 Poster: A snowHead
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I notice that there is a bit of variety around lift opening and closing times.
At this time of year the lifts seem to close in the states at 3:30pm, a full hour earlier than the Alps. They do however also seem to open earlier at 8:30am. Is this an issue ? Have most skiers had enough by 4pm?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The closing times are staggered a bit usually aren't they!? ie the lifts furthest away from the resort close earlier to give you enough time to get down the mountain before dark.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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In Whistler I think some of the higher lifts are closing at 2:30pm right now, with the rest at 3pm. It’s understandable with a 4:15pm sunset time, but as it’s $190 for a day pass it does make you want to start on time and have a quick lunch!
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Peter S, As others have said, the closing times are due to early sunsets, plus ski patrol have to sweep the resort to make sure everyone is safely down. This obviously takes time, and resources as they don't just check groomed runs there's all the glades etc too.
All this comes at a cost which can be reflected in the lift tickets 
As the season progresses the closing times do too - hence in March/ April it can be as late as 4.30, which means you may not get down until around 5/5.30 pm at some places.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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In my experience opening times in Italy depend very much on whether the liftie has bothered to have an extra coffee or fag!
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As said already sunset is early and patrol have to sweep the entire in bounds including glades which takes time. Usually the lifts are staggered with furthest ones from base closing earliest, so the earliest closing time doesn't necessarily reflect the whole resort. It's never been a big deal for me, usually I have clocked up more than enough vert and am pretty tired before lift closing time.
I've not skied in Europe yet but I've heard there is more emphasis on having a long lunch and maybe stopping for a few drinks, which obviously eats into the time skiing. We don't really have that culture in n America, lunch tends to be snacks on the lift or some kind of fast food. Also there tends to be no lines here (I heard Europe is busier and you have to wait in line more). When you factor in those things maybe actual ski time is not so different.
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Opening and closing times vary across the alps too. Some resorts open and close their lifts earlier and later which may be a factor given the high price of lift passes theses day although the difference is not normally more than about 45mins.
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@boarder2020, not all European skiers have long lunches and multiple drinks stops. In fact I'd say it was a minority. My very limited experience of north American skiing is that lift queues are more or less the same.
I'm not sure why different resorts have such different lift closing times or why they close so early in the spring.
Here in les arcs the lifts open at 9 and close at 16.50 this time of year. In fact it is not unusual to be getting off the piste as it is getting dark. In the spring the lifts close at 17.25. There is over 3 hours of daylight left.
I noticed in Japan the lifts opened at 8 and closed about 16.00
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@boarder2020,
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not skied in Europe yet but I've heard there is more emphasis on having a long lunch and maybe stopping for a few drinks
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I heard Europe is busier and you have to wait in line more
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Don't believe everything you hear. Europe is big. The season is typically 140 days long, sometimes longer, with dramatic peaks and troughs in visitor numbers. People who ski / board in Europe are very diverse. They also adapt their behaviour to the prevailing conditions, crowds, etc. Try it sometime if you can. 
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Yeah closing 2 or 3 hours before it gets dark in the spring is a bit of an odd one isn't it.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Peter S, mostly reflective, in my opinion, of the fact that the North American day simply has a different timeframe than in Europe. There are no absolutes because it's all personal preference, and there is some variety between rural and urban areas in North America, but, on balance I would estimate average mealtimes here in NA are breakfast 7 am, lunch at noon and dinner at 6 pm. My experience in Europe has general been an hour or more later across the board for each meal, particularly dinner.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@mr. mike, in that case you would expect an earlier lift opening time in N. America. Is that true?
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| johnE wrote: |
@boarder2020, not all European skiers have long lunches and multiple drinks stops. In fact I'd say it was a minority. My very limited experience of north American skiing is that lift queues are more or less the same.
I'm not sure why different resorts have such different lift closing times or why they close so early in the spring.
Here in les arcs the lifts open at 9 and close at 16.50 this time of year. In fact it is not unusual to be getting off the piste as it is getting dark. In the spring the lifts close at 17.25. There is over 3 hours of daylight left.
I noticed in Japan the lifts opened at 8 and closed about 16.00 |
My general observation is lift lines are more significant in Europe.
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You know it makes sense.
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Lift lines do not exist in Europe.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@johnE, Mind your Ps and Qs.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Apparently there are 60million active skiers in Europe compared to less than 10million in the united states (google). Many will live within a couple of hours of the alps so logically you would expect greater pressure at popular times?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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As much as I love skiing in the USA, early lift closures are the thing that I find to be a PITA. 3 pm lift closures in February at the back of the mountain (with 3 hours of Daylight left), eg in Keystone, are just ridiculous and (IMHO) indefensible. And 4 pm on the front side... 
And then there's the closure of mountain restsurants an hour before the lifts close, when the restaurant is on the "home run." Why can't they see the benefit in staying open? It's particularly surprising when they seem desperate to screw punters for every penny they can - with lift ticket and food/beverage prices being astronomical.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| Steve77 wrote: |
| In Whistler I think some of the higher lifts are closing at 2:30pm right now, with the rest at 3pm. It’s understandable with a 4:15pm sunset time, but as it’s $190 for a day pass it does make you want to start on time and have a quick lunch! |
Sunset 35 mins later in CH and lifts running from 8:45 until 16:30 for less than half the lift price cost! Who would have thought CH was such good value
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@denfinella, you would, and I think you commonly see it. Lift opening times of 8-8:30 are the norm here. Seems like it's more like 9 in most places in Europe as I recall? I'm getting a little long in the tooth for skiing bell to bell, so I'm not frequently catching the first chair on either continent these days...
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Well, in the eastern alps Saalbach opens at 8:00, schladming 8:15 and Val Gardena 8:30.
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I recall once asking a lift operator in Meribel, France in late February, why they were closing the lifts at 4:30pm when there was so much daylight left. His reply in a heavy French accent, was that they had to go home to their families and have dinner together when the kids came home from school etc. And words to the effect that "work is not everything" and you have to ensure you spend quality time with your family every day etc.
I did feel somewhat chastised, as my question had been all about "me"; and I was not even thinking of the lift employees.
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@mr. mike, from my experiences 8.30 is about normal in the Alps - generally a bit earlier in the east and later in France. Closing time normally about 4.30pm early in the season for lifts fairly close to the resort / lift base, but this is sometimes extended by half an hour or even an hour from February onwards as daylight allows (especially in France, which redresses the opening time imbalance). I'm definitely a first lifts person! So it does sound like you can get a longer ski day in Europe if you want one. We were particularly impressed in Ponte di Legno in March, where the gondola opened at 8am and didn't close until 5.15pm.
The lift queue length comparison is more difficult to compare, but certainly queues of any length at all have been extremely rare on our January and March (i.e. low season) trips, all in Europe.
However I'm not intending to criticise the US way of doing skiing, as I'm sure there are other aspects in which they outperform Europe.
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I certainly don't have access to the data but the earlier closing times over the pond may have as much to do with incidence of injury, being a more litigious environment.
I never got that 'first-lift-to-last-lift' mentality ....... very few can actually do it, and for the bulk of those that think they might I doubt it would be the best way to go about it.
The best of the tracks or trails are off the first lift, anyway.
| johnE wrote: |
| @boarder2020My very limited experience of north American skiing is that lift queues are more or less the same. |
Can't speak for 'north American skiing' only SW Ca but, outside of Whistlerland and the usual peak days elsewhere, I've had completely the opposite experience ..... indeed it's one of the motivations.
How many times have you jumped on a chair in Europe, to be joined by a patroller, and the answer to why it's so quiet is to be told 'there are more staff than guests on the hill today'?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Thinking some more about this, I think there might just not be so much demand for it either. Other than truly exceptional days, most mountains I regularly ride it in BC are pretty quiet by the end of the day, with most heading home way before the lifts close. A lot of people drive to the resort -1 hour or longer is not uncommon. If you take last lift at 3.30 you might not be down till 4.15/4.30 (which is around sunset anyway). By the time you drive home it's 5-5:30pm, which seems like a full day.
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I never got that 'first-lift-to-last-lift' mentality ....... very few can actually do it, and for the bulk of those that think they might I doubt it would be the best way to go about it.
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I agree a lot with this. I have shown quite a few people around kicking horse and they were done way before the lifts closed. I guess if your just cruising groomers, stopping for hot chocolates, a long lunch etc. maybe you can do more hours but not really the style for most out here.
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