CairnGorm Mountain Scotland’s premier snowsports resort opens for the season on Saturday 1^st December when skiing and boarding will be available on the upper part of the mountain with the Ciste and Polar Express tows operating and the funicular making middle station stops. About 30cm of snow has consolidated in the pistes with runs available in the Ciste fairway, on the traverse, the 105 and the zig-zags. Cairngorm has been deploying the 4 snow guns it is trialling this year in these areas to build up a base in the areas which are subject to the most scouring.

Last year the resort opened 10 days later than this and two years ago it opened two weeks earlier so the resort’s marketing manager Colin Kirkwood reckons this year they are bang on target. He is encouraged by the number of season ticket holders who have already renewed their passes in anticipation of the season and also buoyed by the resort’s inclusion in the list published this week  by Tripadvisor of the 15 resorts in Europe providing the best value for snowsports.

Lifts will start running at 9am on Saturday and in view of the number of runs available special day ticket prices of £25 adult, £18 Student and Senior and £15 Junior will apply. Weather permitting the resort will remain open daily for snowsports thereafter.

The funicular will also be running for visitors to CairnGorm Mountain’s Christmas market in the Ptarmigan top station which has already attracted over 6000 visitors.