
Panorama
1,203 hectares, 133 runs near Invermere. Considerable vertical drop, hot pools, Mountain Collective access.
Panorama's summit reaches 2,450 metres, dropping 1,300 vertical metres to a base at 1,150 metres across 133 runs spread over roughly 1,203 hectares near Invermere, British Columbia. Terrain splits 35 per cent intermediate, 30 per cent expert, 20 per cent advanced and 15 per cent beginner, with average annual snowfall of roughly 4.7 metres. The resort carries Mountain Collective affiliation. Nine lifts, including four quad chairs, one double chair and one triple chair, serve the mountain alongside one gondola, one surface lift and one t-bar.
Panorama holds a genuinely distinctive place among Purcell Mountains resorts for its considerable vertical drop, marketed by the resort as its Mile 1 lift given the drop's proximity to 1,600 metres, and its year-round hot pools and championship golf course. Its heavily expert-and-intermediate-weighted terrain has built Panorama's reputation as a serious mountain with genuine village amenities.
Fritz Zehnder of Invermere and Guy Messerli of Switzerland, together with friends, founded Panorama in 1962, and the original facilities amounted to little more than a warming hut, a parking lot and a single rope tow powered by a V8 engine. The Calgary-based Cascade Group purchased the resort in 1978, recognising its potential as a major destination and investing in significant expansion.
Intrawest Corporation acquired Panorama in 1993, injecting substantial capital that delivered the Doug Carrick-designed Greywolf Golf Course in 1999 alongside the Panorama Springs hot pools. On 26 February 2010, the resort returned to local ownership when a group of investors from the Panorama community purchased it, and Panorama Mountain Village Inc continues to own the resort privately today. Adult daily tickets run from 109 to 129 Canadian dollars.
Panorama spreads 133 runs across 2,973 acres skiable of terrain. It leans intermediate at 35%, with 20 beginner runs to find your feet and 67 advanced or expert runs when you want to push.
The 2025-26 season at Panorama ran from 13 December 2025 to 12 April 2026, a roughly seventeen-week season supported by average annual snowfall of around 4.7 metres. Season dates can shift depending on early and late-season weather in the Purcell Mountains.
Midwinter, from December through February, typically brings the most consistent conditions to Panorama's heavily expert-weighted terrain. As a Mountain Collective resort, Panorama draws pass-holding visitors alongside destination travellers seeking the resort's considerable vertical drop and year-round village amenities.
Panorama's hot pools and championship golf course infrastructure, though primarily warm-season draws, support the resort's broader identity as a year-round destination even through the ski season. School holiday periods bring family visitation to the resort's more moderate terrain, though the overall terrain mix skews toward experienced skiers.
Specific event programming beyond standard operations is not confirmed in available resort information. Since returning to local ownership in 2010, Panorama has continued building on more than six decades of history since its 1962 founding by Fritz Zehnder and Guy Messerli. The resort's considerable vertical and Purcell Mountains setting remain central to its enduring appeal.
Panorama sits near Invermere, British Columbia, in the Purcell Mountains, with a base elevation of 1,150 metres and a summit at 2,450 metres across a 1,300-metre vertical drop over roughly 1,203 hectares. This considerable elevation range places Panorama among the more dramatically situated resorts in the BC interior.
The town of Invermere, on the shores of Lake Windermere, offers lodging and dining within a short drive of the resort, while Panorama's own considerable village provides extensive on-site accommodation.
British Columbia Highway 95 and local roads provide direct access to the resort from Invermere. Winter driving conditions on these routes can include snow and ice, and travellers should carry appropriate equipment given the mountainous terrain surrounding the area.
Calgary International Airport, roughly a three-hour drive away, is the primary gateway for visitors flying into the region, with Panorama's considerable distance from major population centres drawing a genuinely dedicated destination visitor base.
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Mount Buller closes out its 2026 season this Sunday, joining Falls Creek, Hotham and Charlotte Pass in a cluster of closures landing almost simultaneously and roughly a month ahead of schedule. The culprit is stark: Spencers Creek's benchmark snow depth hit 31.2cm on 3 September, just 18% of the 73-year average and an all-time low for this point in the season. Six of Victoria and NSW's best-known resorts will have shut their lifts early within a span of about two and a half weeks.

Tremblant has confirmed a major expansion of its Quebec ski area, with a new Timber Summit sector adding 62 acres of terrain, eight trails and a high-speed quad chairlift for winter 2027/28. It's part of a CAD 42.5 million investment that also includes a new beginner learning zone at Versant Soleil opening this coming season. The project has grown considerably since it was first announced back in 2020, when it carried a far smaller budget and an opening date that never eventuated.

We knew when the Bird Bath Pond Skim showed up on Hotham's Instagram that the season was on its way out. It's been a rough one - I only managed two days on snow all year, at Falls Creek - and now Baw Baw, Selwyn and Hotham have all called it, possibly the worst Australian season I've seen in a decade. Hotham's last day of lift operations is Sunday, 6 September, with a Retro Day, Father's Day après and closing sales before the lifts stop turning for good.

Thredbo Alpine Resort has confirmed plans to replace its 37-year-old Gunbarrel quad chairlift with a new six-seat Doppelmayr D-Line, targeting winter 2028. The AUD 35 million project will keep travel time roughly the same but lift capacity from 2,800 to 3,000 skiers per hour. It's part of a broader investment push that also includes doubled snowmaking capacity at Friday Flat for 2027, with the ageing Kosciuszko Express now flagged as the resort's next major lift replacement after Gunbarrel.

An aerial tram carrying around fifty passengers struck the boom of a construction crane on the route to Pic Blanc at Alpe d'Huez on Wednesday morning, injuring 23 people, three seriously. The cabin tipped on impact before the operator reversed it to right the car. Most of the injured were treated on site, with five taken to hospital in Grenoble, including a pregnant woman assessed as a precaution.

A deadly flood on the Nepal-China border, a decade-old tragedy on Italy's Marmolada, and an unstable glacier right now above a village near Zermatt - three very different mountain ranges, the same underlying story. Warming ice is destabilising terrain that was considered settled for generations, and the results range from catastrophic floods to slow-motion monitoring situations that could go either way.

Tyrol's highest ski area is gearing up to open a full month ahead of most of the Alps. The Pitztal Glacier is scheduled to start its 2026/27 season on Saturday 26 September, running through to 2 May 2027, with the lower-altitude Rifflsee area following in December. High-altitude terrain up to 3,440 metres gives the glacier a head start on snow, though as always, the actual opening extent will depend on how September's weather plays out. Early online ski pass bookings can save up to 30%.

A hanging glacier above the Swiss village of Randa, just south of Zermatt, has been shedding large chunks of ice for weeks, with authorities warning more break-offs are likely. A danger zone has been closed off since June, though officials say the village's 479 residents aren't at risk. It's a familiar pattern for this glacier - it's done this before, in 1819, 1972 and 1973 - but a reminder of how closely Alpine authorities now watch terrain once considered stable.
The 2025 - 2026 season at Panorama closed on Apr 12, 2026. Check back for next season's opening date and ticket pricing.
Day passes start from CA$69, with peak rates up to CA$129.
Full day skiing at Panorama Mountain Resort with access to 133 trails and 9 lifts across 2,973 acres. Located in the Canadian Rockies, Panorama offers spectacular mountain views and diverse terrain from gentle cruisers to challenging expert runs.
Buy passDiscounted lift tickets for seniors 65+ at Panorama Mountain Resort. Enjoy world-class skiing in the Canadian Rockies with breathtaking views and excellent snow conditions. Panorama features 1,300 meters of vertical drop.
Buy passYouth lift tickets for ages 13-17 at Panorama Mountain Resort. Perfect for teenage skiers exploring diverse terrain in the Canadian Rockies. Panorama is a Mountain Collective partner resort offering world-class skiing.
Buy passChildren's skiing at Panorama Mountain Resort for ages 6-12. Kids enjoy excellent ski school programs and family-friendly terrain. Panorama offers ski-in/ski-out accommodations and village amenities perfect for families.
Buy passFive days of skiing at Panorama Mountain Resort for one low price. Use any 5 days throughout the season with blackout dates Dec 25-Jan 5 and Feb 15-17. Perfect for visitors wanting multiple days in the Canadian Rockies.
Buy passMore Panorama intelligence: snow report, webcams, resort overview.