Alpine Village plans to open for Winter visitors

With the status of the Australian ski season remaining uncertain, Dinner Plain, the Victorian village located 13 kilometres from Mount Hotham Alpine Resort, is continuing with their preparations and will be open and ready to receive visitors should Government restrictions allow.

Dinner Plain has seen its first significant snowfall of the year as preparations continue for winter 2020.

More than 30cm of natural snow has fallen across the High Country village, situated above the snow line at 1570metres and bordering the alpine resort of Mount Hotham. Temperatures plummeted late last night (30thApril), falling below zero by Friday morning ((1st May). Expectations are for snowfall to persist through the weekend with totals of up to 50cm possible.

Alpine Shire Council Spokesperson, Nathan Fenton advises “right now the rules are quite clear that people must stay home, but should the restrictions around travel ease by winter, then our plans are to be in operation for winter visitors.

“People come to Dinner Plain for the unique snow experience. Visitors can bring their dogs, park next to their accommodation and there are no entry fees to the village.”

“Our setup includes cross country ski trails, snowshoe terrain and a huge toboggan slope, all of which could conceivably be run within social distancing measures. We’re looking at all of these with an expectation to be able to offer them for the winter ahead.”

With Dinner Plain’s status as a township outside of Alpine Resort boundaries, preparations continue for business as usual for its winter operations.

Fenton adds “we are an established township with an active population year-round so our winter preparations continue regardless. We can all be certain the snow is going to fall so it’s a case of business as usual to ensure the community is serviced once the snow sets in, and also making sure we’re primed and ready to open for our guests as soon as the Government declares it safe for Victorians to travel once more.”