Poor snow in Alps for start of ski season

Tuesday 23 December 2014

Jersey holidaymakers heading to the Alps for a Christmas ski break will find limited snow cover this month compared to previous years.

According to Meteo France, 2014 will have been the third warmest year on record since 1900. Temperature were as high as 9C in some Alpine areas at the start of the month, prompting many resorts to push their opening dates back a week.

Snowfall in Val d’Isère and Chamonix was 0cm last week, while in Méribel and Les Deux Alpes there was just 2.5cm at lower levels. The Alpine Skiing World Championship moved from Courchevel to Åre, Sweden, with cross country races moving from La Clausaz to Davos because there wasn’t enough snow.

Resorts which are open have limited piste options, with a third to half of lifts currently closed.

Fiona Jane Best, spokeswoman for The Ski Club of Great Britain, said: “Generally people who go skiing early in the season tend to book to go to higher altitude resorts, but if anyone has any concerns they should get in touch with their tour operators.”

The best fresh snow has been in Wengen, Switzerland, which received 25cm this week, while in France, Val Thorens in the Trois Valleys has also had new snow. Fresh snow is also now forecast, with places like Verbier expected to receive 11cm on Wednesday. Cooler temperatures are also allowing resorts to make artificial snow at higher levels.

Fiona said: “The main ski resorts might not have a lot of snow at lower levels at the moment but once you take the lifts up to higher levels the snow coverage is generally decent for on-piste skiing. You don’t always need to have a lot of lifts open to get a decent amount of terrain. We’ve had Ski Club representatives skiing in Tignes and Val d’Isère this week and so long as you’re not trying to go off-piste it is fine.”

In contrast with the Alps, Scotland has had abundant snowfall. However, for most travellers it will be too late to change their plans.

Robert Mackenzie, director, C.I Travel Group, said: “Generally the majority of people will book quite far ahead for travel at peak times like Christmas, half term or Easter, which means it will be very difficult for them to change their plans and go to resorts with more snow. Those who have waited until the last minute will be able to see where the best snow is.”