TL;DR
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.
We knew when we saw the pics on Instagram of Hotham setting up the Bird Bath Pond Skim near the summit chair that it only meant one thing: the season at one of Victoria's major ski resorts was rapidly coming to a close
Hotham will close for the 2026 winter season this Sunday, 6 September. It's a fitting, if slightly deflating, bookend to a season that's been tough right across the country. I only got two days of skiing in all year, and both of them were at Falls Creek.
Hotham's closure now puts it alongside Mt Baw Baw and Selwyn, both of which have already shut up shop for another year - and between the three of them, it's hard to avoid the feeling that this has been the worst Australian season I've seen in the last decade.
Hotham confirmed the closure in a press release and social media post, with senior manager of skier services Chris saying the mountain's teams had done everything they could to keep lifts running.
"Our teams have given it all that they have to keep us skiing and riding as long as we can, but Mother Nature had other plans for us this season, and with some tough conditions in the forecast, our final day of skiing and boarding for winter will be Sunday 6 September," Chris said.
