J2Ski Snow Report - April 23rd 2026

Thu, 23 Apr 2026 19:47:14 GMT

Hanmer Springs, New Zealand opening early with these views...

Europe's 2025-26 ski season is winding down with fewer than 100 areas still operating, primarily high-altitude and glacier centres, whilst the Southern Hemisphere's season is beginning with New Zealand's Hanmer Springs opening after heavy snowfall. In North America only around 30 areas remain open.

The Snow Headlines - April 23rd
- Southern Hemisphere's 2026 season getting underway after early heavy snowfall.
- Heavenly reopens briefly at weekend after post-season snowfall.
- Eastern Europe's 25-26 season over.
- In Colorado Breckenridge closing earlier than usual but Copper extends season into May.
- One centre still open in Scotland targets near 6-month season into May.
- Two Spanish centres remain open, including Europe's most southerly.

Snow forecast for the Alps, America and Japan.

Re-publication :- the J2Ski Snow Report Summary, being the text above this line, is free to re-publish, but must be clearly credited to www.J2ski.com with text including "J2Ski Snow Report" linked to this page - thank you.

World Overview
Europe's 25-26 ski season is entering its final phase, with fewer than 100 areas still open and most Alpine nations down to 5-10 each, mainly high-altitude or glacier centres. Scandinavia retains higher numbers as its spring thaw lags several weeks behind the Alps.

Temperatures have risen gradually, with freeze-thaw persisting above 2,000 m/6,562 feet in The Alps. The weather has stayed mostly dry with only light rain, sleet or snow. The Dolomites, Pyrenees and Eastern Europe have now largely closed.

North America is also winding down, with around 30 areas still operating there. Warm spells have forced earlier than usual closures at some resorts like Breckenridge and Mount Bachelor, which usually ski to late May, whilst fresh western snowfall has extended Mammoth to late May. A different story on the East Coast where Vermont's Jay Peak has passed 400 inches/10 m, more than most Western resorts this season.

Japan still has a dozen or so ski areas open and just under a fortnight of the season left there.

Meanwhile in the southern hemisphere New Zealand's Hanmer Springs club field announced it was opening this weekend after heavy snowfall was reported on high terrain across the country's mountains. It's the first ski area south of the equator to offer outdoor lift-served skiing in 2026.

Europe
Austria
Freezing levels have dipped back toward 2,000 m/6,562 feet, making this week slightly cooler in Austria, with upper-mountain temperatures near freezing by day and falling to -10oC/14oF on 3,000 m/9,843 feet peaks overnight. Lower slopes and valleys continue to reach +10oC/50oF, and most of Austria's dozen remaining open areas now operate only above 1,800 m/5,906 feet.

Hintertux retains the country's deepest base at just over 3 m/10 feet and reports light new snowfall. The Kitzsteinhorn posted the most snowfall in Europe this week with 25 cm/10 inches, whilst the Pitztal got another 10 cm/4 inches. Ischgl still offers over 200 km/124 miles of terrain, the most in Austria following the closure of larger areas such as Saalbach and the Arlberg.

France
A mostly sunny week in the French Alps brought only light weekend snowfall on the highest slopes. Freezing levels hovered around 2,000-2,500 m/6,562-8,202 feet, and only around nine French areas remain open, with La Plagne, Les Arcs and La Clusaz closing this weekend.

Les 2 Alpes holds the country's deepest base at 335 cm/132 inches, whilst Tignes-Val d'Isere retains the most terrain still skiable, with roughly 270 km/168 miles open. Conditions stay mild and springlike, with freezing levels well above 2,000 m/6,562 feet and any snowfall limited to the highest glacier sectors.

Italy
Italy is down to just over half-a-dozen ski areas still operating, all aiming to stay open into May.

Cervinia offers the most terrain thanks to its high link with Zermatt, whilst Ponte di Legno reports the deepest base at 200 cm/79 inches. It has been mostly dry and sunny, with valley temperatures reaching +20oC/68oF, with the freezing level still dipping to 2,000 m/6,562 feet overnight. Livigno, Pila, Cortina and Sulden also remain open, most planning to continue until 3 May, with Cervinia and Val Senales extending beyond that.

Switzerland
Switzerland is also down to single figures for areas still open, with Verbier closing last weekend and Grindelwald-Wengen, Corvatsch at St Moritz and the Schilthorn set to finish their seasons on Sunday.

Swiss weather has mirrored the wider Alps: plenty of sunshine, freezing levels mostly 1,500-2,500 m/4,921-8,202 feet, valley temperatures in the high teens, and occasional high-level snow flurries. The areas remaining open next week, including year-round Zermatt, Diavolezza, Samnaun's Silvretta Arena, Titlis above Engelberg, Engstligenalp and Glacier 3000 above Les Diablerets, all hold onto late-season high-alpine terrain.

Scandinavia
Scandinavia has enjoyed a mostly sunny week with occasional snow showers and continued freeze-thaw conditions. Overnight temperatures still dip below freezing at most bases, falling to -5 to -10oC/23-14oF higher up, with colder values in the far north.

Most major resorts remain open for another week or two: Sweden's Are still has around 80% of terrain available, whilst Norway's Myrkdalen has reached a 2 m/7 feet base in its final week. Upper-mountain conditions are expected to stay wintry across the region at -8 to -3oC/18-27oF, with firmer mornings, softer afternoons and light flurries in passing fronts.

Pyrenees and Spain
The Pyrenees 25-26 season is almost over, with Cauterets in France, which had been posting Europe's deepest base above four metres/13 feet, closing at the weekend. Only La Molina/Masella remains open on the Spanish side with about a third of its terrain.

Down on the Med Coast Sierra Nevada keeps around 60% of runs available; Europe's most southerly.

Both Spanish areas plan to operate until 3 May. It has been a week of sunshine and rain showers, freezing levels near 3,000 m/9,843 feet, and daytime highs reaching the high teens at base. Upper slopes stay firmer, with Sierra Nevada occasionally seeing brief high-level snow under cooler nights.

Scotland
Scotland is down to a single operating ski area, at least in terms of officially open inbounds skiing, after Glencoe confirmed that mild weather had broken access back to the Main Basin T-bar and lower Happy Valley, ending its 2025-26 season. The centre reports good ski-touring snowfields on the Main Basin and Spring Run, with its sledging slope also remaining open to 4 May.

Cairngorm continues to operate, with the best skiing in the Ptarmigan Bowl, which saw around 5 cm/2 inches of new snow on Monday.

Upper-mountain temperatures rise to -2oC to +8oC/28-46oF, leaving remaining terrain soft and increasingly patchy.

North America
Canada
Canada is down to seven operating ski areas this week, with most eastern resorts now closed and only a handful still running in Alberta and BC. Western centres have seen a mix of rain and new snow, with up to 50 cm/20 inches reported this week. Banff's resorts remain close to fully open, and Sunshine holds the country's deepest base at 275 cm/108 inches.

Whistler Mountain closed at the weekend, whilst Blackcomb stays open another month. In the East, only Cape Smokey and Sommet St Sauveur are still open, seeing sunny days, freezing nights and +10oC/50oF afternoons.

USA
Most US ski areas have now closed, but late-season storms brought fresh snow to the West Coast, with California seeing around 50 cm/20 inches last week and another lighter fall early this week. Mammoth has extended to late May, whilst Heavenly briefly reopened a few runs after its snowfall.

Timberline, Palisades Tahoe (which reported 25 cm/10 inches of snowfall this week in a second round of snowfall thanks to a fresh front moving in off the Pacific, the most in North America since Monday) and Alyeska also remain open.

In the Rockies, Big Sky led weekend totals with 75 cm/30 inches, though many Colorado resorts have now shut, leaving Arapahoe Basin, Loveland and Copper still operating. The East Coast is down to about six late-season holdouts aiming for early May. One of them, Stowe, reported 15 cm/6 inches of fresh snowfall this week.

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J2Ski Snow Report - April 23rd 2026