Southern Hemisphere Snow Roundup #315

SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE INTRODUCTION|We’re fast approaching the start of the 2026 ski season in the southern hemisphere, with ski areas in New Zealand indicating they'll start opening on the final weekend of the month in just over a week.

Currently, it looks like they'll be reliant on all-weather snowmaking machines to do so and initially open limited terrain, as had always been the plan, rather than any huge pre-season natural snowfalls leading to early openings.

AUSTRALIA REPORT|

Australia’s alpine areas have turned cooler over the past few days, with a mix of cloud, rain showers and brief colder pulses bringing a dusting of snow to high terrain. Daytime temperatures have generally sat between 5–10°C on higher slopes, dropping to -2–3°C overnight, allowing snowmaking systems to fire up. Several resorts, including Corin Forest, Mt Buller and Thredbo, have all-weather snowmaking machines in operation, ensuring they have at least some snow available for the country's opening long weekend from 6-8 June, whatever the weather does. As temperatures dropped below -1C overnight this week, snowmakers have been starting work at most of Australia’s resorts. Its largest, Perisher, made their first snow of the year on Wednesday. For Perisher’s snowmakers, the resort runs swing and graveyard snowmaking shifts from 4pm to midnight and midnight to 8am, allowing the team to take advantage of suitable evening and early morning conditions, and as technology has improved, automated guns have helped Perisher’s snowmaking team respond more precisely to changing conditions across the mountain the resort says.

AUSTRALIA FORECAST|A cool, unsettled pre‑season pattern continues across the Australian Alps. Upper slopes around 1,800–2,000 m at Perisher, Thredbo, Hotham and Falls Creek see –4 to +2 °C, with night frosts and occasional light snow or snow‑showers, mainly on the NSW side. Days bring bright spells, but surfaces soften quickly where snowmaking has begun. A weak front this weekend may deliver a dusting above 1,700 m, keeping conditions wintry but thin ahead of the June openings.

NEW ZEALAND REPORT|New Zealand may see the first skiing of the season the weekend after next, with several centres planning to open with all-weather snowmaking machine-made snow. The Country has already seen a club field open for two days, then close again earlier this month after an autumnal snowfall gave a healthy dump, then closed again. The main season is due to kick off around June 12^th. For now, pre‑season conditions across the country remain mostly autumnal, with only patchy natural snow on the highest South Island fields. Wanaka and Queenstown resorts, Cardrona, Treble Cone, Coronet Peak and The Remarkables have been mostly sitting around 4–6 °C with no new snowfall reported. Canterbury club fields show a similar picture. On the North Island, Whakapapa and Turoa are cool but dry. Overall, temperatures are still too warm for sustained base building, and widespread snowmaking has yet to begin in earnest, although Coronet Peak was among the areas test-firing their systems this week.

NEW ZEALAND FORECAST|A cold, wintry pattern is forecast across New Zealand’s high slopes. Upper elevations at Coronet Peak, The Remarkables, Mt Hutt and Treble Cone (1,600–2,000 m) sit around –6 to –2 °C, with regular frosts and light snow showers, especially in the east. Whakapapa on Ruapehu trends slightly milder, –4 to 0 °C, with occasional mixed precipitation.

ARGENTINA REPORT| Argentina’s season usually starts in mid-June, but it can start in May if there are big early snowfalls. That's not happened so far despite El Niño excitement, and pre‑season conditions across Argentina’s ski areas are mixed. The first meaningful snowfall has arrived in the far south this week, however. The world's most southerly centre, Cerro Castor in Tierra del Fuego province, has seen sub‑zero summit temperatures and light new snow, helping establish an early base. Further north, major Patagonian resorts such as Catedral and Chapelco remain mostly dry and mild, with mountain highs still reaching 10–14 °C. Higher‑altitude Andean areas like Las Leñas and Los Penitentes are colder but have not reported significant fresh snow as yet.

ARGENTINA FORECAST|A cold, storm‑influenced pattern is forecast across Patagonia and Cuyo. Upper slopes at Cerro Catedral and Chapelco (1,700–2,000 m) sit around –6 to –2 °C, with frequent snow showers and solid overnight freezes. Las Leñas (2,400–3,400 m) stays colder still, –10 to –4 °C, with periodic light to moderate snowfall and strong winds on exposed ridges.

CHILE REPORT| It's a similar story in Chile, where early‑season conditions remain generally mild, with most central‑Andean resorts still in autumn mode. Most areas are expected to open the weekend of the 13^th or 20^th June, unless heavy early snowfalls lead to any opening early. The Santiago‑area ski centres, Valle Nevado, La Parva and El Colorado, are seeing summit temperatures hovering around –1 to 6 °C, but no significant new snowfall yet, and bases remain well above freezing. Further south, Corralco, Nevados de Chillán and the Araucanía resorts are experiencing colder nights and occasional light snow at higher elevations, though daytime highs still reach double digits. In Patagonia, Antillanca and Osorno show the strongest early‑winter signals, with sub‑zero summit lows and intermittent fresh snow helping the first base layers form.

CHILE FORECAST|A cold, pre‑season pattern continues across central Chile. Upper slopes at Valle Nevado, La Parva and El Colorado (2,800–3,600 m) sit around –10 to –4 °C, with frequent light snow, occasional moderate pulses, and strong ridge winds. Portillo (2,600–3,300 m) trends similarly cold, –9 to –5 °C, with regular snow showers and solid overnight freezes.

SOUTHERN AFRICA REPORT|Lesotho’s Afriski is currently the only outdoor ski resort operational in Southern Africa and can be the first to open in the southern hemisphere each winter as early as late May. Although it sometimes receives significant natural snowfall, it largely relies on snowmaking to maintain cover. The past week has seen the usual sunny skies with highs around +10C, but overnight lows getting a few degrees below freezing.

SOUTHERN AFRICA FORECAST|Afriski’s upper slopes around 3,000–3,200 m are expected to sit near –8 to –3 °C, overnight and potentially see occasional light snow flurries as weak fronts pass. Days remain clear and crisp, reaching –2 to +2 °C, offering excellent snowmaking windows throughout the period. Winds are expected to ease compared with earlier in the month.