Top 5 places to ski in the Alps in May
by Fraser Wilkin, Updated:
The end of the winter ski season in the Alps is widely accepted to be the beginning of May, when resorts like Val d'Isère, Tignes, Val Thorens and Ischgl finally 'call it a day'.
However, while most people don't give skiing in the Alps a second thought after April, good skiing is still possible in some Alpine ski resorts throughout May and beyond.
After April, skiing in the Alps is mostly confined to its glaciers. However, some ski areas do continue to offer limited non-glacial terrain for a while longer.
This year (2026), resorts still offering non-glacial terrain in May include Cervinia, Les 2 Alpes and Hintertux. Other resorts open in May which only offer glacial terrain include Kaunertal, Mölltal, Stubai and Val Senales.
Here are five of the best places to ski in the Alps in May...
1. Hintertux, Austria
Closing date: 26 July 2026
Previously renowned for being open 365 days a year, Hintertux recently announced that, thanks to climate change, it will no longer be offering skiing all year round, and is now choosing to close in late July.
However, it remains an excellent choice for skiing in the Alps in May and is arguably one of the best European glaciers. Not only does it hold its snow better than many of the other Austrian glaciers, but it also offers more variety, steeper terrain and a greater vertical.
A good choice at any time in May, Hintertux is certainly one of the best options later in the month, when you can often still ski between 2660m and 3250m.
As at 7 May 2026, it is possible (just) to ski on non-glacial terrain to Sommerbergalm at 2100m. However, after this weekend (10 May 2026) skiing will be limited to the area above Tuxerfernerhaus (2660m), which will still offer a healthy 600m vertical.
Looking for hotels in Hintertux? Click here
2. Les 2 Alpes, France
Closing date: 5 July 2026
Not so long ago Les 2 Alpes would close in spring before reopening in late June for a long summer ski season. Climate change has prompted the resort to change its approach, however.
These days, Les 2 Alpes now moves seamlessly from its winter to summer skiing operation in early May, and closes in early July before snow conditions on the glacier deteriorate - as it has done badly by mid-late summer in recent years.
Les 2 Alpes does continue to offer a couple of non-glacial ski runs well into May, including (as at 7 May 2026) all the way down to Jandry 2600, allowing for an impressive vertical drop of nearly 1000m.
For this reason, we now consider Les 2 Alpes as among the best options for skiing in the Alps in May.
3. Cervinia, Italy
Closing date: Now open 365 days a year (weather-permitting)!
Cervinia now offers skiing 365 days a year, with terrain on both the Italian and Swiss sides of its shared ski area with Zermatt open throughout May (weather-permitting) - Photo: Cervino SpA
Like Les 2 Alpes, Cervinia is another ski resort that has recently decided to continue offering skiing throughout spring.
This decision was prompted by the opening of the "Matterhorn Alpine Crossing", a brand new state-of-the-art lift link from Cervinia to Zermatt, making it quicker and easier to reach the glacier ski areas.
Also like Les 2 Alpes, Cervinia makes the effort to keep some non-glacial skiing terrain open in May. At the time of writing (as at 7 May 2026) skiing is still possible all the way down to Plan Maison at 2550m.
This, combined with the considerable glacial terrain available on both sides of the border, now makes Cervinia one of the best options for skiing in the Alps in May.
Looking for hotels in Cervinia? Click here
4. Zermatt, Switzerland
Closing date: Open 365 days a year (weather-permitting)!
Since Hintertux took the decision to close in July, Zermatt and its connecting resort Cervinia, are the only two Alpine resorts that now even attempt to open for skiing 365 days a year.
By late April, two of the main areas (Gornergrat, Sunnegga/Rothorn) have finished for the season but up on the Klein Matterhorn snowsports continue all year round.
In May, Zermatt normally offers skiing from the Klein Matterhorn at 3820m to Trockener Steg at 2940m, an impressive vertical of nearly 1000m.
While most of this terrain is classified as glacial, in reality the ice has now retreated to considerably above Trockener Steg, leaving the bottom section vulnerable to melting later in May. Certainly, by high summer it is no longer possible to ski down to this point, and operations are limited to the upper glacier only.
In May though, the extent of skiing, especially when combined with the open terrain in Cervinia, across the Italian border, makes Zermatt one of the better options in the Alps.
Looking for hotels in Zermatt? Click here
5. Kitzsteinhorn glacier (Kaprun), Austria
Closing date: 25 May 2026
Photo: facebook.com/kitzsteinhorn
The Kitzsteinhorn glacier above Kaprun in the Austrian Salzburgland is one of the more extensive options for skiing in the Alps in May.
At the time of writing (7 May 2026), around 11 ski runs are currently open between 2450m and 3030m. The number of runs available may reduce as the month goes on, but you should still be able to ski on a good variety of terrain on the upper part of the glacier.
Not that many years ago, the Kitzsteinhorn glacier would remain open or reopen for a few weeks in mid-summer, but climate change means that this is no longer viable.
Note:
In previous years, other resorts or ski areas have featured in our "Top 5 places to ski in the Alps in May" including:
(1) Engelberg, Switzerland
Engelberg used to continue offering skiing for most of May. However, since around 2023, the resort decided to close for the season in/around early May (in 2023 this was despite it still having plenty of snow). This year it closed on 3 May 2026. In previous years, a handful of easy runs opened on its relatively small glacier throughout May, with some more advanced slopes remaining open in most years down to Stand (2428m) and sometimes even to Trübsee (1800m).
(2) Stubai, Austria
The Stubai glacier ranks as one of the most extensive and varied in the Alps, with runs of nearly 900m vertical (between 2300-3170m) possible given good conditions. Stubai is another very safe bet if you are planning on hitting the slopes early on in May. It used to open later in May, but this year is closing on 16 May 2026. This, and the decision by Les 2 Alpes to open throughout May, and the new lift links permitting May-skiing in Cervinia, means that (as of 2026) it no longer quite makes our top 5.
(3) Kaunertal, Austria
The Kaunertal glacier in Austria's Tirol region used to offer excellent snow conditions throughout May. This year it closes on 25 May 2026. As it has no resort base as such, it tends to be favoured by race training camps or frequented by day-trippers. This year (2026) the glacier has around eight runs open, at altitudes of up to 3100m. This number may dwindle as the month progresses.
This blog was originally published on and has been updated regularly since.
If you enjoy reading our updates - please feel free to support us:
Print