There are now only two glaciers where you can - in theory and weather permitting – ski every day of the year, the Hintertux glacier IN Austria and Zermatt in Switzertland.
The number of indoor ski slopes open year round has passed 50 in 25 countries and next month the number of these where you can spend an entirely indoor snow sports holiday grows to three with the opening of a four-star superior hotel at the Allrounder snow slope (also known as the Jever Skihalle) in Neuss close to Düsseldorf in Germany.
The Hotel Fire and Ice (www.hotelfireandice.de) is scheduled to open on September 16th and joins a similar four star hotel adjoining the 550m long SnowWorld Landraff in the Netherlands and the five star Kempinski by the 450m long Ski Dubai.
The new hotel features restaurant, lounge, bar and fitness and wellness facilities including two saunas overlooking the snow slopes. There's a choice of room types up to the 100 square metre Presidential 'Fire & Ice Suite,'
There are also extensive hi-tec conference facilities with lots of organised programmes available for the corporate market, some making use of the 300m long ski slope, others the Climbing Park where guests can balance, clamber-up and teeter above 70 different stations or walk over and try to conquer the 32-meter high peak on the climbing wall.