Where to Ski And Snowboard - Snovember

Snovember – more resorts open

9th November 2011, by Chris Gill

Mid-November brings another bunch of North American resort openings. And it has been snowing out there ...

Last weekend Banff fired up the lifts in Lake Louise and Mt Norquay, and there has been good snowfalls in the US. Opening this weekend are Breckenridge and Winter Park, joining the handful of other resorts open in Colorado; all have 30-40cm mid- to upper mountain snow base, which is not bad for the time of year. In California, Mammoth is raring to go – with a reasonable covering and more forecast this week.

In the Alps, last weekend’s forecast storms brought flooding and heavy rain to northern Italy and southern Switzerland, but this fell as snow on the highest ground. The Aosta Valley did best, a corner of Italy that has benefitted from a good snow record over the past couple of seasons. South-westerly weather also brought snowfall to the mountains above Formigal in the Spanish Pyrenees, where they plan to open at the end of the month.

For now, you’re best bet if you need to satisfy that early-season urge is to head for the glaciers - best are Zermatt, Cervinia and Saas Fee. Engelberg and St Moritz have some sport in Switzerland; Hintertux, Stubai and Sölden are the most reliable in Austria; Tignes is the only option in France at the moment.

Check out our Snow section for a longer summary.

For holidays to Formigal, the resort recommends special offers booked before 15 December. Participating operators and agents are Crystal, Thomson, Igluski.com, Zenith Holidays, Skinspired, Ski World and J2Ski.com. All can arrange holidays to the resort, which is accessed by flights to Huesca (weekly charter) or to Pau (nearest), Lourdes or Toulouse (rather a long trek)