Are you sure you want to delete this comment? The ski season normally ends in late April or early May. The PlanetSKI editor, James Cove, has his own observations. “It was therefore a huge shock to see social media explode with the news that, as of that point, with not an iota of a warning, our season was over.”. Britons Susan and Jock Dun are among the thousands of local business owners in the Alps who are currently riding out the storm. The timing of the announcement was not the best. But perhaps they should have seen it coming – everyone else in the European snowsports world did. Inghams Ski put out this statement tonight: “This evening, the French authorities have confirmed they will be closing all the ski lifts for the rest of the season, effective 15 March, despite assurances from the ski resorts themselves they would stay open. We posed the question in an article earlier on Saturday: Skiing continues in France, but for how long? It was the last major alpine nation to hold out and insist its ski areas would keep running until the end of the season, despite the worsening coronavirus crisis. Create a commenting name to join the debate, There are no Independent Premium comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts, There are no comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts. Ski resorts France closed immediately All French ski resorts are closed immediately on Sunday and will not open for the rest of the season due to the coronavirus outbreak, reports French ski organization Domaines Skiables de France. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. You can find our Community Guidelines in full here. ADVERTISING AND STYLE PARTNERSHIPS: Prime Minister Édouard Philippe later announced that France’s shutdown will include all non -essential businesses and although public transport will remain open, he encouraged residents to limit their use, telling them not to travel between towns unless it is necessary. So, that is what we did – took back everything that had been rented out just the day before, gave everyone a full refund and got back most of the nearly 400 sets of equipment we had given out, free of charge, to tour operator staff and other people working for resort businesses. Did this mean ski resorts? The strict new measures included the forced closure of all non-essential businesses in the resort – but Susan and Jock were given time to collect their stock. Mission Impossible? There are some seasonal staff, including a few of our own who have decided that if they are going to be locked up they would rather be locked up here than back in the UK and a few other people who didn’t really organize themselves to get out yet and might have left it too late.”. “Since the news on Sunday that the resort was to close we have all been pretty much shell shocked. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment. Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. Are French ski resorts still open? Others went into meetings to discuss the implications of the French government’s latest pronouncement. “If you are currently in one of these resorts, your local rep will be in touch with further updates. “Until about 10 days ago none of us here really realised that this was going to be such a major problem,” said Susan. These cookies do not store any personal information. So until there is a vaccine, skiers will be wary. “24-hours earlier we could have stopped people travelling. The prime minister also acknowledged social meetings are at the heart of the country’s culture and that French people find the concept of social distancing repugnant, ‘because we are a people that likes to gather, a joyful people, a people that likes to live together… Maybe even more when fear starts to spread.’. The ski season … So time to get ski fit ?...more, Let's face it there are worse places for your van to break down than the Italian Alps where there's always an adventure to be had whether climbing, hiking, taking a bus to Chamonix or an Italian taxi...more. Do I need fat skis to freeride? I’m so frustrated that this decision couldn’t have been made before changeover day. Which ski resorts are currently open in France? Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. The directive does not specifically mention ski areas but applies to restaurants, cafes, cinemas and discos, as well as, “non-essential businesses.”. Find out more, The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. Sledging prohibited', Chairlifts in The Mourtis ski resort on 10 February, 2020, Chairlft station at the summit of The Mourtis ski resort on 10 February, 2020, A small patch of snow on what would usually be a ski slope in The Mourtis resort on 10 February, 2020, “Skiing?