Europe Weekly Roundup #270

Ischgl Leads Europe’s Ski Terrain Race with 110 km Open in Austria

• Widespread Openings Across Europe: The 2024-25 ski season has begun in over ten nations, with notable starts in Austria, France, Italy, and Switzerland. Eastern Europe is also seeing progress, while the Pyrenees and Scandinavia face delayed openings due to warmer weather.
• Snow Conditions Vary Regionally: High slopes across the Alps are enjoying good snow conditions, while lower areas rely on machine-made snow. Bulgaria recorded significant snowfall, but Pyrenees resorts remain too warm for consistent snowmaking.
• Promising Forecasts Ahead: Colder temperatures and moderate snowfall are expected across most regions, especially in the Alps and Scandinavia. Pyrenees and Scotland are cautiously optimistic for better conditions later in December.

World Overview

Hundreds of ski areas have opened in the past week across Asia, Europe and North America with the battle switching to who can open the most terrain fastest. In North America Mammoth, Sun Peaks and Whistler have been leading the charge, In Europe it’s been Ischgl/Samnaun and Zermatt/Cervinia also the top places seem to change by the day. We have the first areas posting over 100km of slopes open in Europe though and in North America the first 5,000 acre opening is expected by the weekend.
The main ski areas have not reported any big snowfalls this past week. However, some of the best has been on the US East Coast, where it was badly needed, and also in the Midwest, where an intense period of Lake-Affect snow around the Great Lakes brought some of the heaviest accumulations since the 1940s. Most regions are looking pretty good now, although the Pyrenees and parts of Scandinavia are lagging behind on early-season conditions. However, both have more wintery weather in the forecast.

Europe

EUROPE OVERVIEW

We’re now into double figures for the number of ski nations already open in Europe with Czechia, Romania and Slovakia among the countries in Eastern Europe joining those in the Alps and Scandinavia in opening for their 24-25 seasons. It’s been a mostly dry week in the Alps, although very cold at times, but the high system has started to move away and snow showers have begun moving in, although they’re not expected to bring huge amounts of snow. In the Alps, we’re therefore developing a familiar situation of fairly good snow conditions on higher slopes and machine-made snow on lower runs, with the snowline gradually dropping below 2000m. Things are looking promising in most eastern European ski regions with Bulgaria getting an excellent half-metre accumulation at the weekend. Still, the Pyrenees have been too warm and dry and centres there have been delaying opening. Scandinavia too is running a little behind schedule, with larger centres delaying opening until snow cover improves.

AUSTRIA REPORT

Most of Austria’s giant ski regions got the first parts of their ski areas open this week with Ischgl, Schladming and the Skiwelt’s Ellmau among the areas opening. Conditions have been generally good with cold, snowy weather since the weekend, with the freezing point getting down to valley
floors. There’s a battle going on, as is usual at this early point in the season, to offer the most terrain. Ischgl (15/40cm / 6/16”) is currently winning, with 110km (69 miles) of slopes open only having opened at the weekend. Solden (0/130cm / 0/52”(), already into the third month of its season, is in second place with 85km (53 miles) of slopes available already.

AUSTRIA FORECAST

The forecast continues to look promising with light to moderate snowfall alongside continuing low temperatures, particularly above 2,000m where lows drop below -10C and perhaps down as far as -20C are expected.

FRANCE REPORT

With most of the cold and snowy weather of the past few weeks moving in from the northwest, the French Alps have seen some of the best of the accumulations to date. Avoriaz (0/50cm / 0/20”) decided to open early after the snowfall there for a ‘preview weekend’ whilst several more French resorts including Les 2 Alpes (0/100cm / 0/40”), Montgenèvre (30/30cm / 12/12”), Alpe d’Huez (26/50cm / 10/20”) joined early-openers Tignes (30/80cm / 12/32”) and Val Thorens (60/95cm /
24/38”). La Rosiere (0/45cm / 0/18”) had the most terrain open at the weekend, more than 40km (25 miles) of runs but has now dropped back behind Les 2 Alpes on that measure.

FRANCE FORECAST

The past week has been predominantly sunny with some light snowfall in the last few days, it’s looking like it should get colder and snowier towards the end of the week though with overnight lows down into double digits below freezing and 10-40cm (4-16”) accumulations possible by the end of the weekend.

ITALY REPORT

There’s been light snowfall over the past few days in Italy after a mostly dry and sunny weekend and the end of last week. More of the country’s resorts have been opening with initially thin bases and
there’s a choice of about two dozen areas open now, including centres making up the largest area, Dolomiti Superski. Cervinia (15/1309cm / 20/52”) is posting the most terrain open thanks to its Zermatt connection with 96km (60 miles) of slopes, recently opening Kronplatz (0/30cm / 0/12) the most in Italy – 50km (31 miles) so far. Livigno (20/40cm / 8/16”) and Madonna di Campiglio (10/20cm / 4/8”) are among the newly opened areas but with only 10-15% of their slopes open so far.

ITALY FORECAST

Sunny weather midweek should give way to increasingly snowy conditions to end the week with some northerly and westerly areas in provinces like Trentino potentially seeing half-metre (50cmm) total accumulations by Sunday. For most though it will be more in the 5-20cm (2-8”) region.

SWITZERLAND REPORT

Swiss centres have seen some light snow showers over the past few days after a mostly sunny weekend and end to last week. Zermatt (15/150cm / 6/60”) is posting the most terrain open, nearing 100km (63 miles) of runs, some of it over the border into Italy. About 20 Swiss areas are now open, with the latest additions including Laax (20/60cm / 8/24”), Andermatt (22/50cm / 9/20”)and Frutigen (5/15cm / 2/6”) opening at the weekend.

SWITZERLAND FORECAST

Cold with snow showers sums up the forecast for the next three or four days. Temperatures are well below freezing in the mountains and 5-10cm (2-4 inches) of snowfall is expected most days into the weekend.

PYRENEES REPORT

The season was expected to get underway in the Pyrenees at the weekend but the area’s largest resort, Andorra’s Grandvalira, announced it wasn’t able to do so due to warm temperatures preventing snowmaking and it was the same story from all other ski areas in the region unfortunately. Conditions have improved a little over the past week with some lower overnight temperatures and daytime highs not climbing so high. There have also been some light snowfalls. So all centres hope to be able to open this coming weekend now but it remains to be seen if that is the case. So far a few have begun confirming their plans to do so though, including France’s Grand Tourmalet.

PYRENEES FORECAST

There’s not a huge improvement in conditions expected through the weekend with mostly dry weather and what precipitation there is potentially falling as rain rather than snow at times. Overnight lows may allow some snowmaking though. Although it’s some way off for certainty cold temperatures and heavy snow appear increasingly likely early next week though.

SCANDINAVIA REPORT

After all the talk of Scandinavia being the place of snow certainty, this autumn has been a rather warm and dry one for much of the area, leaving the big-name ski areas of Norway and Sweden struggling to open and setting back their season start dates over the last few weekends. So we are still waiting on the likes of Åre, Hemsedal, Trysil and Voss to open, although there are positive signs with more than a dozen Norwegian and Swedish centres opening last weekend, including well-known names like Geilo (20/30cm / 8/12”) and Myrkdalen (20/30cm / 8/12”). All only have a kilometre or so of slopes open so far though. They join the main Finnish resorts that have all opened now despite challenging temperatures there too. Ruka (40/40cm / 16/16″), now entering the third month of its 24-25 season, has the most terrain open there, about a third of its slopes.

SCANDINAVIA FORECAST

It’s looking more promising with winter-proper looking like it’s moving in and temperatures down consistently below freezing. Moderate to heavy snowfall is forecast through the remainder of this week for most areas.

EASTERN EUROPE REPORT

Eastern Europe’s 24-25 season got underway last week with the Czech Republic’s Černá Hora (20/100cm / 8/40”) the first in the country to open. It benefitted from, cold, snowy weather in the region over the past few weeks which has helped build bases and allow snowmakers to operate to the max. The region’s largest resort, Slovakia’s Jasna, joined the party at the weekend, also opening for its 24-25 season. Ski areas have also opened In Poland and Romania but the start of Bulgaria’s and Serbia’s 24-25 seasons are still a week or two away. Bansko though reported a 50cm (20”) snowfall at the weekend and hinted that it might open some runs early this coming weekend as a result.

EASTERN EUROPE FORECAST

Cold temperatures, mostly below freezing, with a mixture of sunshine and cloud cover, the latter bringing mostly light snow showers are forecast across Europe’s Eastern half.

SCOTLAND REPORT

Scottish ski centres have had their usual weeks of ups and downs with another big temperature dip to as low as -10C at times followed by a rise of up to 20 degrees to warm, wet weather, so there’s not been much chance for early season base building. Most centres have fired up their SnowFactory all-weather snowmaking machines now with the majority targeting Christmas week for opening, unless there’s a big natural snowfall before then when they say they’ll open earlier. Glencoe looks set to open sooner, by mid-December, with initially a sledging slope and beginner ski area.

SCOTLAND FORECAST

Staying fairly cold but typically just a few degrees too warm for consistent snow build-up. That said things are on a fine line so it could be snow and the longer-term forecast is looking promising for lower temperatures and heavier snowfall later in the month.