Ski Resorts in Shoulder Season
With the climate become ever less reliable ski resorts across the world are realising that they need to entice visitors outside of peak seasons. But many resorts continue to shut down infrastructure such as cable cars in months such as April, May, October and November. Here are six resorts that remain fully open year-round.
Zermatt, Switzerland
The cable cars in this gorgeous Swiss resort run 365 days a year. You won't find much traffic on the car-free streets apart from electric buggies whizzing guests to and from hotels, you will find plenty to do no matter what time of year. There's a wide range of trails for boots and bikes, and places to gaze up at Matterhorn from the end of those cable cars.
Narvikfjellet, Norway
Snow is never in short supply north of the Arctic Circle, and so the Narvikfjellet cable car only has to rise to 654 metres to reach the slopes. In non-winter months the cable car continues to run and, from the top of it, there are hiking trails further up into the mountains.
Tatranská Lomnica, Slovakia
You can take the great-value cable car to Lomnický štít at any time of year. In winter the slopes are filled with skiers, in other months the trails are revealed and easily accessed thanks to the year-round transport infrastructure.
Kaprun, Austria
Visit the Kitzsteinhorn mountain year-round thanks to the various stages of the aerial tramway. The Gipfelbahn, Gletschershuttle and other parts of the transport network lift skiers and hikers high into the mountains at all times of the year.
Chamonix, France
Being in the shadow of Mont Blanc means that there are always going to be opportunities to see some spectacular mountains, no matter when you visit. Luckily the year-round operation of cable cars in Chamonix means that such visits can include more time spent higher up in the mountains.
Whistler, Canada
Off-season the PEAK 2 PEAK gondola continues to operate at weekends, giving you crowd-free access to the trails of the Coastal Mountains during all 12 months.