The Overview
Michael Fulton
Melbourne-based skier and snowboarder with 50+ resorts across 5 continents. Specialises in Australian resorts and international resort comparisons.
Bormio delivers 50 kilometres of predominantly intermediate and advanced skiing on Cima Bianca mountain, featuring Italy's longest continuous descent at 8.5 kilometres with a vertical drop of 1,817 metres from summit to base. The resort will host men's Alpine skiing and the Olympic debut of ski mountaineering at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, showcasing the legendary Stelvio downhill course that has hosted World Championships in 1985 and 2005.
Modern snowmaking systems cover approximately 40 kilometres of marked runs, whilst the predominantly north-facing terrain above 1,900 metres ensures reliable snow preservation throughout winter. The historic town sits within Stelvio National Park, uniquely combining world-class skiing with Roman-era thermal baths that have operated continuously for over 2,000 years.
1817m
Vertical
30
Runs
50 km
Piste
4m
Annual snow
The Terrain
30 runs across 50 km of piste
Bormio spreads 30 runs across 50 km of piste of terrain. It leans intermediate at 44%, with 10 beginner runs to find your feet and 7 advanced or expert runs when you want to push.
Terrain split
30
runs
30 runs across 4 grades
Beginner10 runs · 32%
Intermediate13 runs · 44%
Advanced7 runs · 24%
Expert0 runs · 0%
Time it right
When to visit Bormio
The 2025/26 season operates from 5 December 2025 through 12 April 2026, though operations face restrictions from 28 January to 22 February 2026 due to hosting the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The resort's elevation spanning 1,200 to 3,017 metres with predominantly north-facing aspects ensures excellent snow preservation, averaging 225 centimetres of annual snowfall.
Optimal conditions typically occur from December through March when full operations extend across all terrain zones. The high-altitude positioning within Stelvio National Park provides reliable coverage well into April on upper slopes, particularly after overnight freezes, whilst the 40 kilometres of snowmaking coverage supplements natural accumulation during marginal periods.
Season 2025 - 2026
6 Dec 2025
Opens
6 Apr 2026
Closes
121
Days open
4 m
Annual snow
Getting there
Getting to Bormio, and where to stay
Located in Lombardy's upper Valtellina valley within Stelvio National Park, Bormio sits approximately 200 kilometres northeast of Milan requiring a scenic three-hour drive through the Valtellina region. The historic spa town dates to Roman times with medieval architecture surrounding central Piazza Cavour and thermal springs that have attracted visitors for over two millennia, including Leonardo da Vinci who documented the baths in his Atlantic Codex.
The multi-day Alta Valtellina ski pass provides access to 110 kilometres of terrain across Bormio, Santa Caterina Valfurva, and Cima Piazzi-San Colombano, connected by complimentary ski bus services. The destination uniquely combines championship skiing with three thermal spa facilities including the ancient Bagni Vecchi, creating a multidimensional mountain experience blending athletic challenge with wellness traditions.
Where to stay
Search all stays →Hotels and lodges near Bormio, powered by Stay22.
Latest News
From the SnowStash desk
FIS Weighs Holding World Championships in Almost Every Winter, Starting 2032
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation is looking at a major shake-up to its title events calendar. From 2032, World Championships could run not just in odd-numbered years but in every non-Olympic winter too, effectively putting a global title event on the calendar almost every season. The FIS Council has approved the concept following a feasibility study, though an accelerated rollout as early as 2028 is also under consideration.
4 Sept 2026
Mount Buller Becomes Latest Australian Resort to Call Time Early on 2026
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.
4 Sept 2026
Tremblant to Add New Timber Summit Ski Sector for 2027/28 Season
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.
2 Sept 2026
Mount Hotham to Close for the 2026 Season on Sunday, September 6
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.
1 Sept 2026
Thredbo to Replace Ageing Gunbarrel Quad With New Six-Seat Chairlift for 2028
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.
31 Aug 2026
Aerial Tram Collides With Crane at Alpe d'Huez: 23 Injured
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.
28 Aug 2026
Why Glaciers Are Collapsing - And What Happens When They Do
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.
27 Aug 2026
Pitztal Glacier Set to Reopen for the 2026/27 Ski Season on 26 September
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%.
26 Aug 2026
Bormio Lift System
The lift infrastructure comprises 14 installations anchored by the Bormio 2000 gondola and a cable car reaching Cima Bianca at 3,012 metres elevation. The three-stage network design efficiently transports skiers from the 1,200-metre base to high-altitude terrain with minimal queuing, whilst recent investments have introduced detachable chairlifts with weather protection bubbles.
The system includes one eight-person chairlift, four quad chairs, one triple chair, one gondola, and seven surface lifts serving 30 marked pistes plus 22 connecting skiwegs. The logical progression through increasingly challenging terrain keeps advanced sectors clearly separated from beginner and intermediate zones, enhancing both safety and flow across the mountain's substantial 1,817-metre vertical span.
15lifts across 7 types
1
Aerial Tram
1
Gondola
1
8-Person Chair
4
Quad Chairs
1
Triple Chair
3
T-Bars
4
Surface Lifts
Bormio lift system
Bormio is served by 15 lifts, listed here by type. Check which lifts are turning against the live conditions before you plan your first laps - early lifts and high-speed chairs get you to the best snow fastest.
More Bormio intelligence: trail map, snow report, webcams, resort overview.