Excited by the early media coverage and tour operator promotions for the coming winter and can’t wait to get on the snow? Well the good news is that snow is already blanketing the Alps and www.skiinfo.com has reported more than 20 European ski resorts are ALREADY OPEN for winter 2008-9. The Skiinfo powder alarm service has been alerting skiers and boarders by email to falls of up to 70cm through October, with more heavy snow over the past few days which is currently continuing to fall.

Continue reading ‘November powder at your ski tips! Where to get the fluffy stuff’

Revelstoke Mountain Resort Readies for a Record Smashing Season on the Slopes: As the newest kid in town, Revelstoke Mountain Resort is garnering more than its share of buzz. And there’s little wonder why. In just its second year, the resort is set to unveil brand new terrain – and take its place in the record books in the process. This season, Revelstoke will offer the longest vertical lift-serviced skiing in North America – at a whopping 5,260 feet – thanks to an 885-foot extension to the Revelation Gondola from the village base up to the Day Lodge. Additionally, a new high speed quad chairlift, “The Ripper,” will be servicing the 1,240-acre North Bowl area, which has been extensively gladed and cut with new trails this season. These developments, paired with an existing express quad chair, “The Stoke,” are sure to make for one memorable mountain adventure. A difficult task? Not really. After all, the resort is nestled within the Selkirk Mountain Range in the Kootenay Rockies region – one of the snowiest, most legendary destinations in BC. Off-slope, Revelstoke Mountain Resort has even more on its agenda this season, thanks to the opening of Nelsen Lodge. Operating as the new base area for the resort, the lodge will offer skier services, rentals, retail, a café, a spacious, family-friendly 125-seat restaurant, and 59 ski-in/ski-out units. Also calling the lodge home, the new Revelstoke Guides Bureau proves a perfect point of origin for any adventure on the mountain, including private guided trips, multi-day group adventures and backcountry educational programs. Think that’s it? Not by a long shot. Future development plans will make way for 18 additional lifts, over 100 ski trails, on-hill eateries and a host of residential units. All ensuring that Revelstoke will continue to be the talk of the town for countless years to come. www.revelstokemountainresort.com
Continue reading ‘B.C.’s winter ski roundup: here’s what’s up?’

Earlier this morning, a spectacular scene occurred when a K-Max helicopter hoisted the new high speed quad towers up the lift. The new high speed quad chairlift is expected to be in operation this coming season at Snoqualmie resort in Washington state.

The photos are courstesy of Holly Lippert from the resort.

Snoqualmie is part of Boyne resorts and have vested interests in award-winning mountain and golf resorts and attractions throughout the United States and Canada including Cypress Mountain near Vancouver, British Columbia, the Official Freestyle Skiing and Snowboard Venue for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, Big Sky Resort in Montana, Boyne Mountain, Boyne Highlands, The Inn at Bay Harbor – A Renaissance Golf Resort and Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark in Michigan, Brighton in Utah, Crystal Mountain in Washington, Loon Mountain in New Hampshire, Sugarloaf and Sunday River Resort in Maine and Gatlinburg Sky Lift in Tennessee. For more information on Boyne Resorts,

Austrians want top spot back, but look out for Canada
SOLDEN, Austria — Austria’s “Wunderteam” will be hoping for better things after playing second fiddle to Bode Miller last year as the World Cup season gets under way this weekend in Solden.

The five increasingly well-known Igloo Villages in Engelberg, Gstaad, Davos-Klosters, Zermatt and Zugspitze will arise from the snow right on time for the beginning of the winter season. This year the award-winning Swiss company behind them all, Iglu-Dorf, will add its first location in the Pyrenees mountains – an Igloo Village at Grandvalira in the middle of the snow and shopping paradise Andorra.
Continue reading ‘New Igloo village experience is created in Andorra’

Les 2 Alpes will become the second French resort to open for winter 908-09 after Tignes, which has now been open for a month already.
However in Les 2 Alpes case there are just two big festival weekends coming up, ahead of the main season opening. These are the 19th Mondial du Snowboard, on November 1st and 2nd.
The event features gear testing, amateur and pro competitions, parties and exhibitions on the resort’s glacier and in a festival tent in the resort.
Continue reading ‘Les 2 Alpes lands silver medal for opening’

Agreement could cost the company an additional $40M from higher interest
One of the ski industry’s biggest heavyweights, resort owner/operator Intrawest Corp., said late Thursday it had reached an agreement to refinance a $1.7 billion loan that came due that day.
Intrawest did not disclose details of the agreement, reached between its parent company, Fortress Investment Co., and the existing lender group, which included bankrupt Lehman Brothers.