Updated: 9.50am Monday 24 April 2023 - More snow for the northern Alps!
After a short warm spell in the Alps, the weather is now cooling down again with more snow for some areas, mostly in the north.
Some light snow today has freshened up the pistes in Val Thorens – 24 April 2023 – Photo: valthorens.com
This morning it is snowing across much of the northern Alps, with a rain/snow limit somewhere between 1500-1600m. Although this storm may not be very potent, it can still be expected to deliver a few centimetres of snow today at altitude in the few resorts still open, such as Val d’Isère, Engelberg and Ischgl.
After a relative reprieve later today, further flurries will again affect the northern half of the Alps tomorrow before the weather settles down again on Wednesday. The rain/snow limit will lower further on Tuesday, reaching 700-1000m in places later in the day.
After a season in the Alps that has been poor overall with below average snowfall everywhere, April has proved to be a snowy month with some excellent skiing on offer at altitude. This week, some of the best skiing in the Alps can be found in Val d’Isère, Tignes, Val Thorens, Cervinia, Ischgl and Obertauern.
Updated: 12pm Monday 17 April 2023 – Fabulous late season skiing in the Alps!
Ironically, after many resorts have now closed, snow conditions in some parts of the Alps are about as good as they have been all season! This follows a succession of April storms that has delivered significant snow at altitude to much of the Alps, especially in the north and east.
Fresh snow to low levels in the Warth-Schröcken area, which closed for the season yesterday! - Photo: warth-schroecken.at, 17 April 2023
Obertauern, in the central-eastern Austrian Alps, has seen well over 1m of new snow in the last week, and significant snow has fallen across many other regions too, from the Dolomites in the far south-east to the northern French Alps in the north-west.
If you are still planning a late season trip to the Alps, some of the very best options are:
- Austria: Obertauern (closes 1 May), Ischgl (closes 1 May) or Sölden (closes 7 May);
- Switzerland: Saas-Fee (closes 23 April), Engelberg (closes 7 May), Zermatt (open all year round);
- Italy: Cervinia (closes 7 May); and
- France: La Plagne (closes 29 April), Val d’Isère (closes 6 May), Tignes (closes 6 May), Val Thorens (closes 6 May).
Updated: 12pm Saturday 15 April 2023 - More snow for the Alps!
No sooner had the storm in the eastern Austrian Alps started to fizzle out last night, than a new active storm arrived in the Alps, this time favouring the north-west.
Fresh snow to relatively low altitudes in the northern French Alps today. This is Valmorel – 15 April 2023 – Photo: snoweye.com
It will continue to snow across the northern French and western Swiss Alps today, with a rain/snow limit around 1000-1300m. This area of precipitation will gradually move eastwards, reaching the eastern Swiss and western Swiss Alps later in the day.
Elsewhere in the Alps, there is quite a lot of dry, and even bright, weather across the south today, with a drier bright window in the western Austrian Alps, sandwiched between the remnants of the last storm and the new one that is currently advancing in the north-west.
Snowfall totals between Friday night and Saturday night from the latest storm are likely to be in the order of 20-30cm above 1800m in the northern French Alps (e.g. Val Thorens, Chamonix, Verbier).
Given that the north-eastern Alps (e.g. Obertauern) have seen very substantial snowfall totals this week, it is safe to say that snow conditions in the northern half of the Alps, at least at decent altitudes, are now excellent for the time of year! If you are still planning to sneak in a late trip to the Alps this season, some recommended resorts include Val Thorens, Val d’Isère, Tignes, Engelberg, Sölden, Obergurgl, Ischgl and Obertauern.
Updated: 11am Friday 14 April 2023 - A snowy April for parts of the Alps!
The weather in the Alps remains unsettled, with further snow falling in Austria today before a new storm approaches the north-western Alps this evening.
Heavy snow in Lech this morning – 14 April 2023 – Photo: lechzuers.com
This morning it is snowing across a wide swathe of the Austrian Alps (away from the far south) with a rain/snow limit around 1000-1200m. As the day progresses, the heaviest of the snow will become increasingly confined to the eastern Austrian Alps (e.g. Obertauern).
This evening, however, a new storm will bring heavy snow back to the north-western Alps, before spreading further east again into Austria on Saturday. This time the heaviest snow will fall in the northern French Alps where resorts such as Chamonix could see 40cm or more above 1800m by the end of Saturday. The rain/snow limit will be quite low, at between 1000m and 1300m.
After a relatively meagre winter, this has proved to be a very snowy week for some parts of the Alps, especially Austria where up to 1m of new snow has fallen at altitude in places (e.g. close to Obertauern). This is great news for the higher resorts of the northern and eastern Alps in particular where, weather-permitting, there is some exceptional late season snow on offer.
Resorts that are offering especially good conditions right now include Obertauern, Kaprun, Ischgl, Obergurgl and Sölden. Further west, the higher French resorts of Val d’Isère, Tignes, Val Thorens and La Plagne are also excellent bets.
Updated: 12.30pm Monday 10 April 2023 - Changeable week of weather in the Alps…
It’s a mostly fine day in the Alps today, with plenty of warm sunshine around, especially in the south and east. Cloud will thicken in the north-western Alps later today however, heralding the arrival of some weak weather fronts which will mostly affect the northern Alps tonight and tomorrow.
Looking spring-like in Lech today but there is more snow in the forecast this week, especially on Thursday – Photo: lechzuers.com, 10 April 2023
These fronts will bring rain or snow, mostly to the northern Alps, both tonight and on Tuesday with a rain/snow limit between 1500m and 2200m, lowest in the east. A few centimetres of fresh snow can be expected at altitude in the north-western Alps (e.g. Avoriaz) over the next 24 hours, with possibly around 10cm a bit further east in the likes of Engelberg and Lech.
After a relative lull early on Wednesday, further active fronts will bring more widespread and significant snow to many parts of the Alps late on Wednesday and on Thursday, with snow falling to increasingly low levels.
Updated: 9.30am Wednesday 5 April 2023 - Cold but mostly fine in the Alps today…
With high pressure in charge of the weather in the Alps, there is lots of dry and sunny weather today though the odd flurry is possible later in the day in the border areas of the south-western Alps (e.g. Isola 2000). It is cold for the time of year though, with freezing levels typically around 1000-1300m.
Sunny and cold today across much of the Alps. This is Korbersee above Schröcken – 5 April 2023 –Photo: warth-schroecken.at
Over the next few days, the weather will gradually turn a little bit more unsettled. Many areas will remain dry but there will an increasing chance of some snow showers, especially from Friday onwards and across the northern half of the Alps. It will remain on the cold side with any snow falling to relatively low levels.
Freeze-thaw conditions are in place across the Alps, as is normal in fine weather at this time of year. However, thanks to cold temperatures the daily thaw is slower than usual, which is good news for those who dislike excessive slush too early in the day! Indeed, the snow is remaining quite ‘wintry’ for most of the day at altitude, at least on north-facing slopes where it is even possible to find some powder from last week’s storms, with some walking and the help of a good guide.
On the whole, snow depths are reasonable (though still mostly below par) at altitude, meaning that there is plenty of very good skiing still available in resorts like Val d’Isère, Tignes, Val Thorens, La Plagne, Les Arcs, Verbier, Zermatt, Engelberg, Ischgl, Obergurgl and Obertauern. Lower down though, there is only very patchy natural snow cover below 1500m or so.
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