An entire resort in Europe has closed for the first time ahead of the high tourist season and is likely to be closed for good. It is a French ski resort in the Trois-Vallee region. The reason is climate change, due to which the mountain slopes did not receive enough snow last winter – and the situation is likely to repeat itself this year. Consequently, the French resort of La Sambuy in the Trois-Vallee ski region in France is unlikely to be able to continue operating.
According to the French press, normally the resort was open for four months, but last year it found itself in a difficult situation and was closed because it could only work for one month due to the lack of snow.
“Previously, it snowed in our region from December 1 to March 30. In the 2022/23 season, it snowed for only four weeks,” said resort mayor Jacques Daleks. As a result, “stones and rocks appeared” on the slopes and skiing became impossible. At the same time, the mayor’s predictions sound tragic for local tourism. “If the same winter happens again, business will not be able to withstand it,” he said.
It will be recalled that climatological experts previously stated that due to global warming, many ski resorts risk facing a lack of snow in the 2023-2024 season and named the main risk zones. According to them, resorts in the Alps at an altitude below 1,500 m are the most vulnerable in terms of survival.
Some well-known resorts have been hit particularly hard, such as Les Arcs in France, where the snow line is moving upwards and snowmaking machines are increasingly being used on the lower slopes. Austria’s Kitzbühel is experiencing a shorter ski season despite increased use of artificial ice, while Spain’s Sierra Nevada has seen declining snowfall and a shorter ski season, prompting the country to invest in more snowmaking equipment.
Sölden in Austria has seen glacier retreat and reduced snow cover in recent years, prompting the move of lifts to higher altitudes and the creation of new high-altitude ski runs,” they listed. At the same time, there is also an elimination of demand — the ski resorts of Scandinavia benefit, where winters remain cold and good snowfalls. Read details at this link.