See where has got the freshest snow before you book a ski trip

Conditions have been very mixed across the Alps in the last couple of weeks, but lower slopes are now improving thanks to the colder weather.  There is also some new snow in places (though not everywhere) and all in all, most resorts are skiing pretty well for mid-March. For daily updates, go to www.weathertoski.co.uk

Austria

Conditions have been mixed over recent days, with some fresh snow at altitude but soft or slushy pistes lower down. High resorts such as Obergurgl (80/205cm) and Obertauern (210/250cm) are in excellent shape at all levels. Lower down, Kitzbühel (60/155cm) and Söll (60/130cm) have seen some rain, but here the situation is improving as freezing levels plummet.  

France

High French resorts are in excellent condition following several top-ups of snow in recent days. This includes Avoriaz (250/290cm) which still boasts the highest resort level depths in the Alps. Not surprisingly Val d’Isère (130/276cm) is also in top shape and it’s an improving picture for lower-lying Megève (70/175cm)where the pistes are firming up in the colder weather.

Italy

As elsewhere in the Alps, conditions have been varied over recent days with the best snow in higher resorts such as Passo Tonale (90/350cm) and Cervinia (55/250cm). Lower down the slopes have been a bit slushy in Sauze d’Oulx (80/140cm), but colder weather should help firm things up over the next couple of days.

Switzerland

Conditions are excellent across the higher resorts of the Swiss Alps and improving lower down thanks to dropping temperatures. Grindelwald (40/196cm) has endured some slushy home runs recently, but is rapidly improving thanks to the colder temperatures. Higher up, Zermatt (30/220cm) and Andermatt (96/380cm) can offer more consistent on-piste conditions, but off-piste conditions are still highly variable.

Rest of Europe

Conditions are excellent in the Pyrenees right now with fresh snow in Andorra’s Arcalis (200/300cm). It hasn’t snowed for quite some time across most Bulgarian resorts, but good skiing can still be found in most resorts including Borovets (90/160cm), particularly at altitude. Up in Scandinavia, there is also plenty of good skiing to be found including in Hemsedal (Norway) where there has been a dusting of new snow and the upper mountain base is 120cm deep.

USA

Great conditions continue in Colorado with the biggest recent snowfalls in the southern resorts such as Wolf Creek (229cm upper mountain base). Further west, the Lake Tahoe resorts of California are also in good shape with 50cm of new snow in the last week for Squaw Valley (71/277cm). Utah is also offering excellent skiing despite no serious in snowfall in recent days. Alta has 226cm mid-mountain and soft powdery snow at all levels.

Canada

Whistler has lots of powder at altitude and an impressive 257cm mid-mountain base, but it has turned milder with rain affecting lower elevations.  The current storms are making less of an impact further inland but conditions are still good in Fernie, particularly at altitude where there is a dusting of fresh snow and the snow-pack is 262cm deep.

See Today in the Alps for daily updates