Czechs flock to the slopes amid massive weekend snowfall

Mass snowfall across Czechia over the weekend saw a large influx of skiing and snowboarding enthusiasts flock to the Czech mountains as almost all ski resorts in the country began operations for the 2023 winter season.

Over the weekend, a few thousand skiers visited the Krkonoše mountain resorts, where there was more than 1 meter of snow in the Špindlerův Mlýn, Černá hora, and Malá Úpa areas, according to ski resort managers.

Špindlerův Mlýn, the biggest ski resort in the country, opened for the season on Saturday. The cable cars from Špindlerův Mlýn and Horní Míseček to Medvědín were running, giving skiers access to about 4 kilometers of slopes. About 2,500 people went skiing here over the weekend, according to Vendula Kalenská, a spokesperson for the resort. Higher amounts of people are expected next weekend.

Černá hora also saw around 3,000 skiers and snowboarders last weekend, with the peak of the season expected in February. Other centers, including Ještěd in Liberec and several smaller resorts across the Eagle and Jeseníky Mountains, also commenced their seasons, attracting a substantial influx of skiers.

Zina Plchová, spokesperson of the SkiResort leisure company at Černá hora, says that she does “not remember” a time when so many people came to the area so early in the winter season.

Over the weekend, the Dolní Morava resort in the Pardubice region opened near Králický Sněžnik. Skiers had around 3 kilometers of slopes to enjoy there. Full operations are set to begin on Friday, Dec. 8. Additionally, two smaller resorts in Orlickousteck, namely Přívrat near Česká Třebová and Dlouhoňovice near Žamberk, also saw visitors over the weekend.

Daily snow is expected in the Krkonoše area in the coming week – combined with freezing or sub-freezing temperatures, this means that resorts in the area will see even higher levels of snow than last weekend.

More than one in four (28 percent) people in Czehia plan to visit the mountains this winter, according to a survey from the Czech branch of the European Insurance Company. This figure is notably higher than last year, and may be attributed to the relative stability of ski resort prices in Czechia compared to other European countries.