Zugspitze
Zugspitze
Only four glacier ski areas are currently open as we enter September, but there should be nearer a dozen operating by the end of the month.

Last year the autumn openings of glaciers happened ass usual after the first wave of the pandemic, and there were actually huge early snowfalls up high. However already-open ski resorts in Austria, France and Italy were forced to close from late October due to the second wave of the virus and although Austria re-opened in January, and Swiss and Scandinavian ski centres stayed open throughout, travel bans meant few people made it on to the slopes. Those who skied or boarded in September and October 2020 were therefore among the lucky few.

So far there have been several August snow dustings on glaciers in the Alps, the good news is the snowfall has been getting heavier in recent days.

Pictured top is snowfall at the Zugspitze Glacier, Germany's highest ski area, last weekend. It is hoping to open for its 21-22 season on November 18th after missing last season entirely.


So where's open or opening in the next five weeks?

Austria, and particularly the Tirol region there, has more glacier ski areas open in Autumn than anywhere else. At the end of September there often are more ski areas open here than in the rest of the northern hemisphere's ski nations combined.

Hintertux
Hintertux
Hintertux ski area (pictured above) is open year-round and currently has 20km of slopes open. It has been reporting fresh snowfall over the weekend. The Molltal glacier is due to re-open in the middle of the month and the Stubai say they hope to open from mid-September too. The Kaunertal and Pitztal glaciers have named a day to open on the 25th and although Solden says October 4th is their opening day, the say they'll open sooner if they can.