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Snow conditions have temporarily improved in the Alps thanks to a cold front that brought light to moderate snowfall to most regions last night. However, any accumulations at lower altitudes will be transient and are masking a generally meagre snowpack.

Snow depths higher up are closer to what you would expect for the middle of February, even slightly above in some French ski resorts. The altitude at which snow depths are more ‘normal’ vary from region to region, but it is typically around 1400-1600m.

Nowhere is the contrast in fortunes between higher and lower ski areas more obvious than in the Morzine-Avoriaz area. There is now no natural base in Morzine itself (1000m), but up in Avoriaz (1800m) there is around 185cm, and at 2200m there is 367cm!

Before you write off lower ski areas though, it should be pointed out there is still plenty of piste-skiing on offer below 1400m in the Alps, even right down to 500m or 600m in places. Crucially for many half term skiers (most of which are families), the weather is also set fair for most of the coming week.  

Across the pond, there has been a lot of new snow, with some of the heaviest falls in California... 

Recent snowfall has freshened things up at altitude in the Austrian Alps, with some excellent skiing on offer this weekend in Obergurgl (45/105cm) and Lech (90/125cm).

Lower down, any accumulations of snow from the most recent storm will be transient and base depths are generally quite modest, but you will still find some very enjoyable piste-skiing in the likes of Kitzbühel (5/80cm) and Seefeld (40/80cm).

Apart from some cloud in the eastern Austrian Alps on Sunday, plenty of sunny weather is expected over the next few days.  

Snow conditions are excellent at altitude in the French Alps, with fresh snow and healthy base depths in Val d’Isère (120/185cm) and Alpe d’Huez (120/280cm), among others.

Lower down, any recent snowfall will soon melt and natural snow cover is much thinner, but for now there is still lots of good piste-skiing on offer in the likes of Megève (30/130cm) with the weather set fair for the next few days. 

Snow conditions are reasonable across most of the Italian Alps right now with the most impressive base depths still in the higher resorts of the north-west, like La Thuile (60/220cm) and Cervinia (95/120cm), both of which also saw some fresh snow last night.

Over in the Dolomites, Arabba has a much more modest 15/55cm depending on altitude, but it did also benefit from a top-up last night and can offer lots of good piste-skiing.

Expect plenty of sunshine across the Italian Alps over the next few days. 

There is lots of good skiing on offer in Switzerland right now even if base depths, like everywhere else in the Alps, are very modest at low altitudes.

For the most consistent snow conditions you still need to head high, with great skiing on offer this weekend in both Zermatt (20/150cm) and Verbier (35/155cm).

The lower Swiss resort of Adelboden (5/110cm) can also offer plenty of good piste-skiing, but just has far less natural snow in the valleys.

Expect plenty of dry and sunny weather in the Swiss Alps over the next few days. 

There is good skiing on offer, and fresh snow, in the higher resorts of the Pyrenees although increasingly mild conditions will make the snow quality more variable over the coming days. In France, La Mongie has settled snow depths of 80/90cm depending on altitude, while Andorra’s Soldeu has 90/125cm.

Scandinavia is currently offering a lot of good skiing, with all lifts running in Sweden’s Sälen (50/60cm) and Norway’s Hemsedal (30cm mid-mountain) despite their modest base depths.

In Scotland, mild and wet weather earlier this week led to a rapid thaw, with only Glencoe currently been able to offer any natural skiing. 

In the US, prospects look excellent in California’s Mammoth, with around 1.5m of new snow having fallen over the last three days and weather conditions set to improve this weekend.

In Utah, Snowbird (223cm mid-mountain base) has also seen a lot of snow, with at least 80cm in the last week and snow continuing to fall at the time of writing.

It’s also snowing in many resorts in Colorado, including Vail (142cm mid-mountain base) where snow will continue to fall for most of tomorrow, meaning that conditions will be great here once the weather settles downs. 

In Canada, there hasn’t been any new snow in Whistler (177cm mid-mountain) since we last reported. It is cold though, and some light flurries are expected over the weekend, so snow conditions should be pretty good here, on-piste at least.

It’s colder still further inland in Lake Louise (135cm upper mountain) where there also hasn’t been much in the way of fresh snow in recent days, however, on-piste conditions here remain good. 

Our next full snow report will be on
Friday 21 February 2025