Glacier Ski Areas in the Alps Looking Forward to Autumn Openings
15th September 2026
Winter is still some way off but one summer ski area has re-opened and several are preparing for an early October opening. NEW
Passo Stelvio in Italy re-opened earlier in September after closing in mid-August due to the warm temperatures.
Its glacier ski area was a sorry sight.
Photo: pirovano.it, 15 August 2026
In the Alps there has been some recent snow and a further drop in temperatures.
Last week 20cm fell in places – the first significant snow since last Spring.
Here’s Saas-Fee in Switzerland as the snow finally fell:
Saas-Fee web camera image, Friday 11th September.
It is not enough for Saas-Fee, or its neighbouring Swiss autumn ski area of Zermatt/Cervinia to re-open, but it is certainly an improvement.
Both ski areas have said they will fire up some lifts when conditions allow.
Zermatt/Cervinia shut it summer slopes on August 1st, while Saas-Fee held out to August 10th.
The 2026 summer ski season in the Alps has been the worst since summer skiing began around 60 years ago with areas shutting early amid heatwave after heatwave.
At one point there was no lift served skiing on offer – a first.
Once all the numbers are collated it will be the warmest summer on record in the Alps and likely the shape of things to come.
However, our thoughts at PlanetSKI are turning to the winter ahead.
Austria usually sees the first resorts to open.
That is often in late September, but currently no dates have been confirmed though some are looking to open in early October:
- Hintertux glacier – Early October 2026.
- Molltal glacier – 3rd October 2026
- Kitzsteinhorn – Mid-October 2026
- Soelden – Mid-October 2026
- Stubai glacier – Mid-October 2026
Here was Kitzsteinhorn and Pitztal last week:
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View this post on Instagram
See here for a related PlanetSKI post as we detail the opening and closing dates for the major ski areas in Austria:
In Italy Val Senales is hoping to open some of its ski area later in September but no official dates have been released.
A date of September 18th has been reported.
None of this hides the fact that the summer of 2026 has been very poor for the Alps with long-term changes taking place as the glaciers melt and the mountains become more unstable.
“The consequences of the extreme heat in the Alps this summer have been impossible to ignore, not least in the rapid demise of summer skiing,” said Fraser Wilkin form weathertoski.co.uk
“A series of heatwaves that began in May and continued through June, July and August, combined with the preceding winter’s relatively modest snow conditions, left the high-altitude glaciers in an exceptionally vulnerable state.
“Snow acts as a protective layer over glacier ice, reflecting much of the sun’s energy (the “albedo effect”).
“When it disappears, this leaves darker, older ice exposed, which absorbs more heat and accelerates the rate of melting,” added Fraser.
See here for a full and detailed assessment on the summer weather in the Alps from weathertoski.co.uk:
PlanetSKI reported across the summer on the impact of the rising temperatures on the Alps:
- Another heatwave hits the Alps with damage to glaciers and mountains
- Further rockfalls threaten the Alps
- Swiss villages threatened by melting glaciers
- Another Swiss village evacuated due to landslide threat
- Monitoring rockfalls in the Alps
Now we are set to report on the snow falling and ski areas opening as the winter of 2026/27 approaches.
PlanetSKI editor, James Cove, is currently in the Rocky Mountains in Alberta in Canada.
“There are no ski areas currently open in Canada or preparing to open, but the first snow has fallen and people have begun talking about the approaching season,” said James.
“I met up with a few friends from the Sunshine Village piste patrol and ski school last weekend, and their thoughts are most definitely turning to winter.
“The resorts have, of course, already started posting pictures on social media of the snow falling.
“It will make absolutely no difference for the coming winter, but it is always good the see the first snows falling and the seasons changing.”
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PlanetSKI’s Autumn Alberta road trip. Image © PlanetSKI
Winter may still be some way off, but it is getting closer by the day and our posts on PlanetSKI are already turning to the season of 2026/27.
Ski companies are also releasing news for the coming winter:
Winter is on its way folks!
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