Australian Centres Re-Open After Snow Arrives
Australian Centres Re-Open After Snow Arrives
Published : 03-Jul-2026 07:06
Australian ski areas that had been forced to close shortly after opening for their 2026 seasons a month ago by mild, dry conditions have reopened after a multi-day snowstorm finally arrived.
"What a difference a day can make on the mountain! Hotham woke to a storm total of 22cm of natural snowfall, and counting, with cold temperatures helping get the snow guns firing to match Mother Nature's wintry offering. This provided the ideal backdrop to get skiing and boarding returning to Hotham today," a resort spokesperson at one of the closed centres said.
The country's largest centre, Perisher, had managed to keep some terrain open through the challenging conditions but was also celebrating snowfall there too today.
"The snow dances have paid off and Mother Nature delivered 20cm of fresh snow overnight – take a look at the snowstake as it continues to fall. Temperatures dipped to -1.6C at 7am, which felt like -10C with the strong winds blowing west-north-westerly around 30km/hr," said Emily Smith, Senior Manager Brand + Experience at Perisher, who added, "It's still snowing and blowing hard this morning. There's likely more up top and with the wind, plenty of deep snow drifts around the mountain as well. The weather will stay blizzardy all day!"
Falls Creek which, like Hotham, had also been forced to close by the weather has also reopened limited terrain, initially with their Mouse Trap carpet open today, perfect for beginners and those eager to make their first turns.
"This is just the beginning, our operations and snowmaking teams are continuing to work around the clock to prepare additional terrain, and we'll open more lifts and runs as soon as conditions allow and as it is safe to do so," a spokesperson said.
Australian resorts say that along with natural snowfall, it has also been cold enough for snow guns have also been able to fire up today and will run at every opportunity to keep building on this natural snowfall.
Terrain open so far though is still very limited, with most reporting 1-5% of slopes open and bases of 10-20cm.
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