Early snow to mark resurgence of Australia's ski resorts?

Early winter snow on the Australian Alps has led the Perisher resort in NSW to announce that it will open its 2012 on Saturday 2nd June.

Early snow falls have led the NSW ski resort to announce that it will open its Front Valley for skiing and snowboarding one week ahead of schedule, making it the first Australian resort to commence operations for 2012.

Following the success of last year's pre-season opening, all the proceeds from the ticket sales on 2nd and 3rd of June will be donated to the local community, with the aim of smashing the $20,000 raised for various charities in 2011.

With the official start of the Australian snow season on the Queen's birthday long weekend on 9th June, Thredbo is understood to be aiming to start operations on 6th June while Victoria's Mount Buller is also considering an early start.

The 2012 ski season is set to be a challenging one for Australian ski resorts.

In 2011, skier days dipped to 1.879 million in 2011 from 2.033 million in 2010. Bouyed by the high vaue of the Australian dollar, research from Roy Morgan Research indicated that 49% of Australians who went skiing and snowboarding on their last holiday went to an overseas destination. In 2010 that figure was 34%.

To challenge this, Australian ski resorts have invested in new snow making capabilities, infrastructure and marketing initiatives.

Hotham and Falls Creek have launched their 'Chuck a Snowie' campaign to highlight the ease of skiing in Victoria for a long weekend or mid-week break while the newly created Snow Australia is targetting potential first-time skiers and snowboarders while highlighting the value of winter sports holidays in Australia by comparison with overseas destinations.

Snow Australia, the rebranded former Australian Ski Areas Association, is now funded by the Australian resorts, Snow Sports Industries of Australia, Tourism Victoria and Destination New South Wales.

18th April 2011 - THREDBO AND PERISHER COMBINE THEIR SKI LIFT PASSES

14th May 2010 - LIVING AND LEISURE DROPS MT HOTHAM DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS

30th October 2008 - STRONG WINTER FOR ALPINE TOURISM