Temperatures Drop in the Alps as More Resorts Open Some Terrain
2nd November 2026
Around a dozen ski areas are now open in the Alps. Most are on glaciers, but there are now some non-glacier areas as winter edges closer. NEW
At the weekend Mürren in Switzerland, and Sulden in Italy opened
They are the first non-glacier areas to open and in Murren the Riggli chairlift and the associated slope in the Engetal were open.
For the first three weekends, the resort will be open for alpine skiing on Saturdays and Sundays, before continuous winter operations commence on 21st November.
The Molltal glacier in Austria was due to open at the weekend but it postponed its opening due to insufficient snow.
The temperatures have dropped but there is no significant snow forecast for this week.
“The Alps are currently under the influence of a cool easterly airflow,” said Fraser Wilkin from weathertoski.co.uk on Monday 2nd November.
Most regions will be dry today, but some snow flurries (1000-1200m) will affect the extreme south-eastern Alps (eastern Carinthia).
“Elsewhere there will be variable cloud cover, much of the cloud being lower-level, with plenty of sunshine at altitude, especially in the central and western Alps.
“Looking a bit further ahead, the weather in the Alps will remain on the cool side over the next few days but without any significant snow in the forecast.”
Areas now open in the Alps:
- Hintertux, Austria
- Pitztal, Austria
- Soelden, Austria
- Stubai, Austria
- Kaunertal, Austria
- Kitzsteinhorn, Austria
- Engelberg, Switzerland
- Diavolezza Glacier (St Moritz), Switzerland
- Murren, Switzerland
- Saas-Fee, Switzerland
- Zermatt/Cervinia, Switzerland/Italy.
- Sulden, Italy
- Val Senales, Italy
- Passo Stelvio, Italy
Zermatt/Cervinia has some of the best conditions after 30cm fell in the recent storms, while Soelden and Hinterux in Austria have the most terrain open.
There are a handful of ski areas open in Scandinavia.
In Finland Levi and Ruka are open using snow stored from last winter.
In Sweden, Klappen has its snowpark open using snow from last season.
In Norway Gladhopiggen Glacier is open but only for race teams.
Over in North America Arapahoe Basin in Colorado was the first resort to open.
It began its season on Wednesday 28th October.
Opening Day at Arapahoe Basin, Colorado. Image c/o Arapahoe Basin.
Keystone in Colorado is also now open and Lake Louise in Canada opened on Sunday 1st November.
See more here: Lake Louise in Canada Set to Open as Another Resort in USA Opens
Winter may still be some way off, but it is getting closer by the day and our posts on PlanetSKI are turning to the season of 2026/27.
Ski resorts & companies are also releasing news for the coming winter:
- Innsbruck’s 26/27 Ski Plus City Pass
- What’s new in Verbier for next winter?
- See what’s new at Alpine Fleet for next winter
- Interest in complimentary ski guiding from VIP SKI rises
- Inghams Ski expands ski programme for next winter
- VIP SKI aims to boost skier’s confidence
- Austria looks forward to next winter
- Iglu Ski unveils what’s new for next winter
- Luxury Chalet Company reveals what’s new for next winter
We also have a special section on the website containing all the news for next season:
New for the 2026/27 Ski Season
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