros de Ski de Chile, an association of 12 of the country’s resorts, put together proposal on the safe operation of ski lifts and other facilities during the pandemic. It organised a Webinar with senior tourism staff from the Chilean government in late July – stressing that it had a plan to operate ski areas safely in terms of the pandemic, and the need for skiing for good physical and mental well-being, as well as economic reasons.
Lesotho
*** Updated September 29th, 2020 ***
Lesotho Current status: Closed – Season Not Yet started.
South Africa Social Distancing Requirement: 1.8 Metres (6 Feet)
Lesotho Ski Areas Currently Open: 0
Lesotho has one small ski area, Afriski (pictured above on 15 April), which was originally due to open for the season at the start of June. Afriski later announced that now that Lesotho has fully re-opened its economy, it would open for its 2020 season on 18th June.
It was the first ski area in the southern hemisphere to open for its 2020 season. In the end it operated all winter with Lesotho-only skiers as the South African border did not open.
The resort closed for the season on it’s normal closing date: 30th August.
In a statement about their opening plans back in May, Afriski’s team said,
“The big unknown unfortunately rests on the SA governments decision on when to ease travel restrictions. Fortunately, the Lesotho government has taken a far more progressive, yet responsible, stance relating to the re-opening of their hospitality and food and beverage sector. Despite this uncertainty we have decided to take a leap of faith.”
“This will further ensure great snow production and the best skiing conditions possible,” the statement said.
The centre’s statement also confirms virus-safety is the new priority and therefore their prime focus is on being a COVID safe and ready destination.
The same Health and Safety standards applied to companies were applied at the resort through the season including temperature checks for staff and guests in combination with the required personal and company PPE standards which will soon become the norm everywhere. Other practical measures such as adjusted seating plan and mealtimes at the Sky Restaurant together with improved take away and delivery offering from Sky and Gondola are some of the measures were put in place.
Commenting on whether skiers should book to visit the resort before their season began the statement concluded,
“Our hope is that you do indeed say Yes! It is of course a risk but it is equally a vote of confidence and a step in the right direction to reclaim the world that we once knew. The resort, and indeed the entire tourism ecosystem, now depends on the faith of every single guest willing to contribute and support their favourite holiday destinations through this crazy period on planet earth.” “In the end hospitality is about people and it’s a great injustice that an entire army of individuals dedicated to social cohesion are being forced toward the abyss of extinction due to an alien in town called social distancing. We hope our guests see their holiday booking as a vote of confidence for the continuation of travel and hospitality.”
Afriski said they were granted a care and maintenance concession enabling them to keep their team on the mountain during the lockdown period to complete critical projects ahead of the coming ski season. These included the completion of a new high-altitude dam which will gravity feed a 40,000m3 water reserve into the resort’s snowmaking network which will add 50% more snowmaking capacity to their already extensive system.
New Zealand
*** Updated 7 April, 2021 ***
New Zealand Current Status: All areas closed – ski season not yet started.
New Zealand Social Distancing Requirement: 0 Metres
New Zealand Ski Areas Currently Open: 0
New Zealand has been held up as an example of how to handle the pandemic well, with few infections there.
In autumn 2021 ski areas started announcing plans for the coming winter.
They hope for more normal operations than 2020 when operations were limited by fewer people being able to get on the slopes. In early April it was announced Australians would be able to visit quarantine-free, seen as a major boost for many ski areas.
The 2020 Ski Season
The country has had a relatively normal season in terms of operating without the need for masks or social distancing, unlike any other country in fact, other than a period from early August to early September when restrictions were reintroduced.
Most ski areas in the country had closed by mid-October but two centres on Mt Ruapehu on the country’s North Island planned to stay open to mid-November snow permitting. They admitted defeat on 26th October however, ending New Zealand’s and the southern hemisphere’s 2020 season.
Pandemic era operations in New Zealand during 2020
The country moved to a loosened ‘level 3’ lockdown in May which meant ski centres were among bodies that could start to see staff back on the mountains, preparing for the start of the June or July seasons.
The further loosened Level 2 was reached on May 14th meaning most areas say they aim to open on schedule with all now increasingly usual anti-virus-spread measures in place.
Things continued in that happy ‘old normal’ vein’ for two almost two months when, after no new cases for 102 days, four people tested positive in Auckland, leading the NZ government to re-introduce Level 2 on 12th August, the first time the country’s ski areas had to act with social distancing and other anti-COVID measures.
These were eased again back to Level 1 on 22nd Sepember, just as ski areas began closing for the season. Way back before the start of the season Mt Ruapehu had previously announced the southern hemisphere’s earliest opening date, May 30th, for its Happy Valley snow play and learning area at Whakapapa which has all weather snowmaking. This was postponed to July 1st however.
In the event therefore Mt Hutt was the first full ski area to open, on June 12th (a week after its originally given June 5th). It also became the first ski area in the world to open with no social-distancing or other requirements (at the time and for the first two months of the season) for more than three months.
Seven centres had opened by the end of June however – the most open in the world at that point. The first boarder seen there in 2020, possibly for the entire southern hemisphere, is pictured above at Coronet Peak on May 5th. S
South Africa
*** Updated 23 September 2020 ***
South Africa Current status: Closed – Season Not Yet started.
South Africa Social Distancing Requirement: 1.5 Metres (5 Feet)
South Africa Ski Centres Currently Open: 0
South Africa had had the highest number of coronavirus cases in Africa, as of the start of May, but decided to start easing its lockdown after five weeks at the end of April due to what was perceived as wider harm being caused by the restrictions.
The easing of restrictions allows for some limited outdoor activity but only for a few hours a day.
At the beginning of June South Africa moved to lockdown alert Level 3. Under this level, all hotels and establishments can operate only if they are providing accommodation for people travelling for business. According to the regulations at the time, no accommodation establishments or attractions were allowed to open for leisure purposes. Restrictions were eased further but at the end of June it was reported that tourism would not be allowed to restart until September.
That was further bad news for the country’s one small ski area, Tiffindell, which was due to open for is 2020 season in early June and has been snowmaking and seen some natural snowfall too. In the end though it was unable to open for 2020 making South Africa the first and only country in the world where no ski area opened for an entire season due to the virus.
Operations are currently on hold and with the season normally running to the end of August it now looks like there’l be no 2020 ski season in South Africa.
Northern Hemisphere Ski Nations – Winters 19-20 and 20-21 Archive
Andorra
*** Updated 5th April, 2021 ***
Current status: Closed – End of Season.
Andorra Social Distancing Requirements: 1.5 Metres (60 Inches).
Andorra Ski Centres Currently Open: 0
Andorra’s 20-21 Season
Andorra kept its ski areas closed over Christmas and new year but allowed centres to open its ski areas for local skiers thon 2nd January. The opening weekend lifts ran free of charge in celebration.
The country said it expected few international guests during winter as it knew it would be difficult to visit.
The planned opening date had initially been set back to 19th December but on 3rd December it was announced ski areas wouldn’t open until January.
On 14th December it was then announced that Andorra’s ski areas were expected to open on January 3rd, 2021 but this wasn’t confirmed until a day before.
As of the start of April 2021 the country remained largely closed to international tourism. Those who could visit had to provide a negative test result on arrival.
Therefore few people could actually get to the open slopes and as a result only limited terrain was open, in order to stem operating losses, even though centres could probably be fully open if they had more business to justify it.
Snow cover was below average in spring and this combination meant centres closed soon after Easter Sunday.
Austria – The First Year of the Pandemic
*** Updated 29th April, 2021 ***
Austria Social Distancing Requirement: 2 Metre (80 inches)
Austria Lifts Policy: No limit on the number of people using lifts (eg 6 strangers can share a 6 seat gondola cabin), but everyone must wear masks. In most areas it must be a surgical quality mask and at many a recent virus test must have been carried out.
Winter 20-21 In Austria
Austrian ski areas were planning for fairly normal operation for winter 2020-21 with centres saying they’ll open as normal and no limits beyond normal limits on the numbers who can use individual lifts or access the mountain.
However on 31st October the Austrian president announced a November lockdown which means the nine (mostly glacier) areas that had opened already had to close again. This was later (on December 2nd) extended through December with ski areas able to open from December 24th.
However initially this was for locals only and with a full medical standard face mask required. Most Austrian ski areas don’t usually open until December anyway so there were not great concerns in November although aa few like Obergurgl, Obertauern and Ischgl which open in November had to delay doing so.
Hotels and restaurants were initially closed until 7th January, 2021 but this date was later extended to January 18th then January 24th. Re-opening for winter tourism is now tied to a return to lower levels of infection rates.
Hundreds of Austrian ski areas did open to locals from 24th December, with new, more stringent pandemic operating restrictions including the requirement to wear surgical standard face masks (not just Buffs) and limit numbers on lifts. A few big names including Ischgl and Saalbach delayed opening as they said they had logistical issues or costs were too high compared to likely income.
Many other areas have struggled to stay open with some closing again reporting few skiers able to visit and mounting losses as as result. On 17th January the Austrian government have announced the hard lockdown there would be extended a further three weeks until at least 8 February 2021.
At that point they hope there will be small loosenings of restrictions but hotels and restaurants are expected to remain closed until at least the end of February. Ski areas will remain open to local people.
On 2nd February the Austrian government announced restrictions would be gradually eased if virus rates continue to decline, however delayed a decision on restarting tourism for a further two weeks. Tirol saw a jump in cases in early February leading to concerns about another lockdown, but that was averted. Resorts initially had to deny reports that a negative COVID test was now required to get on the slopes, which wasn’t true ….until 15th February when that rule was brought in.
It led a number of resorts including Solden and St Anton to decide to close until restrictions ease. As of the start of March Austrian resorts remained open to local skiers but it has been announced that hotels won’t open and tourism restart until at least Easter. St Anton and Solden have re-opened, however the Skiwelt region has announced it is ending its season early. A number of ski areas are offering on site virus testing.
On 3rd March Ischgl announced it wouldn’t now open at all this winter.
In Mid-March Austria announced plans to gradually re-open its society and tourism attractions. First up will be a pilot opening of restaurants, cultural and sports facilities from next 15 March just in the province of Vorarlberg, home to ski areas including St Anton. If that goes well outdoor restaurants will be allowed to reopen from 27th March. If infections do not increase, “The goal is to open culture, hotels and gastronomy in April,” Austria’s chancellor Kurz said, warning, “But no one can predict the infection pattern.”
At the start of April most Austrian ski areas were open through the Easter weekend but many then closed.
What Happening in Austria in the Autumn Before Its Second Lockdown
Normally about half- the ski areas open in Europe until the winter starts are in Austria with glaciers opening in September and October and that was the case this year too.
In mid-November the Austrian Chancellor extended the country’s lockdown to December 6th and there are now concerns that a pan-EU move to delay all ski areas opening until January may come in to force.
Earlier in the autumn warm weather slowed the rate of autumn glacier openings but the Pitztal glacier opened on 19 September, joining year-round Hintertux, with the Kaunertal and Solden glaciers opening a week later and more joining them from early October with heavy snowfall up high helping a lot and giving great conditions for early autumn.
Hochkar opened briefly in October due to the snow (first without a glacier) then Kitzbuhel used snow farming to open from 24th October.
What happened in Austria during the first 6 months of the pandemic?
Austria was one of the first major ski nations to ease their lockdown. They announced in April that ski touring could resume on May 1st although then asked people not to go ski touring due to their potential medical need at a time of pandemic, and high avalanche risk.
They then said ski lifts could re-open from May 29th and initially three of the country’s glacier ski areas: Hintertux, Kaunertal, Kitzsteinhorn re-opened on that date.
The Molltal glacier also began its (usually) 11 month ski season on 6th June. This is a few weeks earlier than the Molltal’s usual ski season opening date which is in the later half of June most years – one of the world’s longest. We say “usually” because on August 16th this year the Molltal glacier ended its summer ski season.
The Kitzsteinhorn announced on 27th May that their area would include a small terrain park. The Dachstein glacier has also been open again since May 29th – but will not offer snowsports until the autumn.
The Kaunertal had a short re-opening though, running for only 9 days to the scheduled end of its 19-20 season, June 7th.
Bulgaria
*** Updated 23 April 2021 ***
Current situation: All Bulgarian ski areas closed – end of season.
Bulgaria social distancing requirement: 1.5 metres.Bulgarian ski areas currently open: 0
Ski areas there reported weather was cold enough for snowmaking in late November and that they hoped to open in December.
However the country’s health ministry was also reported to be looking in to resorts opening. The tourism minister said on 26th November the country rejected calls from France, Germany and Italy to close all EU ski slopes until January 10th and expected ski areas to open shortly before Christmas.
On 14th December Bansko announced they would open for the season on Thursday, 17th December and most of the rest of the country’s other ski areas opened by the end of the year and have so far stayed open.
Bulgarian ski areas remained open through January and ski holidays here are still possible from some countries but the country did introduce a requirement that new arrivals had a negative virus test within 72 hours of arriving in the country from late January.
On 24th February Bulgaria’s PM announced restaurants could reopen from 1st March, nightclubs from 1st April.
Having dramatically eased restrictions at the start of March, the country saw a spike in virus cases by the middle of the month and entered a new 10 day lockdown with restaurants and most shops closed from 22nd March.
No visitors from the UK will be allowed until after the end of the ski season as the country tries to avoid exposure to the English variant of the virus. However no leisure travel from England to Bulgaria is allowed until at least late May anyway.
All Bulgarian ski areas closed mid-April although Borovets re-opened some slopes for a bonus weekend at the end of the month.
Czech Republic
*** Updated 30th April, 2021 ***
Current Status: Closed due to pandemic / end of season
Czech Republic Social Distancing Requirements: 2m (6.6 Feet).
Face masks are no longer required outdoors as they were initially, but are still mandatory on indoor transport and in indoor public spaces where 2-metre distancing cannot be maintained.
Czech Republic Ski Centres Currently Open: 0
The situation regarding resorts opening was unclear in the Czech Republic until December 14th. The country’s leading resort of Spindleruv Mlyn said at the start of December that they would open on December 18th but then on December 9th, the Czech Government said they could not yet make a decision on when the country’s resorts could open, saying it was “too soon” Resorts said that position was “frustrating”.
However on December 14th Spindleruv Mlyn confirmed they would be opening on the 18th as hoped. This was short-lived though, and ski slopes were closed by government order until January 10th, although it appeared ski lifts could still operate for sightseers, just not skiers. It was reported on 8th January that it was unlikely ski areas would open on the 10th due to pandemic infection rates.
Ski areas did not re-open and on 26th January the government announced the country’s state of emergency would continue to at least February 14th.
The country’s ski area operators association say they’re safe to open and must open by January 29th to be able to do so viably this winter.
On 29th January the government further tightened restrictions, continuing ski area closures, and did not give a proposed end date to the current position.
Ski areas said they hoped to open again around 13th February but that was rejected by the government.
As of March restrictions in the Czech Republic intensified due to high infection rates and ski areas remained closed. That situation has continued through April when most Czech ski areas would be closed anyway due to the arrival of spring.
How Did Czech Ski Areas Behave During The First 6 Months of the Pandemic?
The Czech Republic was one of the first countries in the world to ease its pandemic to an extent that some ski areas could re-open only about a month or so after lockdown began, by the latter part of April.
Most Czech areas had already ended their ski seasons by then anyway but one, Praded, re-opened slopes for a short time.
News Headlines From Earlier in the Pandemic
APRIL
- Andermatt in Switzerland has been closed suddenly as part of new restrictions across the canton where it is located (13 April)
- Ski areas in Slovenia have been closed once more as part of a new lockdown from 1-10 April. (2 April)
- More ski areas in BC are closing early due to tighter pandemic prevention measures in the province. Revelstoke say they are now closed for the season due to being unable to get adequate staff in due to new restrictions, Big White will close a week early.(1 April)
MARCH
- Revelstoke say they cannot open on 31 March due to lack of staff due to new COVID restrictions in BC, Whistler say they will not now re-open for 20-21 season after 3 week closure order announced yesterday. (31 March)
- Whistler Blackcomb has been ordered to close for three weeks due to a spike in the Brazil variant of the coronavirus at North America’s largest ski area. (30th March)
- Scottish ski centre Glencoe says it hopes to open for 1-2 weeks in April/May when Scottish lockdown restrictions are due to end on 26th April. (30th March)
- The 4 Vallées have announced they’ll be closing a week earlier than planned this winter, on 18th rather than 25th April, as they face ongoing operating losses. The area has been operating what has been the largest ski area open in Europe this winter, at one point offering 370km of runs, about 80% of the maximum area, though more recently nearer 300km. (26 March)
- Cervinia in Italy has said it will re-open in April if allowed to do so (Unlike most other Italian areas) (24 March)
- Poland has closed ski resorts again in a new lockdown as cases increase. (24 March)
- Vail Resorts say their mandatory reservation system to buy lift tickets this season won’t be needed next winter. (23 March)
- Bulgaria, which dramatically eased restrictions at the start of March, is seeing a spike in virus cases and is entering a new 10 day lockdown with restaurants and most shops closed from 22nd March. (18th March)
- Some restrictions have eased in Spain from 15th March, with people able to travel further to reach the slopes. As a result some of the country’s open ski areas are hoping for a little more business and are therefore opening a little more terrain. (17th March)
- Ski areas in the German region of Bavaria, home to most of the country’s larger resorts, say they won’t now be opening this season, even if they are eventually allowed to by the regional government. Germany’s ski lift operators association said collectively Bavarian ski areas lost around €90 million through their closure between November and March. (17 March)
- Bukovel in Ukraine closed due to spike in virus cases there. (15 March).
- Restaurants re-opening in the Arlberg as an Austrian test-case from Monday. (13 March)
- Big White ski area, which had a coronavirus infections spike in the winter, says it now has no cases. (13 March)
- Arapahoe Basin ski area in Colorado says online-ticket sales only and limited numbers on the slopes will be the norm after the pandemic now too. (13 March)
- Scottish ski areas say they hope for an update on when they may be able to reopen from the Scottish government on Tuesday 16th March. (12 March)
- Austria has announced plans to gradually re-open its society and tourism attractions. First up will be a pilot opening of restaurants, cultural and sports facilities from next 15 March just in the province of Vorarlberg, home to ski areas including St Anton. If that goes well outdoor restaurants will be allowed to reopen from 27th March. If infections do not increase, “The goal is to open culture, hotels and gastronomy in April,” Austria’s chancellor Kurz said, warning, “But no one can predict the infection pattern.” (11 March)
- Ski areas in one part of Germany are allowed to open for the first time this season. (7 March)
- Several US ski areas extend ski seasons in to May (7 March)
- A Number of leading Italian ski areas have announced they won’t now be opening at all this winter. (6 March)
- Ischgl has announced it won’t be opening its ski lifts at all this winter. (3 March)
- Italy has announced ski areas will stay closed until at least April. (3 March)
- Skiwelt in Austria’s Tirol says it will close for the season Sunday March 7th after 70 days operation with no profit on any of them, and sometimes staff outnumbering skiers. (3 March)
- A number of Austrian ski areas including Fieberbrunn and St Johann are now offering free COVID testing on site to stay in the rules. (18 Feb).
FEBRUARY
- St Anton and Solden which closed last week due to stricter pandemic operating restrictions in the Tirol region have both said they’re re-opening. St Anton this weekend, Solden on March 5th (27th Feb.)
- Switzerland, where ski areas and hotels are open, has announced that shops and museums can reopen from March 1st, while restaurants can open from March 22nd. Ski resorts had been pushing for restaurants to be allowed to open sooner, if only outdoor terraces. (26 February).
- Israel’s ski centre is reported to have re-opened as the country eases its lockdown now almost half the population vaccinated. (25 Feb).
- The boss of Switzerland Tourism says the evidence to date is that his country made the correct decision to keep ski areas open this year when others closed theirs down. (24 Feb)
- England’s government confirms no international travel until at least mid-May essentially ruling out the remainder of the ski season for most Brits. (23 Feb).
- India’s Gulmarg reports booming domestic business this season after India’s lockdown ended last autumn. (22 Feb)
- Courchevel ski resort in France has started offering a taxi service to the top of a 2km groomed run as ski lifts remain closed by government order (22 Feb).
- Ski areas in Lebanon are reported to have been closed due to a new lockdown (22 Feb).
- Resorts including Formigal and Garmisch which have not been able to open this season have now said they won’t now open this season even if allowed to in the spring. More Austrian ski areas that were open to locals including St Anton and Solden have now closed after stricter rulers made operations untenable. (16 Feb)
- Sierra Nevada in Spain has re-opened it’s slopes to all residents of the surrounding Andalucía region providing they live is a district with less than 500 COVID infections per 100,000 people. (16 Feb)
- Italy’s government unexpectedly extends the enforced closure of Italian ski areas to 5th March just hours before they were due to re-open. (15th February).
- Austria’s Tirol region requires skiers to provide a negative coronavirus test before purchasing a lift pass. More resorts decide to close as a result. (15th February)
- Italy’s Trentino region is to move up to the orange tier from Monday, the day ski areas would have been allowed to open there. So resorts including so resorts including Val di Fassa, San Pellegrino, San Martino di Castrozza and Val di Fiemme will remain closed along with ski areas in South Tyrol, also in the orange tier. (13 Feb)
- Germany has extended its lockdown to 7th March leading a number of leading ski areas to call it a day on the 20-21 ski season. They say even if allowed to open that late in the season it will be too late for it to be worth the cost and effort to do so for a few final weeks. (12 Feb)
- There’s still some uncertainty but most Italian ski areas are increasingly confident they’ll be able to reopen next week and different areas have begun announcing precise opening days – they hope. It does not mean a return of ski holidays yet though. France will be the only major ski country with lifts still closed (Feb 11).
- As rumours persist, ski areas in Austria are insisting skiers do not, at this point in time, require a negative COVID test to be allowed on the slopes. (Feb 11)
- Ontario, the only province in North America to close slopes due to the COVID pandemic says they can reopen from February 16th (Feb 9th)
Rumours of a stronger lock down or pandemic rules in Tirol has led Skiwelt to publish a note that it does NOT require skiers to provide a negative virus test to be allowed on the slopes. (Feb 9th) - South Tyrol is currently in an orange tier on Italy’s pandemic measure so it appears it will be not able to reopen its ski centres next week when (it appears) most of the rest of the country will be able to. (8 Feb)
- Italy has announced ski areas in the country’s ‘yellow zones’ on 15th February under the country’s new tiered system will be able to re-open slopes and lifts. Most of the country’s ski areas are currently in yellow zones. (5 February).
- Ski areas in Poland appear to be preparing to re-open to all from 12th February (5 February).
- Scotland has extended the closure of ski areas to the end of February during what would be one of the best seasons in the past decade (3 Feb 21)
- Austria is cautiously easing its lockdown restrictions but says a decision on restarting tourism is two weeks away. (3 Feb 21)
- Among a list of predictions for coming ski seasons, a holiday company has predicted it will be at least two winters before apres-ski might return to normal, “I think après ski could return during the 2021-21 season in some capacity but there will be capacity limitations in place for any bars or restaurants and it will be for seated clients only. I think it will not be until 2023 that we see a return to après ski as we knew it,” said Natasha Robertson, Co-Founder of chalet companies Bramble Ski & Haute Montagne. (3 Feb 21)
- French Government have closed borders to non-EU nationals and confirmed on 1st February that ski areas would not be allowed to open until at least March. Earlier in the day around 100 ski area workers blocked access to the Frejus Tunnel between France and Italy protesting against resulting hardship (2nd February, 2021)
- Ski areas in most parts of Slovenia have been allowed to re-open, to skiers only, under a new tiered system (2nd February, 2021).
- Ministers in the provincial government of Ontario in Canada, the only area in North America to have closed its ski areas, announced they hope they will be able to re-open ‘early-February’.
- Some ski areas in Poland open to “sportsmen and women” who have evidence they’re part of some sports team. (2nd February 2021).
JANUARY
- 96 skiers deemed to be in Austria illegally have been caught by police and issued with fines of up to 2,180 Euros in St Anton. Reuters reports the skiers come from countries including Australia, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Romania, Sweden and the UK. (30 January)
- Poland’s government has extended the closure of ski resorts to February 14th, whilst allowing shopping malls to reopen, causing some anger. (28 January)
- Turkey has cracked down on apres ski gatherings after Turkish media showed social media images of unmasked groups of people having apres ski fun in the resort of Uludag whilst the country has strict pandemic restrictions in place. (27 January)
- The Czech government has announced the country’s state of emergency would continue to at least February 14th. The country’s ski area operators association say they’re safe to open and must open by January 29th to be able to do so viably this winter. (26 Jan)
- Organisers of springtime music festivals in The Alps are being forced to cancel for the second successive year. (24 January)
- Morocco has closed Africa’s Oukaimeden ski area after a coronavirus case was identified (14 January)
- Italian resorts optimistic that they will open for the season at the third attempt on February 15th after multiple government agencies signalled this time they would be good to go. (24 January).
- The French government says the country’s ski areas will not re-open at the start of February as hoped and that opening in mid or late February is “highly improbable”. (20 January).
- German leaders have extended the lockdown there until 14 February at the earliest and surgical or higher protection masks will now be required in shops and public transport. (20 Jan)
- The Austrian government have announced the hard lockdown there will be extended until at least 8 February 2021. At that point they hope there will be small loosenings of restrictions but hotels and restaurants are expected to remain closed until at least the end of February. Ski areas will remain open to local people. (17 Jan)
- Italy’s ski areas have announced they won’t open on Monday, January 18th, as had been hoped with the Italian Government now saying they will now not open until at least February 15th because of, “the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.” (16 Jan)
- Spain’s Sierra Nevada ski area has been allowed to stay open, to local skiers only after Andalucia brought in tougher new pandemic restrictions. It had previously been feared the resort would have to close. (16 Jan).
- Ski resorts in South Korea have re-opened (15 Jan).
- Some ski areas in Norway have been selling out of limited availability tickets in advance at weekends and holidays with Voss saying the only way to get a lift pass after they sold out for a day was to book resort accommodation which comes with a lift ticket included (14 Jan).
- Several ski areas in Poland have said they will operate in defiance of a government order that they close (14 Jan).
- Ski areas in Iceland have been allowed to open to adult skiers for the season (14 Jan).
- Uncertainty continues as to whether Italian ski areas will be able to re-open on 18th January (next Monday), as has been the provisional date for a few weeks now since the original 7th January date passed. The country’s regions are currently being divided in to colour coded levels according to pandemic levels with Veneto and Lombardy in orange (the middle rating) for now, and South Tyrol in the highest, red. Currently it is being suggested maximum capacity at re-opened ski areas would be 30-40% of the norm. Ski areas are questioning whether people living in the lowest infection areas (yellow) will be allowed to travel to them and whether they will be able to cover their operating costs. Some are saying it would be better to delay and ‘open well’ for the last few months of the season than ‘open badly’ on the 18th. (12 Jan)
- There are (very) early signs that some of the ski areas in the Alps currently closed by their governments may try to stay open later in to spring if snow and pandemic conditions are good enough then. (11 January).
- The famous Lauberhorn World Cup downhill ski race in Wengen, Switzerland, has been cancelled due to the pandemic. (11 January)
- There’s been relief in Quebec that, so far at least, ski areas have been permitted to remain open despite ever more draconian measures to limit the spreads of the virus there. Ski areas in neighbouring Ontario remain closed by provincial government order. (9 Jan)
- French resorts probably won’t open until at least mid-February, government announces. (8 Jan)
- Germany has delayed its opening date for ski resorts. The Zugspitze Glacier says they now hope it will be by February. The centre, the country’s highest, says they may extend the ski season if snow conditions allow in spring. (7 Jan)
- Austria has delayed its opening of its tourism industry and ski lifts again, now to at least 24th January (5 Jan)
- Andorra’s ski centres have opened for the season, although initially only to people living locally. The Grandvalira and Vallnord resorts ran their lifts free of charge over opening weekend – 2nd/3rd January. (4 Jan).
- Scotland’s remaining still-open ski areas have been ordered to close from Tuesday January 5th as the country goes into a full lockdown. Three of the country’s centres had been open under tight restrictions.(4 Jan).
- Austria has delayed its planned opening to ski tourism (slopes are currently only open to ‘locals’) until at least January 18th. At that point ski tourism may resume if infection rates are much lower than at present. (4 Jan)
2020
DECEMBER
- Italian ski areas may be able to open from 18th January according to the country’s government. The country will be divided in to tiers according to virus infection rates.
- French ski resorts won’t be allowed to open from 7th January, as the French government had hoped in December. Exactly when they will be able to open remains unclear but it looks like the latter half of January at the earliest.
- Ski areas in Germany won’t open until later in January (they had originally hoped to from the 7th) due to a full lockdown there.
- Slovenia has banned the operation of ski lifts until January 1st in a ‘short notice’ decree. Inspectors are reported to have fined the managers of Krvavec ski resort 4400 Euros after they continued to operate (27 December).
- Austria’s Molltal Glacier has closed again after a few days operations, apparently as they cannot make enough money from limited visitor numbers due to the virus to cover operating costs, although no official reason has been published. The country has entered a third lockdown to January 24th. (27 December).
- The Slovak Republic has announced ski resorts must close between 1st and 24th January 2021 after being open at Christmas and over New Year’s Eve.
- Several leading ski areas in Austria, including Ischgl and Saalbach, have not yet opened for the season as they say they have issues include problems breaking even, or of preventing border crossings, with the current restrictions.
- Ontario is the first and so far only region in North America to announce its ski areas must close, from December 26th, due to a new lockdown. (24 December)
- Ski areas in Austria are able to start opening for the 20-21 season from today. Initially to local people only. Hundreds have opened on Christmas Eve. (24 December).
- Ski areas in Scotland are reacting in different ways to the move to tier 4 from Saturday. Glencoe and The Lecht say they’ll stay open to local skiers only; Cairngorm say they’re closing; Glenshee that they’ll decide what to do after Christmas. Nevis Range had already closed in to 2021. (23 December).
- South Korea will close ski resorts and other tourist attractions from Dec. 24 to Jan. 3 in a bid to control a virus surge (22 December)
- Ski areas in the Czech republic are to close until at least January 10th. (22 December)
- Big White has been declared safe to all those who follow virus safety advice by the local health body after more than 70 staff test positive for the coronavirus there (20 December).
- Most Swiss ski areas now appear certain to stay open for Christmas (19 December)
- Formigal, one of the leading ski areas in Spain, say they won’t be able to open for Christmas from December 23rd as planned, due to the pandemic. (19 December).
- Ski season starts in Czech Republic this weekend with Spindleruv Mlyn opening Friday 18th. (15 Dec).
- The Saslong lift company in Italy, which runs some of the lifts in Val Gardena including the famous World Cup race course about to be hosting it’s annual races, has announced it won’t open this season (although the races are still on) (15 Dec)
- Bad news from Big White in Canada where a cluster of more than 60 coronavirus cases have been confirmed by testing. (16 December)
- Ski areas in Estonia and Latvia have opened for the ski season. (15 Dec).
- Les 2 Alpes in France say they’ll groom two blue pistes, the longest with 750 metres of vertical, for ski tourers to use over Christmas and New Year (15 Dec)
- Serbia’s leading resort Kopaonik has opened for the 20-21 season. (14 Dec)
- Some reports indicate ski areas in Andorra may now open on 3rd January, earlier than previously thought (14 Dec).
- Bansko in Bulgaria say they’ll open for the season this Thursday, 17th December (14 Dec).
- Ski season underway in Slovenia. Lifts are open at Kranjska Gora, Pohorje above Maribor and at Krvavec, but only for locals, with apres ski banned.
- Reuters report the French government is looking at January 7th as the probable season start date – lining up with Austria and Italy (12 December)
- Ski areas in Catalonia say they’ll open for the 2020-2021 season next Monday, December 14. Resorts including Baqueira Beret say they’ll open “with all the relevant Covid19 security measures.” With Ski areas in Andorra and the French Pyrenees closed until January only ski areas in the Spanish Pyrenees will be open over Xmas/NY (11 Dec).
- Italy’s ski season set to begin on 7th January. (11 Dec).
- Ski areas have begun opening for the 20-21 ski season in Turkey. Ejder 3200 ski area near Erzurum offered free ski sessions to health workers fighting the virus today. (11 Dec).
- Leitariegos ski area is the first ski area in Spain to open, to locals only. (10th December).
- The group which represents French ski resorts, Domaines Skiables de France, is suing the French government over its plans to shut down ski areas over Christmas and New Year (10 Dec).
- Portugal’s Serra da Estrela ski area is the first to open on the Iberian peninsular (10 Dec).
- Ski areas in Poland have begun opening for the 20-21 season, although only to local skiers with tourism closed. Białka Tatrzańska was one of the first of the country’s ski centres to open, on December 5th (9 Dec).
- Scandinavia’s largest area, Are, say it will open on December 18th (9 Dec)
- Ski areas in Spain appear to be allowed to open by the government there, against the wishes of their EU neighbour nations to the east, however many Spanish ski areas won’t open for now for various logistical reasons, many virus related. One of the country’s largest, Baqueira Beret, say they do plan to open for the season on Thursday 10th December. With ski areas closed in Andorra and France it will be one of the few resorts open in the Pyrenees. The French Prime Minister says there will be border patrols to try to intercept French skiers heading to Spain or Switzerland (5 December).
- Ski areas in Poland will be permitted to open from 8th December, according to reports. (5 December)
- Concerns raised over slope safety in France when resorts are closed. (4 December)
- Larger ski resorts in Japan are opening for their 2020-21 season including Appi, Hunter Mountain and Rusutsu. (4 December)
- Larger resorts in Norway are starting to open including Geilo and (next week) Hemsedal (4 December).
- Slovakia’s leading ski area of Jasna will open for the season tomorrow, although with tickets limited to season pass holders initially. (4 December).
- There’s increasing anger in mountain regions and resorts in France and Italy at the closure of ski slopes over Christmas and new year from the region’s businesses. (3rd December).
- Andorra has announced resorts will stay closed until January. (3 December).
- France announces border guards to stop skiers heading in to Switzerland at Christmas (2nd December).
- Austria has announced its ski lifts can re-open from Christmas Eve, but only for locals with hotels and restaurants, 2021 (2nd December).
- The opening of ski areas in Quebec has given hope to people according to the region’s ski areas association president. (2 December)
- Ski areas in France expect to get an update on the government’s closure of the slopes over Christmas and new year on December 11th. (2 December)
NOVEMBER
- Tirol Anger at plans to close French and Italian ski areas over Christmas is growing in the Alps from the people who work there (30 November)
- Taos ski area delays opening due to coronavirus restrictions in New Mexico (27 November)
- Bulgaria and Austria have both stated their opposition to a plan by France, Germany and Italy for all EU ski areas to close their ski resorts until January 10th (27 November).
- The Portes du Soleil ski region which straddles the border between France and Switzerland says its Swiss side will be open for skiers over Christmas and new year but its French side will be closed. (27 November)
- Switzerland say their ski resorts will be staying open through Christmas. (26 November).
- Leaders of Bavaria, France and Italy Call for EU Wide Christmas/New Year Ski Resort Closures. (25 November)
- Most French ski resorts have said they will be offering Christmas and New Year holidays to visitors even if they are not permitted to run ski lifts. (25 November).
- A number of states and provinces in the USA and Canada have tightened restrictions on businesses to curtail growing virus numbers but ski areas in Minneapolis and Alberta are the latest to announce that they have been permitted to remain open. (25 November)
- French President Emmanuel Macron has announced this evening that the country’s ski resorts will probably not be permitted to re-open in December when the country ends its November lockdown. Instead they will most likely stay closed through Christmas and New Year holidays but, he hopes, will be able to open in January. A final decision is due in the next 10 days. (24 November).
- Spain’s Sierra Nevada which was due to open this weekend says it won’t open until virus conditions improve. Baqueira Beret, another leading Spanish area, say they’ll open on 11th December, later than usual (23 November)
- Largest ski area in the US, Park City, is open for season (21 November).
- Canada joins list if countries with ski areas open for season now in double figures (the others are Switzerland, the US, and before its latest lockdown, Austria). Ski areas in Alberta post up to 3 feet (90cm) of snowfall in past week (21 November)
- Shymbulak ski area has opened for the season in Kazakhstan (19 November).
- Killington announces plan to open for 20-21 on Friday, 20th November, believed to be first in the Eastern US. (19 November).
- World Cup competition coming up this weekend on the Stubai Glacier in Austria (Slopestyle) and at Levi in Finland (Slalom) (19 November)
- Crystal Mountain is first to open in Washington state, USA (19 November).
- Lookout Pass (48/60” / 120/150cm) was the first ski area to open for the season in Idaho for the new season, with fourteen trails open, five of them groomed. (17 November).
- Zermatt says it will delay opening its lower areas and commencing its main winter season by a week to 5th December because of the recent warm weather in the Alps. (16 November)
- Pictures of long lift lines at Zermatt ski area in Switzerland, apparently not socially-distanced, go viral. ( 15 November).
- Scotland’s Nevis Range ski area says it is shutting down operations until the trading situation is better, having made substantial losses during the pandemic. It hopes to re-open in the New year if snow conditions and trading possibilities improve sufficiently (14 November).
- Cypress Mountain is the first ski area to open in BC, Canada – but sells out of tickets. (14 November) .
- Mountain High ski area in California which had expected to be the first to open for 20-21 in the state postponed after four employees tested positive for COVID-19. Mammoth Mountain will now be the first, probably, opening a day earlier than planned (12 November). Mountain High opened on Saturday the 14th.
- Loveland announce they are opening today, 4th in Colorado (11 November).
- The number of ski areas open in North America for 20-21 is in double-figures With Arapahoe Basin, Keystone, Nakiska and Sunshine opening and some areas receiving more than two feet (60cm) of snowfall. Mammoth, Breckenridge and Marmot Basin (Jasper) among those due to open later this week. (Nov 10).
- Some leading Austrian ski areas including St Anton and Ischgl say they don’t plan to open the day Austria’s November lockdown ends but later in December. (9 November).
- Nakiska and Sunshine ski areas are opening in Canada. Mt Saint Sauveur in Quebec has begun night skiing and Panorama in BC is open for team training. (7 Nov)
- Crans Montana is the 11th Swiss ski area to open for the 20-21 season. (7 Nov)
- Keystone Resort has got the go ahead from the authorities in Colorado to open for 20-21. There were limited opening weekend tickets due to pandemic restrictions, available to season pass holders only, and already sold out. (6 Nov)
- Switzerland’s government has decided not to have a November lockdown like its neighbours and ski areas will stay open, however Valais region has introduced new restrictions with most facilities including restaurants and cafes closing from the weekend (5 November).
- Bulgaria has announced a ‘Ski Holidays are good for your health” promotion for winter 20-21 (5 Nov).
- Italy’s three open ski areas will only be open to race teams from Sunday 8th November. (5 Nov).
- Keystone on target to open Friday, November 6th, as planned, but Winter Park set-back opening date to end on Month, at earliest, blaming warm weather, forest fires and the virus. (4 Nov)
- The ski season got underway in Montana at the weekend at the Great Divide ski area. 4th in the US to Open. (3 Nov)
OCTOBER
- The ski season is underway in Eastern North America with Quebec’s Summit Ste Sauveur opening (31st October).
- Austria will begin a November lockdown on Tuesday 3rd, closing the nine ski areas already open and delaying the opening of areas like Obergurgl, Obertauern and Ischgl which usually open in November. (31 October).
- 10 Swiss areas expected to be open this weekend, more than any other country at present. Arosa, Andermatt, Laax and Verbier opening. Greater emphasis on pandemic prevention with limited numbers on the mountain, on cabin lifts, online ticketing only and other measures at some areas – a change from previous policy at most already autumn opened ski areas in the Alps. (30th October).
- Verbier say they’ll open early, this Friday 30th October, due to the good conditions. Andermatt opening Saturday but with limited numbers allowed to maintain social-distancing. (29th October).
- A new national lockdown to 1st December in France means Tignes and les 2 Alpes have to close (Les 2 Alpes was due to close on Sunday anyway after October opening) and Val Thorens must delay its planned Nov 21 opening. (29 October)
- Italy’s Val Senales, one of two ski areas in the country that have stayed open despite a new Italian ‘mini lockdown’ to November 24th requiring ski areas to close, says they’re staying open. “We take the current situation very seriously: that’s why we have developed a safety plan and ask our visitors to respect our safety regulations on site. Especially at this particular time we want to keep giving you the opportunity to enjoy winter sports, walk outdoors and breathe in the fresh mountain air. This year we have learned that circumstances can change at any time: if this happens, we will keep you informed on our website. In the meantime, we wish you an exciting ski season – with safety and awareness!” Of the other three other areas Cervinia closed but re-opened to racers and Passo Stelvio closed at end of season anyway. Sulden also remains open. (28 October).
- Lake Louise is the second Banff area ski centre to announce its earliest ever opening from Thursday, 29th October, joining Mt Norquay, a week earlier than planned following great early conditions. 4 lifts, 7 runs, 1 terrain park and almost 2500 feet of vertical to be open. (28 October).
- Wolf Creek in Colorado first in state and first larger ski area in US to open for 21-22 season on Wednesday 28th October, 2020. (27 October)
- The Southern Hemisphere’s 2020 ski season has ended earlier than expected due to warm spring weather at the last areas open on Mt Ruapehu in New Zealand. (26 October).
- It appeared the four Italian ski areas that had opened already for the 20-21 season would have to close from 26 October until November 24th as part of a new national lockdown in the country. But initially only two have. The hope is that the main ski season will be saved by acting now. (25 October)
- Kitzbuhel in Austria, Banff in Canada, Cervinia in Italy and Davos in Switzerland are the latest big name resorts to open for winter 20-21 under pandemic operating restrictions. 30+ ski areas now open in 10 countries. (24 October).
- US and North American ski season underway at Wild Mountain in Minnesota on Tuesday 20 October 2020. (24 October).
- Canada’s 20-21 Ski season will kick off Saturday 24th October, with Mt. Norquay Banff in Alberta, Canada the first in the country to open (its earliest opening date in 95 years) (23 October).
- Just one ski area is believed to be still open for winter 2020 in the southern hemisphere, Whakapapa on Mt Ruapehu’s on New Zealand’s North Island. It should stay open until the end of the month then its neighbour, Turoa, plans to re-open for the first half of November, conditions permitting (22 October).
- Davos has announced their Parsenn ski area will open two weeks earlier than planned, this Saturday 24th October, due to the good October snow conditions. (22 October).
- The 2020 season is finally over at the Fonna Glacier summer area in Norway, one of the first areas in the world to open after the lockdown, at the time with about 13 metres (43 feet) of snow lying. That saw it through the past five months and 171 days of operations, although with some summer snowfall top ups too. Fonna opens for next season on 15th of May 2021 (18 October).
- 40cm (16″) of snow on the mountain and 40 days to go to the start of the season at Big White in Canada. It currently sadly seems unlikely non-Canadians will get a chance to be there this winter. (18 October).
- Less than a fortnight until the start of the North American ski season. (17 October).
- Alpine Skiing World Cup Tour resumes for first time since pandemic lockdown in March with first 20-21 event, at Solden in Austria (17 October).
- Ski season starts at Les 2 Alpes and Tignes in France as well as Idre Fjall in Sweden taking number of countries with ski areas open to nine (17 October).
- Ski areas in France and Sweden open this Saturday meaning more than 20 ski areas will be open in 7 countries. In the Alps there are great conditions on glaciers after three snowfalls in recent weeks. The 20-21 Alpine ski world Cup is also due to begin in Solden (14 October).
- Natural snowfall and now snowmaking underway mean the start of North America’s 20-21 ski season is very close. (Oct 12).
- Mt Hutt, the first major ski area to open for 2020 southern hemisphere ski season nearly 4 months ago to the day has ended its season, most of which took place without the usual virus restrictions as New Zealand kept the virus out. Two ski areas on the country’s Mt Ruapehu are aiming to stay open into ‘Snowvember” – conditions permitting. (11 October).
- The 2020 ski season in the Andes has about ended with the last ski area still open in Chile closing (11 October)
- A snowmaking company has trialled a machine that fires disinfectant in to a gondola cabin rather than snow on to the slopes (10 Oct).
- Engelberg 14th glacier in the Alps (4th in Switzerland) to open for 2020-21 ski season (9 October).
- French 20-21 ski season set to start at two glacier ski areas in a weeks’ time (9 October).
- FIS give green light to World Cup 2020-21 Season start races in Solden in a week’s time (below) (9 October).
- Several more Austrian glacier resorts including the Kitzsteinhorn and Stubai have opened for the 2020-21 season meaning 12 areas are now open in the Alps. (5 October).
- Italy’s Sestriere ski area is not selling season passes as it is concerned that it cannot guarantee it will be able to open all season if pandemic restrictions return. (5 October)
- Austrian ski resort Axamer Lizum, a former Innsbruck Winter Olympic downhill race venue, is seeking permission not to open this winter due to the virus. (5 October)
- Cervinia has announced temperature scanners will be in place on some lifts when it opens for the season on 24 October. (4 October)
- The 2020-21 ski season has started in Finland at 9.30am this morning, Friday 2nd October, 2020 with two of its largest resorts – Levi and Ruka – re-opened after six months closure (2 October).
SEPTEMBER
- Turoa and Whakapapa on Mt Ruapehu in New Zealand will stay open to late-spring (mid-November) this year, snow permitting, to give kiwis that chance to hit the slopes for longer in a tough year, its operator says. (29 September).
- Glacier 3000 near Gstaad and les Diablerets in Switzerland has opened for winter 20-21 nearly 6 weeks earlier than planned after a 70cm late September snowfall at the weekend (28 September)
- Another three Austrian glacier ski areas are expected to open for their 2020-21 ski seasons at the weekend, taking the country’s total to five – the most in the world right now after New Zealand. The Mölltal Glacier, Kaunertal Glacier and Sölden’s glacier all plan to open. (23 September)
- Badger Pass ski area, California’s oldest ski area and located within Yosemite National Park, has announced it won’t open for the 2020-21 ski season. An online statement from the resort says, “Due to ongoing concerns related to COVID-19, Badger Pass Ski Area will not open for the 2020-21 season,” but does not elaborate on why it is different here to other Californian ski areas which are opening. (23 Sepember)
- Ski areas in France are confirming that at present they plan to operate without limits on the number of people using lifts, nor on the mountain, beyond normal limits. Frequent cleaning will be in place and skiers and boarders will need to wear masks. The announcements are in line with those already made by Austrian ski areas and may change if French government policy changes. (22 Sepember).
- A number of ski areas in North America have announced additional outdoor temporary dining facilities to improve social-distancing options. Telluride is looking at using gondola cabins. (22 September).
- New Zealand’s ski areas have started closing for the 2020 season but most of the country, including the areas where the ski centres are, are going back down to level 1 virus restrictions, as of Tuesday 22 September, meaning face masks and social distancing are no longer required again. (21 September).
- Austria’s Pitztal Glacier has opened for the 2020 ski season. (19 September).
- Sun Peaks, which operates the second largest ski area in Canada, has announced it has sold out of season passes for the coming winter. These guarantee slope access through the season when reduced numbers will be allowed on the mountain due to the pandemic – in common with most North American ski areas (18 Sept).
- Val Senales has opened for its 2020-21 ski season in Italy, joining already-open Passo Stelvio (18 September).
- A number of ski areas in Europe and North America have announced they’ll be running their lifts faster, where that’s an option, this winter, to minimise time on board. This is along with frequent cleaning, contact-less-access open windows and mask wearing. Italy’s Alta Badia and Jackson Hole in the US are among resorts announcing this. (16 September).
- Copper Mountain, usually one of the first to open for the season in North America and the world, in early November, say they’ll open a little later for 20-21, just after Thanksgiving, to avoid the risk of too many skiers on potentially limited early-season terrain. Most other North American ski areas are so far announcing usual opening dates. (6 Sept).
- Austrian ski areas confirm no social distancing needed this winter in lifts: “Mountain railways are part of public transport in Austria. Accordingly, mouth and nose protection must be worn in all closed vehicles such as gondolas and armchairs with hoods. This makes it possible to use the transport equipment with the usual capacity – e.g. 8 people in an 8-seater gondola, 6 people on a 6-seater chair, etc.),” a statement on the COVID19 pages of Austria’s Wildschonau region explains. Other Austrian resorts now have similar clarity. (3 Sept).
- Vail Resorts have announced their operating plans for their 34 North American resorts this winter. Holders of their Epic Pass season tickets will have exclusive access to the slopes until December 8th then priority access for the remainder of the season. (2 Sept)
AUGUST
- Ischgl, the Austrian ski resort that found itself, more than any other, the subject of criticism as the pandemic spreads in Europe in the late winter, and is now facing a huge class-action lawsuit from those who claim they caught the virus there, have launched the most comprehensive programme to make the resort virus-free this winter. (27 August)
- A third ski area in Chile, Corralco, has announced it will open for the 2020 season this Saturday – over two months later than normal and a month before the usual end of the ski season there. (26 August)
- La Parva and El Colorado ski areas opening for pass holders from 18th and 19th August respectively, first in Chile (17th August).
- Will Chile’s ski areas, which have had some of the best snowfalls in years, be able to open at all this winter? There are a few possibly hopeful signs and they’re stressing the snow could last in to November… (15 August)
- Every ski area is taking stock as to whether they can operate safely and financially viably next winter. So far the vast majority are deciding yes, but a few have decided No. (14 August)
- Caviahue is the latest ski area in Argentina to announce it is opening for its ‘micro-region’ of local skiers. Most Argentinian ski areas are now open for local skiers. (14 August)
- An increasing number of North American ski areas say they’ll operate a ‘normal’ schedule this coming winter, but with the usual social-distancing and similar measures in place. (13 August).
- Ski areas in New Zealand are having to introduce social-distancing and other anti-COVID measures for the first time after four cases found in the country, the first for over 100 days. (12 August).
- Most ski areas in Argentina are now open. (6 August).
- With the surge in virus cases in the Australian province of Victoria now leading to a state of emergency being declared, two ski areas which had so far only managed to open for three days this season, say that’s skiing over for them now until 2021 (4 August).
- The world’s largest amateur downhill ski race, The Inferno at Murren, says it hopes to run its 78th race in January after the Swiss government announced events of up to 1000 would be allowed to resume. There’s a Plan B if more stringent rules are re-introduced (it was later cancelled) (2 August).
JULY
- A second Argentinian ski area will open its lifts on Saturday, joining Catedral. Cerro Castor, the world’s most southerly resort, will run its lifts for the first time in 2020. (29 July).
- There are different approaches to social-distancing emerging depending on the country you’re skiing in. Some offer self-policing by skiers; others have resort-staff policing distancing and still others have actual police occasionally checking everyone is following the rules. (29 July)
- If not ‘normal’ New Zealand ski areas nonetheless appear to be having a better season than feared, with some opening daily this week due to demand having planned only weekends at this point in the season. (July 23)
- Catedral becomes the first ski area in Argentina, the Andes and South America to open for the 2020 ski season. (22 July)
- The key Jandri Express giant gondola lift which carries skiers to Europe’s largest summer ski area above les 2 Alpes in France does not require social distancing anymore, according to the resort, although face masks must be worn. This is believed to be the first time a cabin lift has been allowed to run at capacity and may be a model of how things will be allowed to work at busy resorts next winter. (17 July)
- There are now both more ski centres currently open and more kilometres of slopes open in the southern hemisphere than the northern hemisphere for the first time in 2020. (15 July)
- What’ happening at ski areas in Australia’s state of Victoria during the pandemic surge? Well it’s complicated: Mt Buller and Mt Baw Baw are staying open for now but the lifts at Mt Hotham and Falls Creek are closed for at least six weeks. HOWEVER the resorts themselves are open for tourists and back country skiers, for example. The good news is it’s snowing, a lot. Here’s our summary. (12 July)
- It just keeps snowing in the Andes. This would have been one of the best winters this century if resorts were not closed by the pandemic. Corralco is one of several reporting bases now nearly 5m/17 feet. One sign of light Cerro Castor, the world’s most southerly resort, has re-opened its base area to locals and is allowing backcountry skiing. (12 July)
- Is there light at the end of the tunnel in the Andes? Cerro Castor down near Tierra del Fuego in Argentina and the world’s most southerly developed ski area has opened its resort base and ice rink to local people in the province. It is believed it is the first ski area in the Andes to also permit back country skiing this winter, although its lifts are not running and it’s open to locals only. (12 July)
- Falls Creek and Hotham ski areas in Australia have closed for at least 10 days due to a surge in virus cases in Victoria. Mt Baw Baw will open weekends, Mt Buller will make a decision tomorrow. (July 9)
- Positive signs from Argentina as one ski area re-opens some facilities to locals …although not yet its ski slopes. (July 9)
- With Mt Hotham and Falls Creek now open after fresh weekend snowfall, all of Australia’s major ski areas (Except Selwyn Snow Resort, rebuilding this year after bush fires damage) are now open for 2020. (July 7).
- With travel restrictions easing, innovative instructor Warren Smith is going ahead with summer ski courses on the glacier above Zermatt later this month. (July 7)
- Switzerland has made wearing masks compulsory on public transport – which includes cable cars, gondolas and funiculars in ski resorts. This initially affects skiers at the only Swiss area open, Zermatt, but Saas Fee is due to join them this coming weekend. (July 6)
- It’s turning in to one of the snowiest starts to winter in years in the Andes with base depths already nearly 4 metres (13 feet). Very sad it’s not safe for the ski areas in Argentina and Chile to open. (July 6)
- North American ski resorts say that as we look ahead to winter 2020-21 it’s important to consider the positives of a ski holiday whilst being aware of what’s likely to be different next season. (July 2)
JUNE
- With Chile’s state-of-emergency extended by another three months to the middle-of-September, the final weeks of the normal ski season, there are increasing doubts that ski areas will be able to open there in 2020. (June 30).
- South Africa eases lockdown but says tourism businesses won’t be able to open until September – this appears to be bad news for the country’s ski area, Tiffindell, where the ski season usually runs to the end of August. (June 30)
- Mt Buller in Australia has opened with visitors to the resort receiving an SMS notification to generate a streamlined QR code registration process on arrival at the slopes. The new technology will be important if required for contact tracing, simple and effective,” a resort spokesperson said. (June 24).
- Hotham in Australia says it will delay the opening of its ski lifts for the 2020 snow season until 6 July (conditions permitting) due to challenging early-season conditions, not the virus. (June 24)
- Portillo in Chile announces its planned opening date, already set back a month of July 19th, has now been “suspended indefinitely” whilst better news is awaited in the Andes. (June 23)
- Australia’s 2020 ski season has started, the third southern hemisphere ski nation to open for 2020. (22 June)
- Ski areas have now re-opened in 10 countries but social-distancing requirements on the slopes and using lifts vary. The distances change frequently but at time of writing they’re believed to be 1 Metre (3.3 Feet) Austria, France and Italy; 1.5 Metres (5 Feet) in Australia and Norway; 1.8 Metres (6 Feet) in the USA and 2 Metres (6.7 Feet) in Switzerland. In Lesotho and New Zealand there’s no social-distancing requirement. (June 22).
- Several ski areas in Argentina and Chile are warning backcountry skiers that they should not be hiking up to ski slopes in the Andes during the ongoing lockdown there. They warn there’s been no avalanche prevention measures and there are currently no rescue or medical staff on site whilst resorts are closed. (June 17).
- Some Australian ski areas are noting that limited snow cover may be an issue for slope access when resorts open next week, as much as limited numbers due to the pandemic. (June 17).
- Australian ski areas to initially operate at 50% capacity and with 1.5 metre social distancing in place when they open for the season next week. (June 16).
- With usual ski season start date now here, ski areas in Argentina, Chile and South Africa yet to find out when or if they’ll be able to open for winter 2020. (June 16).
- It has been snowing in the Andes but there’s no news yet when areas in Argentina and Chile will be able to open. Ski Portillo Chile say they hope for good news soon but have set back their opening day to July 18. (June 13) .
- Lift ticket sales website crashes as Australian resort opens ahead of season start due to high demand. (June 12)
- Norway’s Stryn Glacier has opened a fortnight later due to delays digging out the access road from spring snowfall (June 12).
- New Zealand’s 2020 ski season has begun a week later than originally planned with Mt Hutt opening with no social distancing or off-slope mask wearing required. (June 12)
- New Zealand’s ski areas to operate normally without social distancing when season starts on Friday after lockdowns there eased further. (June 9)
- Italy’s first lift-served skiing for more than three months will resume at Passo Stelvio on 13th June after the government allowed it to open to the public earlier than expected. (June 9).
- Crystal Mountain has joined Arapahoe Basin in announcing it will close again tomorrow, 7 days after it re-opened. Beartooth Basin and Timberline Lodge ski areas remain open through June in the US. (June 6).
- Southern hemisphere’s 2020 ski season gets underway with Afriski in Lesotho first to officially open slopes. (June 6)
- Cervinia has announced that ski lifts will re-open to the public on June 20th, earlier than expected (June 5th).
- After snowless May, Arapahoe Basin announces closing for season on Sunday June 7th. (June 5th)
- Australian media has noted that one of the first resorts there to publish 2020 winter season pricing has increased the lift ticket cost by 20% in a bid to cover the impact of having fewer skiers allowed on the staff but needing to employ more staff due to the virus. (June 4th)
- Val d’Isere publish details of their glacier opening on Saturday. Among pandemic spread prevention measures ticket sales will be limited to 500 a day initially and must be bought online at least 48 hours in advance.(June 3rd).
- Whistler’s Blackcomb Glacier won’t open for summer skiing this year. (June 2nd)
- Italy’s Passo Stelvio expected to open for international race team training, but not public access, from June 3rd. Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova and upcoming star Alice Robinson from New Zealand are also reported to be expected to be training there according to Italian media (June 1st).
- Japan’s Gassan ski area re-opens until July. (June 1)
- With Australia’s 2020 season only days away at least one resort says it has sold out of its current quota of lift tickets for much of the season, and bans snowballing. (June 19).
- Cervinia opens for summer skiing from 20th June and has announced it will be open to the end of September, about three weeks later than usual. Tignes re-opens too (June 19).
MAY
- Australian ski resorts firm-up 2020 season opening dates – with most opening on June 22nd or June 24th. (May 29)
- In an unexpected move, the Swiss ski resort of Crans Montana has announced it will be re-opening for a nine-day period from 6-14 June (May 28th).
- Crystal Mountain in Washington State is sixth US area to re-open since pandemic, and will be one of four in the country open on June 1st. (May 28)
- Kitzsteinhorn says it will have a terrain park when it re-opens tomorrow. (May 28)
- Zermatt says there’ll be no limit on the number of people on the slopes when the resort re-opens for year-round snowsports on 6th June. (26 May)
- Australia’s province Victoria says resorts there can open from June 22nd (25 May).
- Hintertux announces it will have 26km of runs open and a base of over 3 metres (10 feet) when it re-turns to year-round ski operations on Friday 29 May. (24 May)
- Leading South American ski resort Las Lenas says it won’t open this winter due to the pandemic, even if Argentina’s lockdown eased (22 May).
- Riksgransen is to re-open for midnight-sun skiing over midsummers weekend in late June.
- Mont St Sauveur in Quebec Canada says it will open its summer snow park if permission granted by province’s leaders (May 21st).
- Les 2 Alpes has confirmed it expects to open its glacier for summer skiing to those able to get there safely on June 27th, a week later than originally planned (May 20th).
- Australian ski areas have begun confirming they won’t be able to open for the season from June 6th as planned, however the loosening of the lockdown in New South Wales has raised hopes that the opening won’t be too much delayed (May 20th).
- Although re-starting its operations, Killington has decided ‘on balance’ not to re-open for late-May snowsports on its Superstar trail, although the snow is there and it would usually open to the end of the month in a normal season. (May 20th)
- It remains unknown whether Chile’s season can start on time, Portillo is offering 100% refund guarantee or free re-booking for 2021 for those who want to reserve a place in the hope that they will (May 20th).
- Mt Ruapehu confirms Whakapapa ski area won’t open May 30th, earliest New Zealand ski area opening currently Mt Hutt on June 12th. (May 19th)
- Ski areas in South American Andes appear unlikely to open for 2020 season before July (May 18th).
- Mt Hutt delays season start by a week from planned June 5th date to June 12th, Coronet Peak will open June 26th.
- Following a new agreement with their government, ski areas in New Zealand will be able to open for the 2020 season next month with no limit on the number of people on the hill. However several centres have announced their planned opening dates are delayed and that opening will be weekends-only for much of the season (May 16).
- Mt Bachelor joins Timberline in Oregon to announce it is re-opening, from 16 May, but in its case only for nice days and only for season-pass holders. Both areas sell out of lift tickets very fast (15 May).
- New Zealand moves to ‘Level 2’ lockdown making it possible for ski-areas to open for the season in June and July (14 May).
- Colorado decision on re-opening ski-areas now due May 25th, Appears only Arapahoe Basin may still re-open (14 May). Austria’s Kaunertal is 4th in the country to announce 2020 summer skiing, although for only 9 days… (13 May).
- Kanin ski area in Slovenia re-opening May 14th (13 May).
- Timberline ski area in Oregon, USA, to re-open on 15th May (13 May).
- Austria’s Hintertux glacier will re-open for snowsports on 29th May.
- Chamonix re-opens mountains for ski touring, with restrictions.
- Aiguille du Midi cable car to resume operation at the weekend.
- Italian Summer Ski Centre ready to open from June 1st exclusively for national team training if permission given.
- Norwegian ski areas that had re-opened in April begin closing again due to natural season end.
- Austria’s Molltal glacier second in country to confirm summer ski opening – from 6th June.
- Italy’s Cortina d’Ampezzo offering free ski holidays to the country’s health workers
2020 Calendar Archive
JUNE 2020
June 1: Beartooth Basin summerski area in US opened for 2020.
June 1: Crystal Mountain in Washington State, opens for summer skiing.
June 5: Mt Hutt scheduled to open in New Zealand (delayed to June 12th).
June 5: Stryn glacier new season start date (delayed again to June 12th).
June 5: Afriski is first ski area in southern hemisphere to open for winter 2020.
June 6: Zermatt re-opens. Crans Montana re-opens ski slopes for 9 days.June 6: Austria’s Molltal glacier opens for 2020-21 ski season.
June 6: Les 2 Alpes and Val d’Isere open for glacier skiing for ski team training. Val d’Isere also offering public skiing.
June 7: Tiffindel, South Africa, aimed to start season (but could not).
June 7: Arapahoe Basin, Crystal Mountain and Kaunertal end ski seasons.
June 12: First full scale southern hemisphere ski resort starts 2020 season – Mt Hutt in NZ.
June 13: Italy’s ski-season restarts at Passo Stelvio.
June 18: Riksgransen in Swedish Arctic Circle re-opening for midsummer skiing.
June 20: Tignes aims to open for summer skiing.
June 20: Cervinia provides ski lift access to Zermatt’s glacier as borders reopen.
June 22: Thredbo and Mt Baw Baw season start.
June 24: Perisher and Mt Buller season start.
June 26: Charlotte Pass opens for 2020 season.
June 27: Les 2 Alpes to open for summer skiing for all.
Common Sense
Please note that we are a ski and snowboarding information site and exist to provide snowfall information to people who love skiing and snowboarding …whether we’re in lockdown due to a pandemic or not. By endeavouring to provide information on what is open or opening we are certainly NOT implying that now is the time to try to break through closed borders to travel to the slopes. But there will be a time in the future when we can travel again, and we think most people can cope with knowing the truth about the current state of the ski world, and dream about getting back to it when safe to do so. That’s what we’re here for.
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Baz
9th February 2021 4:58 pm
Risk of spreading the virus is too high…. total nonsense. In the UK for example they are saying that same line of twaddle. No people can travel into or out of UK except for exceptional circumstances because of the suppose increased risks if someone comes into the Uk with a case of COVID… need I point out there are over 1 million active cases in the UK already of our highly sought after Kent strain…. So where pray tell is the high risk of 10 people coming into the UK with a wee spot of covid, when we’ve already got millions of cases of our own… And situation is exactly the same pretty much everywhere in Europe and the rest of the Northern Hemisphere, so what’s the point in curtailing everyone’s lives ad nauseam??? Seems like an exercise in futility to me. Not to mention that you’re highly unlikely to get sick if you’re under approx 60 years of age anyway. Storm in a teacup right from the start. And I know, the hospitals etc etc… protect the NHS and so on. Let’s see if this is still the case in another year, with all the hysteria upon hysteria about every little change this rather non lethal virus takes… All we needed to do from the start of this was… take a deep breath, not panic… identify the at risk populations, protect them effectively, and let everyone of working age and lower go about life basically as normal… job done with herd immunity, and no ridiculous cost to the tax payer and obviously less in terms of people’s jobs going down the pan. Utter nonsense, but what can we expect from our celebrity PM in Downing St…