With the glacier at Cervinia opening last weekend, it’s a great time for a spot of glacier skiing.  

Conditions are better than in the past few years, thanks to last winter’s superb base and even some fresh snow and colder than usual temperatures for the time of year.

Gone are the days of glacier skiing 365 days of the year (with the exception of Hintertux!)…. However, there are still a handful of resorts offering plenty of summertime snow fun. 

Here’s a brief summary of the main summer-ski glaciers:

ITALY: The Italian resort of Cervinia will remain open for ten weeks, with 23kms of pistes and lifts operating from 7.15-13.30 when the snow becomes soft and slushy.  There’s also access to neighbouring Zermatt’s glacier ski area – one of the biggest, highest summer ski areas in Europe, but note – the last lift from Cervinia to Zermatt is at noon.

In Val Senales, the glacier is open until 29 July (lifts from 7.30-13.00), with 3 lifts, 8kms of pistes, and a funpark.  The area may open again in the autumn, depending on snow conditions. 

SWITZERLAND: In Zermatt, the lifts are open from 7am-2pm, with 8 ski lifts and 25kms of pistes over a vertical drop of 960m. There’s also a large fun park and a snowskate park.

Summer skiing on the glacier at Saas-Fee will start on 9 July, with around 20kms of pistes and lifts operating from 7am-1pm (until 2pm or 3pm in the autumn).

AUSTRIA: Hintertux is Austria’s top summer-ski area, with 22kms of runs on the glacier, and lifts open from 8.15-4.30.  What’s more it’s open 365 days a year!  Many of national ski teams spend their summers training in Hintertux, including the Austrian team.  You can read more about summer skiing in Hintertux by clicking here. 

The resort of Kaprun also boasts a reasonably extensive glacier-skiing area, with lifts from 8.30-3pm.

FRANCE: The most extensive glacier skiing in France is on the Tignes’ Grande Motte glacier ski area.  It is open daily from 7.15-13.00 until 2 September, with 16 lifts, over 20km of runs and a freestyle snowpark.  

Les Deux Alpes also has a decent summer ski area, with seven lifts open from 7.15-12.30, a handful of runs, a funpark and a freestyle park.

If you’re taking your family out to the Alps this summer, be sure to check out FamilySkiNews’s comprehensive list of what to pack for summer holidays in the Alps.