Which ski resorts open earliest?

The earliest opening in the index is Levi, in the first week of October. It has not had 30 cm12 in of natural snow on the ground in that week in any of the last 10 seasons. The earliest opening with a strong record is Lake Louise, four weeks later, snow-ready in 8 of 10. That gap is the entire trade-off, and the rest of this page is it in detail.

What the earliest openers have in common

Very little, geographically. The eight earliest northern openings in this index cover 5 countries and model cells from 297 m974 ft to 3793 m12444 ft. What they share is a commercial one: an early date is a decision to be first, and being first is worth money whether or not the sky cooperates. The record is the check on that decision, not a criticism of it.

The southern side is cleaner. Its earliest window, the first week of June, holds 3 destinations with a mean score of 0; its latest, the last week of June, holds 2 with a mean of 9. Three weeks is the difference between never and nearly always.

The practical version

If the date is fixed and the mountain is not, take the destination with the best record in that window rather than the biggest name. If the mountain is fixed and the date is not, the table above tells you what a fortnight of patience is worth at that specific place. And in either case, check what is actually happening before you travel: the historical base rate and this week's weather are different questions, and the destination files answer the second one live.