See which ski resorts have the best snow

There’s a north south divide in the Alps again this week. See the latest snow overview from the Ski Club.

Much of the Northern Alps continued to enjoy fantastic high season skiing over the weekend and into this week, with sunny skies and very cool days. The best opportunities continue to be in Austria and Eastern Switzerland, while in France the Haute Savoie is in better shape than those resorts further south. Although snowfall is forecast for the South West Alps this week, this will not be enough in itself to dramatically improve conditions unfortunately. In North America, resorts across the Sierras and Utah have seen far and away the best snowfall in the continent, with massive accumulations in both giving fantastic powder skiing opportunities.

Although the expected quantities in the Pyrenees have diminished compared to longer term forecasts, resorts in the area are still in line for their largest snowfall since Christmas.

Based on current weather forecasts, the top three resorts for expected snowfall are:
Pamporovo, Bulgaria, 156cm
Formigal, Spain, 143cm
Borovets, Bulgaria, 141cm

Austria
Calmer conditions continued across Austria with temperatures generally sitting in the single digits below freezing with bright clear skies – ideal conditions almost across the board. With all 88 lifts spinning and 280km of pisted terrain, alongside an increasing amount of viable off piste opportunities, the Arlberg region really is in as good shape as could be imagined – the snow is pristine across the mountain, with almost 5m on the upper slopes. The high altitude Austrian glaciers are boasting substantial snowpacks as you would expect following the early January snowfall, however even far beyond these snow sure areas, and resorts across almost the entirety of the country are fantastic, other than resorts in Carinthia. In Salzburg, Zell and See, and Loferer Alm are both in great shape, while the Skiwelt had great snow conditions across their entire network. With safer and more stable conditions across the country, you will be hard pressed to find anywhere not offering fantastic skiing, either on or off piste.

France
Tuesday brought lovely sunny skies across the Tarentaise region of France. The 3 Vallees resorts of Val Thorens, Meribel and Courcheval experienced temperatures as low as -15C in the morning, and were offering hard packed and well-groomed skiing conditions. The last snow in the area was on the January 18, when Val Thorens received a light smattering. Nearby in the Paradiski area, the majority of lifts were open and running in Les Arcs and La Plagne, offering great vistas of the surrounding peaks. 
Further north the sun also shone bright over the Portes du Soleil. Off piste snow is also largely tracked throughout the area, but some lovely on piste skiing remains on offer; particularly around the Grande Conche in Avoriaz. Nearby, the Grand Massif ski area had over 85% of all of its pistes on offer on Thursday, and all links between Flaine, Carroz, Morillon and Samoens were open.

Switzerland
After all the excitement of the downhill racing on the Lauberhorn over the weekend, Tuesday provided a bright sunny day across the Jungfrau region with some lovely skiing up high at Murren, Grindelwald and Wengen. The same high pressure weather system dominated much of Switzerland, and resorts such as Engleberg and Saas Fee were looking particularly impressive thanks to their superior snow depths around the upper slopes.

Italy
The period of snowfall over the Dolomites has passed for now, instead seeing a return of bright days with only light cloud if at all. The skiing remains much improved however, with far more consistent coverage over and between slopes on the mid and upper mountain. While of course more snow would be good, there are at least far more options to pursue in the meantime. Unfortunately this snowfall may still be the best part of a week away, with current forecasts show little arriving until Sunday at the earliest. Less can be said for the Southern Alps, including Italian resorts such as Bardonecchia, and the Milky Way, where a period of almost a month without any real snowfall has left the slopes in real need, with artificial production being the only real lifeline in these resorts. For those who ski strictly on piste, there is still plenty to enjoy. However, if you are looking to venture of the beaten track, your options are currently limited.

Andorra
Although there has been some light snowfall over the Pryenees, unfortunately the amounts predicted have dropped sharply compared to longer term forecasts. Some light flurries on Tuesday resulted in a few cm being recorded, though the webcams did not seem to show there was substantially more so incoming by mid-morning. The recent snowfall did at least provide a slightly nicer top on otherwise very icy snow. Heavier snowfall has bought the first substantial snowfall in the region for almost a month. With any luck, this should add a fair amount to the snowpack, as well as allow some off piste opportunities. Parts of the formerly exposed slopes were already beginning to see more consistent coverage, although a lot more snow will be required.

Scandinavia
Around a third of the possible slopes across our Finnish resorts remain inoperable due to relative lack of snow, and while the cross country trails and freeride parks, for which many of these resorts are equally known, are an option, Alpine skiing consists of hard packed, groomed slopes. The days continue to be short and cold, routinely sitting around -15C currently. Conditions are faring better in Sweden, where a larger proportion of the slopes in both Are and Salen are open, aided by ongoing man-made snow production.
Conditions in Norway were mixed, with some resorts seeing somewhat brighter days while others are more dominated by low lying grey clouds. Sitting around -10C, slopes are generally in very good condition thanks to the cool weather and recent snowfall across many resorts other than Lillehammer. Voss once again has seen by far the largest reported snowfall amounts in recent days, resulting in a snowpack almost double that of any other resort in the region.

Germany
There were some fantastic clear skies across our featured Austrian resorts earlier this week with many resort ski areas sitting above the clouds and begin afforded great views of the nearby peaks bursting through. Temperatures were sitting at a very hospitable -5C – -10C. The slopes continued to benefit from the substantially increased coverage, while the smaller crowds in many German resorts have resulted in some areas still offering relatively untracked snow. Skiing has fully resumed across the entirety of our featured resorts, with the high altitude terrain near the Zugspitze in particular looked in fantastic shape. The latter part of the week is likely to see more overcast conditions returning, although likely without any especially heavy snowfall.

Eastern Europe
Tuesday was a cloudy day across Bulgaria with the chance of snow at Bansko. Visibility was rather difficult around Todorka, but lower down things were certainly a bit easier at Chalin Valog. Heavy snow is forecast across the country today, with Borovets and Pamporovo both expecting up to 100cm.
The weather couldn’t have been more different in Slovakia, where sunny skies dominated at the resort of Jasna, who were running 19/23 lifts on Tuesday. Kranjska-Gora in Slovenia also enjoyed a largely sunny day, and skiing conditions around Podkoren looked great, with plenty of snow on the trees surrounding the slopes.

Scotland
Winter has arrived in Scotland. Glencoe is now open, running the Access lift, Platau Poma and Coire Pollcach Tow on Tuesday. New snow overnight has delivered much improved conditions for the resort, and temperatures of around -5C should ensure the snow conditions remain stable for the time being.
Nearby, Nevis Range is not yet open for skiing, but the gondola was running on Tuesday, and conditions are ok for touring at the moment. Like Glencoe, conditions are much improved thanks to roughly half a foot of snow falling at the base station. In the east, Glenshee and Cairngorm are both closed as they await more snow, whilst the Lecht is running 2 learners lifts; the Magic Carpet and Robin Sunkid.

USA
Some very high winds led to disrupted conditions in resorts across New England, resulting in temporary closures in many resorts. The coming days are expected to see a bit of a roller-coaster temperature wise, rising and dropping repeatedly over the coming days. The Sierra range in California and on the Nevada border continued to benefit from the latest round of fresh snowfall, and although accompanied by blizzard conditions, have now calmed down and left some really substantial base depths. Mammoth and Lake Tahoe in particular were seeing huge amounts more snow on their upper mountains compared to previous seasons. In the Rockies, a huge storm delivered up to 60cm of snowfall to resorts in Utah, falling most heavily in the notoriously powder filled resorts of Alta, Snowbird, and Solitude; while others including Park City and Deer Valley have also had an impressive. There was disrupted openings as the snow was cleared, however by Tuesday normal activity had resumed, with pillows of dry powder everywhere to be taken advantage of.

Canada
There has been a continuation of generally calm conditions in British Columbia, with an absence of substantial fresh snowfall. There is enough on the ground across the majority of resorts to run the vast majority of the terrain, although there have been few bumper snowfalls so far in 2019. After a super snow filled December, it is also somewhat calmer in January once again. With 245cm across the mid mountain however, there is more than enough to work with.
There hasn’t been substantial snowfall in Alberta over the past week, however with a good base and bright, sunny days there are plenty to enjoy. In Sunshine Village, the resort is opening new areas of their expert terrain first thing on Tuesday morning, while all lifts were spinning in Lake Louise and Norquay.
Mont Sainte Anne saw a fantastic 22cm dump overnight, with the vast majority of the mountain open to skiers including the advanced and expert trails. Although there has been less new snow in Tremblant, the resort is also fully operational, with great coverage amongst the trees. However, ensure you wrap up warm as temperatures are expected to be below -20C, with no cloud at all to trap the heat in.