AusLeisure

The combination of natural and mountain-made snow has ensured that Victorian ski resort Mount Hotham has enjoyed its best opening weekend since 2012.

Early season snowfall and cold conditions have allowed Mount Hotham’s $4.4 million expansion of snowmaking to take effect, with 18 new snow guns having been installed across the resort, with 12 added to The Summit, one of the resort’s two beginner ski areas.

Expanding the terrain covered by snowmaking from 25 to 33 hectares, the other six snow guns have extended snowmaking to intermediate terrain off the Roadrunner chairlift and to the advanced slopes of Heavenly Valley. The guns take the terrain covered by snowmaking from 25ha to 33ha.

Commenting on the resort offering the most accessible opening day terrain if five years, Mount Hotham Skiing Company General Manager Belinda Trembath stated “the expanded snowmaking in Heavenly Valley is part of the final stage of a snowmaking master plan we began in 1998.”

For 2017, the resort has also created a more flexible ticketing and rental system that gives visitors rest days for when the weather turns, or when they want a day’s break. This season, all rental purchases from Hotham Sports outlets of four days or more will include these rest days.

The same applies to multi-day lift tickets, so skiers can buy a ‘4 of 6 Days’ pass and/or rental hire, in addition to the resort’s existing five, six and seven-day flexible passes. 

Images: Opening weekend action at Mount Hotham.

8th June 2017 - VICTORIAN SKI RESORT FALLS CREEK READY FOR SEASON OPENING

1st June 2017 - SNOW FALLS PROMPT EARLY SEASON OPENING FOR PERISHER 

12th March 2017 - BELGRAVE GROUP WINS TENDER FOR MT HOTHAM LANDMARK SITE

23rd January 2017 - VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT TO REFORM MANAGEMENT OF VICTORIA’S ALPINE RESORTS 

10th January 2017 - CSIRO MODELLING PREDICTS CLIMATE CHANGE COULD SHRINK AUSTRALIA’S SKI SEASON BY 80 DAYS 

26th December 2016 - PARKS VICTORIA PLAN PROPOSES LUXURY ACCOMMODATION ON FALLS CREEK TO HOTHAM ALPINE CROSSING TRAIL

24th February 2016 - NEW BOARD WORKING TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR ALPINE RESORTS 

9th August 2013 - FRESH SNOW ALERT AT HOTHAM AND FALLS CREEK

Support our industry news service
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

As an independent publisher, we need reader support for our industry news gathering so ask that - if you don't already do so - you back us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine and/or our online news.