After an extended delay caused by uncooperative snow conditions, Ski Portillo, Chile, now plans to open this coming weekend on July 4, kicking off its ski season.
As of now, Ski Portillo aims to offer three runs, with the slopes available exclusively to visitors who’ve made hotel reservations. The resort offers all-inclusive packages for guests that include meals, lift tickets, and lodging. During the opening, Ski Portillo won’t be able to welcome day skiers.
“Guests with day tickets, season passes, and ticket packs will be able to enjoy Portillo as soon as snow conditions allow us to safely open additional terrain and accommodate more skiers,” the resort wrote on social media.
Looking ahead, Ski Portillo said that it has been working tirelessly to make more snow and ready its mountain for the start of winter.
“Thank you for your continued understanding, patience, and support. We look forward to seeing you on the slopes soon!” Ski Portillo wrote, also sharing that it will continue to provide updates as more terrain comes online.
Originally, Ski Portillo planned to open on June 20.
The announcement comes amidst a bumpy early season for several of the southern hemisphere’s ski resorts.
Another Chilean mountain, Valle Nevado, is open but has only seen about a foot of natural snow so far. Neighboring La Parva welcomed winter recently but characterized it as a “slow and partial start” in a social media post.
La Parva
Across the water in Australia, one local news outlet reported in late June that the winter so far “is shaping up to be one of the worst in history.”
There are several more weeks and months left where the country’s ski season could bounce back, though.
And for Australia, some signs point towards better, more wintry weather. At two of the country’s best-known ski resorts, Thredbo and Perisher, snow is in the forecast, with some already arriving. Both mountains’ webcams showed snow falling early Thursday morning, hopefully giving coverage a boost.
Perisher
Ski Portillo, however, may be waiting longer for a storm, with the soonest chance of snow showers on Saturday, according to snow-forecast.com. Around an inch of snow is expected.
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