J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by J2SkiNews

I'm afraid I took my annual bonus and blew it on booking the boat out for the season, sorry guys - you snooze, you lose...

The North-eastern corner of the US has had huge snowfalls over the past 48 hours - bringing to an end an often warm and wet autumn that had caused opening problems and limited snow cover for many areas.

Up to 75cm (2.5 feet) of snow has been reported with ski areas in Vermont reporting some of the biggest accumulations to date.

However big falls have also been reported in Massachusetts (up to 45cm/18 inches), New Hampshire and Pennsylvania (both up to 50cm/20 inches) and New York State (up to 60cm/2 feet) – transforming conditions across the region.

The snowfall was accompanied by strong winds at times and has been followed by bitterly cold temperatures which should continue through the weekend.

Magic Mountain in southern Vermont was posting images of green hillsides and machine-made snow being pushed around to create runs for opening day as recently as Thursday afternoon, but the centre has had more than two feet (60cm) of what it describes as "Utah-type powder" dumped on its slopes in the last 24 hours.

(Pats Peak pictured yesterday)

Ski areas in Austria have been posting images of deep powder snow waiting local skiers when the country's resorts open for 2020-21 in a week's time.

The snow looks to be particularly good on glaciers – which had already opened in late summer and early Autumn before the country went in to its second lockdown in early November.

At that point most were posting snow depths below two metres, but several (Hintertux and Stubai) say base depths are now above three metres (10 feet) following the big snowfalls earlier this month.

The image above is of the search for buried entrance of the glacier caves on Hintertux.

The Austrian government say ski areas can open from Christmas Eve but only to locally based skiers with hotels closed. In France hotels are open but ski lifts are closed. Austrian ski areas hope to reopen to international tourists on January 7th, when French and Italian ski areas may open for the season.

French ski resorts are opening for Christmas, just without the ski lifts running to take skiers and boarders up the slopes.

But the resorts are offering pretty much everything else, including cross-country skiing and tobogganing on ski slopes. Ski touring is a questionable area as some resorts are encouraging it to a certain extent whilst others are warning that normally groomed and patrolled slopes are not being patrolled and may not be avalanche safe.

However Les 2 Alpes has announced they'll have two groomed blue slopes open over Christmas and New Year, one covering 750 metres of vertical back down to the resort, for ski tourers to use.

The resorts are hoping to get Christmas and New Year visitors from across France, reflecting the bumper business many did with their domestic market over the summer.

It is a different approach to the other countries that are keeping their ski lifts closed over Christmas and New Year. Germany is in full lockdown and Italy had advised against Christmas trips to the mountains. Austria will open its ski lifts from, Christmas Eve but only wants local people to the resort to go skiing and has ordered hotels closed.

Most ski resorts in most other European countries except Andorra have now opened for the season, or will do this coming weekend. Bulgaria and the Czech Republic are among the latest to announce their season starts this Friday or Saturday.

There now appears to be official confirmation that ski lifts will be opening on 7 January 2021 across France, with resots in Austria opening to the wider tourism market and in Italy on the same day.

Reports from multiple sources over the past 24 hours indicate that the five countries which have forced their ski slopes to close over Christmas and New Year are looking to open on Thursday January 7th.

The first week after the peak Christmas and New Year weeks is traditionally the quietest of the ski season for most resorts.

Austria opens its slopes to locals from 24th December and was the first to clearly state 7th January was the expected opening date to tourists with hotels reopening.

Things were more vague for French and Italian resorts but several Italian areas have said they'll open on 7th January in recent days and Reuters have reported several French government sources indicating they were looking at January 7th as the French season start date too, although there's no official announcement.

Opening is contingent on the state of the pandemic in individual countries nearer the time.

Ski resorts have already opened in most European ski nations other than Andorra, Austria, France, Germany and Italy, as well as in North Africa, Asia and North America.

What's open and what's closed over Christmas and New Year varies from country to country. In France they expect ski resorts to be fully open and tourist welcome to do everything except ride up in lifts and ski down whilst in Austria ski lifts are open to locals but tourism is banned and hotels closed over the same period.

Open resorts in Switzerland are making increased efforts to persuade skiers to abide by social distancing and other measures to fight the pandemic as fear continue that they could be shut down by canton on national governments. Closed resorts in other countries are warning skiers who take to their slopes anyway of dangers from avalanche and other accident on unprepared slopes and from heavy machinery used on the closed runs.

Currently there are question-marks over whether Brits will be able to travel to the EU anyway after January 1st as one consequence of a 'hard Brexit' could be ban on non-essential travel from non-EU countries with high virus rates could then include the UK, but everything currently remains uncertain there.

Update: Baqueira Beret have now posted: "We open the 2020-2021 season next Monday, December 14! Together with the rest of the Catalan stations we will open doors with all the relevant Covid19 security measures."

Two small ski areas have opened for the last few days in Spain and Portugal on the Iberian Peninsular.

Portugal's sole ski area, Serra da Estrela (pictured above this week), opened following a major snowstorm at the start of this week. It is also reported to have tripled its snowmaking capabilities.

In Spain the little ski area of Leitariegos in Northwestern Spain has opened but for local skiers only. It is unusual for the centre to open this early but like Serra da Estrela to the south, it has benefitted from a big early season snowstorm.

Spain, along with most other countries, appears to be resisting the call from France, Germany and Italy for ski areas to stay closed over Christmas and new year. So far only Andorra and Austria (opening to Austrian locals from Christmas Eve and tourists from January 7th) appear to have heeded the call. Ski areas have now opened in around a dozen other European ski nations.

Spanish ski areas in the Pyrenees say they still hope to open, and have had abundant snowfall over the past week to create great conditions, but they are currently waiting the go ahead from health authorities.

France says it will deploy border guards to stop French skiers trying to reach Spanish or Swiss ski slopes over Christmas and New Year.

Ski tour operator Alpine Elements Ltd is the latest to be forced into administration following the continued pressures due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The company joins a short, but sadly growing, list of ski tour operators forced out of business including VIP Ski and Ski Amis.

Of the larger companies Inghams has suspended sales of ski holidays in January but Crystal is offering late booking deals from as soon as 3rd January.

Alpine Elements' Founder and Managing Director James Hardiman started the company in 1997 with one chalet in Morzine and had built the business up to become one of the largest Independent ski tour operators in the UK.

The company has stated that since Covid curtailed the ski season last March, they have worked hard all summer to find new investors to help pay back guests. But after no substantial backers and President Macron's announcement that the ski season is now unable to start, the company was forced to call in administrators.

As all holidays are protected by ATOL or ABTA, all customers will be fully refunded in due course. The trading names have been purchased from the administration and therefore in time, Hardiman and his team of staff hope to bring the Alpine Elements brand back.

James Hardiman said: "I am deeply sorry to everyone involved in Alpine Elements for this outcome, it has been without question one of the hardest decisions I have had to make in 23 years of running this business. We have tried so hard, for so long to find a way through this, but the devastating effects of COVID with its continued travel restrictions, lockdowns and - crucially for us - the lack of UK Government support and guidance, have left us in an impossible situation.
"To this day, we are yet to receive refunds from the many suppliers whom we paid in advance for Covid-cancelled holidays of last winter: like airlines, accommodation providers, catering and other services. Without those refunds we have not had the available cash to refund our customers. Although we had a firm plan to pay back these monies - by ABTA's deadline of Jan 30th 2021 - the recent news that the ski season is unable to start, means that I am forced into making this very difficult decision; one that my team and I have fought against for so long.
"Together with our customers support and understanding, we hope to bring the 'Alpine Elements' brand back. I wish for no more than to serve this industry as best I can, and as I have done for the last 23 years with a blemish free record."