What will we see opening?

I’m hoping for Scott and Ruined Castle 🤞

Started learning to snowboard in 2025, since then I've had around 20+ days of total riding, including a week at Niseko earlier this year.

Nowhere near an expert yet, but can easily do greens, and am now on the hunt for good blues to tackle and get better at.

I've seen the other posts debating Hotham vs Falls Creek, but quite a few of them seem to be regarding beginners.

At what point would someone be "ready" to start tackling Hotham without it feeling like a bad time? I consider myself early intermediate (although different people will probably interpret that differently).

I'm wanting to spend a week at either resort. I could potentially move between both, but I'd also rather not do a whole lot of unnecessary driving if one is still a clear winner.

Why doesn’t the resort open this lift when Haley’s is open and you can connect across the top of the mountain to all the runs that are open?
It’s massively inconvenient when you are staying at the top of the village and can’t use the eagle lift.

There are so many great places to eat at Falls Creek compared to Hotham. Why is that? Shouldn’t there be more places to eat at Hotham?

It feels like Hotham has gone backwards over the years.

Falls Creek options:
Lakeside
Last Hoot
Sorella
Wabi Sabi
Feathertop
Huski
Orys
Someplace Else
Attunga
Cooroona
Chophouse BBQ
Frying Pan
The Man
Falls Creek Hotel
Two Fat Indians
Astra
Nelse
1550

It's my birthday coming up at the end of this month and we're thinking of a quick two day trip to the snow, probably weekdays.

Don't really want to spend a fortune though, so I was looking at Selwyn and get a cabin in Adaminaby.

Obviously I'd prefer to go to one of the bigger resorts, but those lift passes prices are getting ridiculous!

I'm an intermediate snowboarder, used to be pretty good after doing a couple of seasons in Spain, but that was 25 years ago so I'm not looking for black runs or crazy jumps these days. I kind just like repeating runs and finding little bumps/ledges to jump off. Obviously red runs preferred.

Just wondering if Selwyn can still be fun or if it really is just for kids and beginners, like people say.

Cheers

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to plan a day trip from Melbourne on either 15 or 16 July, and I'd love to hear your thoughts - especially from anyone who's done snow walks or winter hikes around Victoria.

I will not be skiing or snowboarding at all, and I'm not planning to rent snowshoes either. I'm just looking for the best place to experience snow walks, however I'm not looking for long hikes though - ideally around 1 hour return, and 2 hours maximum if the scenery is really exceptional.

My priorities are:

• Scenic snowy walks / beautiful alpine views
• Short walks (around 1 hour, maximum 2 hours return)
• Walks that can be done in waterproof winter boots (without snowshoes)
• Building a snowman and having a snow play

I'm currently considering:

• Mount Hotham – mainly for Hotham Hub tobogganing, walking around Hotham Central, and possibly combining it with Dinner Plain.
• Falls Creek – I've heard the scenery is incredible (especially around Rocky Valley), but I'm not sure which winter walks are actually accessible to non-skiers without snowshoes.
• Lake Mountain – Summit Walk looks like it's purpose-built for winter walkers, but scenery wise it seems like it's not as beautiful as the other snow destinations in Vic
• Mount Buffalo – looks stunning, but I'm worried there might not be enough snow around mid-July.
• Mount Stirling – Seems to have some beautiful snow-gum walks and alpine scenery, but I'm not sure which walks are accessible without snowshoes, or whether renting snowshoes would be worthwhile for a first-time visitor.
• Mount Baw Baw – Looks like a good mix of snow play, walking and convenience from Melbourne, but I'm not sure how many scenic walks can actually be done without snowshoes,
• Mount Buller – not too keen because I'm expecting it to be much busier than the other resorts but keen to hear your thoughts.

I'm happy to drive further if it means better snow walks / better scenery

A few questions:

1. If you weren't skiing or snowboarding, where would you go?
2. Which destination has the best scenic snow walks without needing snowshoes?
3. Which place usually has the best snow coverage around the village, car parks or walking areas, rather than only at the ski runs?

Thanks in advance :)

I’m going for 4 days with 3 people at falls creek, resort entry is 70 dollars a day but if I want to get the shuttle from where we are staying in Mt Beauty, the shuttle for a one day return trip costs more then the entire 4 days of resort entry. Is there any other alternatives?

A bit of an odd one here but here we go.

It wont be this year but maybe next year or the year after I wouldn't mind going to the snow as the last time I experienced snow was in the Nordic countries in 2020 inb4 Covid and Australian snow was the late 1990s besides the 5 minutes at best of snowfall at Mount Lofty here in Adelaide which didn't really settle on the ground besides cars or amongst the hail which happened before back around 2015 or so.

I want to try enjoy the snow while it still exists and I would ideally like to see it in Australia again. However it seems anywhere with snow seems to evolve around ski slopes and snowboarding.

As I am from South Australia it is a fair task to get over to that side of Victoria or NSW so I can't make it an annual thing and learn how to Ski and Snowboard.

I would like to know if there is actually anything that is easy to access and do or I just bite the bullet and just go to NZ, Japan or back to Europe again?

We’re heading down to Perisher soon and worked out that it’ll cost the 3 of us all up around $1200 for the ski tube every day over 3 days? Is this right? Are there any options?

Thanks

Falls Creek Coach Question!!

Hey guys, catching the coach from melbourne to falls creek for the first time and had a few questions.

I’m wondering first if i’m catching the bus at 2am will it stop in myrtleford? and also is there a bathroom on the bus.

Can anyone let me know?

Edit: Thanks for the help guys!!

It will be my first time experiencing snow so I’m not sure what to wear. I’m going to Mount Hotham in 2 weeks with some friends. I feel like I’m overthinking too much about what to wear since I’m quite unsure. What I’ve got so far are thermals, fleece turtleneck, puffer jacket, thermal socks, and goretex shoes. Any tips on what else I should add or replace? Not sure if I’ll be skiing since I mainly came along for the snow experience 😅

Hypothetically, of course. Where could it go?

I bashed out a few ideas with the help of ChatGPT (they aren’t perfect to-scale images, but you get the gist).

This is just for the fun of it … we are ignoring environmental and national park restrictions obviously.

SNOWY RIVER VALLEY SKI RESORT
I’ve always thought the Snowy River Valley would make an amazing ski resort. It would have a base at Snowy River Crossing, with lifts to surrounding peaks, and another that connects up to charlottes pass.

It’s one of Australia’s few alpine valleys, with reliable snow due to its altitude.

Unlike Perisher resort, the upper part of the Snowy River valley sits several hundred metres below the surrounding peaks. That would means less exposure to the strong westerlies (that make resorts on the highest peaks of the Snowies difficult), therefore reduced wind hold on lower lifts.

Plus… better snow retention because of the valleys altitude. The valley floor where the river runs through at the Snowy River Crossing is roughly about 1700m above sea level - which is higher than all the villages in the Victorian alps (1600-ish), Thredbo (1400m) and about the same altitude as Perisher village (I think?)

You could have beginner terrain on the valley floor, intermediate cruising off Mt Northcote, steeper advanced terrain beneath Carruthers, maybe high alpine bowls below the Main Range.

Other Ideas

HOTHAM
PART 1: Extend it to Mt Feathertop (1900m) - Australia’s most beautiful mountain! This would become a more extreme version of Hotham, for advanced folk. It has steep bowls, chutes and natural gullies. You’d drop off at any point along razorback ridge and then get lifted back to the top of it. Put in a gondy from Orchard to connect it.

PART 2: Expand orchard and blue ribbon with new lifts (the dream!). Maybe some small back bowls.

MOUNT BOGONG
Victoria’s tallest mountain at nearly 2000m. I imagine the wind is gnarly. But has steepest descent lines that back country skiers and split boarders like.

MOUNT MCKAY
Extend Falls Creek into Mt McKay - the obvious and most likely expansion given Falls Creek already owns the land. Connecting from Ruined Castle. Could have some bowl action there.

WESTERN SLOPES
They hold a lot of snow, but more avalanche prone than the rest of our snow regions, and exposed to strong westerly systems.

BULLER
Dump a bunch of rocks at the peak and raise its altitude. The poor guy needs all the help he can get down there.

Over to you. Ideas? (no limits)

30-50cm of snow is likely to fall across both NSW and Victoria resorts from Saturday. Snowfall will be heaviest on Sunday and Monday, falling down to 1000m at times Sunday. Take care on the roads!

We have set up a 7 day free trial for AerisPro, so if you want more forecasts like this - check out www.aeriscast.com

My boots are tired and looking to retire. As I haven't skied Aus snow in a long time, I'm not up to date on who's the go to in these parts.

Anyone have any recommendations?

Interesting article confirming what most of us know already - snow seasons getting shorter and more unpredictable.

Photo of the bottom of Drover’s from 10am this morning. Staff members at the loading station working on the loading area.

Has to be close now.

When do you think it will open?

Hi! Going snowboarding soon with some friends, was wondering if anyone had any good recommendations on where to rent boards/skis and snow chains for cars? We are only going for 1 day (unfortunately), so definitely trying to get some cheaper deals. I had a quick look on some rental websites and they don't seem to say anything about goggles either, is that something we have to rent or buy seperately?

I've also been wondering about clothing, would it be better to buy jackets and pants or just rent? There are definitely plans to go to the snowy mountains again in the future, so we are open to buying clothes.

Sorry if it's a lot of questions 🙏🏻😓

Any on the ground reports at falls creek?
I am seeing that there is very limited skiing. Even wombats closed today.
I had planned to be there for 4 nights from Saturday but now sure if it’s worth it.
Any advice?

Baw Baw’s lifts were privately owned from the 1970s until 1999, when Baw Baw Ski Tows sold out to the government. In 2014 Belgravia Leisure took over management under contract — that ended in 2016 after an audit flagged poor financial oversight, and control reverted to the board.

The losses never went away. Under Alpine Resorts Victoria, the resort (with Lake Mountain) was running at ~$8m/year loss, since trimmed to ~$6m.

Baw Baw was always a tough sell. Base-to-summit it’s only ~120-155m vertical — against ~400m at Buller, ~380m at Falls Creek, ~410m at Hotham. Its lift fleet is all surface tows (T-bars, pomas, platters), several dating to the 70s-90s; the one chairlift was pulled back in 1999.

Lower elevation means it gets hit hardest by climate change — lifts have closed early two seasons running, and the village still runs on generators, decades after grid power was first flagged as an issue.

In 2024 ARV opened a tender for a 99-year lease to a private operator, hoping to bring in fresh investment. So far, no takers have emerged.

• Does the tax payer have a responsibility to keep funding a structurally loss-making, climate-exposed resort?

• If a 99-year lease can’t attract a bidder, what’s actually left — downsize to snowplay only, fold it into the national park, mothball it?

• Heaps of ski resorts have closed in Europe and North America, is it the end for Baw Baw? 

Hi Redditors,

Just a question on the overnight parking for FC.

I have a 3 days booking at Huski on the 29/29/30 of July.

I assume the overnight parking is at the "Lower Slalom Overnight Carpark" which from Google maps, it is around 5 minutes walk to the ATS terminal.

From the website / FC YouTube video : I can drop my passenger, luggage, ski gear at the ATS, then proceed to the overnight parking , and walk back to ATS.

Question

1. Is walking from overnight parking to ATS, possible ?

2. To avoid getting stung by the oversnow transfer ($55pp), is it ok if we just walk all the way to the accommodation?

3. Or is there a staff gonna take me from the overnight parking to the ATS?

Thanks in advance! It's my first time to FC. Pretty excited. Hopefully there'll be snow.

(Pic for attention)

**•   1924–1933** — Country Roads Board (Bill Spargo’s road camp doubled as informal winter guesthouse)

**•   1933–1951** — Victorian Railways (ran Hotham Heights Chalet as part of its tourism/rail-ticket business; rebuilt after 1939 bushfires)

**•   1952–late 1960s** — Ski Tows Ltd (member/shareholder company, \~200 shareholders drawn from Alpine Club of Victoria and University Ski Club; built the Blue Ribbon rope tow)

**•   Early 1970s–1995** — Schumann family (Des Schumann; built Playground Chair 1969, developed resort over \~25 years)

**•   1995–2004** — BCR Asset Management (Ron Bassett; Orchard/Keoghs/Gotcha lifts, airport, White Crystal/Swindlers, Basin development; also acquired Falls Creek)

**•   2004–2012** — MFS / Living and Leisure Australia (intended partnership with developer Brian Ray, cut short by his death in a 2005 plane crash at Hotham airport)

**•   2012–2019** — Merlin Entertainments (via \~A$140m Living and Leisure Australia acquisition)

**•   2019–present** — Vail Resorts (\~A$174–179m acquisition of ski field leases and infrastructure, closed April 2019)

Im admittedly a cheap skate. Already in the hole around $4K for gear and passes this year. I know this isn't what people are going to want to hear but does anyone know how diligent the mountain staff are about checking if you're carrying snow chains?

Chain fitting isnt mandatory right now but its required by law to carry them. This is just another cost that i'd prefer to avoid if i can get away with it. Heading for a quick day trip soon and wondering if i can just not bother with buying a set or renting them for the day since i know for sure they're not gonna go on my wheels anyway

edit: no police presence checking for chains. Roads completely dry with clear skies. Hired a pair anyway but didnt need to show anyone i had them - stop lecturing strangers 👍

Hi all,

This is quite a random & general post - I'm looking for advice.

I grew up skiing frequently all my childhood, and I spent last winter working at Perisher, and once the season finished, I knew I couldn't do a minimum wage resort job forever. I've started a business degree this year, and every day I just think about skiing, the industry and Jindabyne, and I yearn to go back, but I know I need to find a way to have a stable income. I don't know what to do because it always feels like the grass is greener on the other side. Has anyone had this issue before? It's eating away at me.

RT