After over 1 metre (3.3 feet) of snow in the Chamonix Valley and 1.5m (five feet) at the Grands Montets, Chamonix's lift company has announced that some of the area's ski lifts will open over the next two weekends with a special low lift pass rate of 28 euros.
The picture above was taken at 1300m in the Chamonix Valley yesterday.
The news comes after hundreds of skiers and boarders hiked up to make first turns of the season last weekend on the exceptional new snow cover which is unprecedented in recent years in the Alps.
Lifts will open this coming weekend 19th and 20th November, then also on the weekend of 26th and 27th November, and then non-stop from 3rd December.
Other French resorts opening early include Alpe d'Huez, which opened last weekend and Val Thorens, which will also open earlier than planned for the season, next weekend. Other French areas seem likely to follow suit.