Europe’s ski industry is facing an unprecedented challenge. Higher temperatures and shrinking snowfall are forcing resorts across the continent to rethink their business models and question the future of winter sports.
Snow Is No Longer Guaranteed
Even in Italy’s Dolomites, where the 2026 Winter Olympics will open in Milan-Cortina, snow is no longer a certainty. Natural snowfall is becoming increasingly limited, and resorts rely heavily on artificial snowmaking to keep slopes skiable. Creating snow is expensive, energy-intensive, and uses enormous amounts of water, which drives up the cost of lift passes. For many European skiers, the once-affordable thrill of winter sports is becoming increasingly out of reach.
Winter Olympics and a Warming World
Climate change is affecting more than everyday skiing; it is reshaping the Winter Olympics itself. A 2021 study found that by 2050 only four past Olympic host cities, Lake Placid in the United States, Lillehammer and Oslo in Norway, and Sapporo in Japan, will still have reliable winter conditions. If global temperatures rise by four degrees Celsius, nearly all historic sites will be unsuitable, leaving only Sapporo by 2080. Even if the Paris Agreement’s 2°C target is met, only nine former host cities would remain viable by mid-century.
Costs, Water, and the Future of the Alps
Europe’s winter tourism sector generates roughly 180 billion euros annually, with the Alps at its heart. Germany, Italy, and France lead in the number of ski resorts, yet over half of Europe’s 2,234 resorts face a high risk of insufficient snow if warming continues. Artificial snow requires about one million liters of water per hectare, comparable to the annual use of a city of 1.5 million people, and thousands of gigawatt-hours of electricity, further contributing to climate change. Meanwhile, skiing costs have risen 34.8 percent since 2015, particularly in Switzerland, Austria, and Italy, making many resorts unaffordable for most visitors.
Europe’s ski resorts are at a crossroads. Without urgent climate action and smarter management of resources, the dream of winter sports for millions could become increasingly difficult to sustain.
