Less and less snow, more and more abandoned ski resorts
Environment — di Simone Santi
Less and less snow, more and more abandoned ski resorts: the double alarm raised by Legambiente's Nevediversa report
Less and less snow, more and more abandoned ski resorts
Less and less snow, more and more abandoned ski resorts: the double alarm raised by Legambiente's Nevediversa report
Less and less snow, at least the natural kind. And more and more ski facilities decommissioned, fallen into disuse, abandoned. The climate crisis is transforming the face of Italy's mountains and, even if winter tourism is not giving up, it is becoming increasingly expensive and reserved for a privileged few.
According to the dossier Nevediversa 2025 by Legambiente, the number of decommissioned ski facilities in Italy has reached 265, doubling since 2020, when there were 132. Among the hardest-hit regions are Piemonte (76 decommissioned facilities), Lombardia (33), Abruzzo (31) and Veneto (30). But the absence of snow and global warming are also affecting existing infrastructure, with 112 facilities temporarily closed and 128 operating only intermittently.
Less and less snow: a disaster for those whose livelihoods depend on tourism, naturally, but even more so a warning sign for the environment. To paper over the cracks, the practice of artificial snowmaking is becoming increasingly widespread, with 165 storage reservoirs recorded covering a total surface area of nearly 1.9 million square metres.
Valle d'Aosta, with 14 reservoirs, is the region with the largest surface area occupied by these installations (871,832 sq m), followed by Trentino-Alto Adige (60 reservoirs) and Lombardia (23). All of this comes not only at enormous cost (10 million euros over four years in Piemonte, 5.3 million in Friuli Venezia Giulia, and so on) but above all with a heavy environmental impact, due to the high consumption of water and energy.
Legambiente stresses that it is unsustainable to keep investing in models that are now obsolete instead of adopting mitigation and adaptation strategies to address the climate crisis.
Less and less snow, eyesores left to decay
The facility that has come to symbolise this crisis is the cable car at Pian dei Fiacconi, on the northern face of the Marmolada, closed since 2019 and devastated by an avalanche in 2020. Today the abandoned structure remains a blot on the landscape in a UNESCO World Heritage area: an example of how the mountains are so often simply left to fend for themselves, with no recovery or redevelopment plans in place. But the situation is serious in other locations too.
The report denounces the existence of 218 ski facilities subjected to what amounts to "extraordinary measures to keep them on life support" — that is, costly interventions to keep them running despite any prospect of sustainability having long since vanished. The number of such facilities has more than doubled since 2020, with Lombardia (59), Abruzzo (47) and Emilia-Romagna (34) topping the list.
Rifugio Pian dei Fiacconi distrutto da una valanga. Per chi ama la Marmolada è un duro colpo. Forza!
While ski lifts close or struggle to keep going, the costs of a ski holiday continue to climb. According to Nevediversa 2025, a family of three spends on average 186 euros per day just to access ski lifts and slopes. For a week-long ski holiday, an adult spends around 1,453 euros, while a family of three can reach 3,720 euros. Price increases also affect hotels (+5.1 per cent), ski schools (+6.9 per cent) and restaurants (+8.1 per cent), making winter tourism increasingly exclusive.
In Cortina d'Ampezzo, ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, a gentrification process is under way that is transforming the resort into a destination for wealthy foreign investors, alongside the significant deforestation required to make way for a new bobsled track that will in all likelihood be abandoned after the Games. Alberto Lanzavecchia, a lecturer at the University of Padova, points out that by now "only one third of hotels are managed by local residents" and that real estate is increasingly being bought up by foreign funds, effectively pricing out the local population.
What is the future of winter tourism?
The data are stark: according to the Fondazione Cima, as of 13 February 2025 the snow deficit compared with historical averages is dramatic. In the Alps, between 1,000 and 2,000 metres, the reduction in snow cover is 71 per cent; in the Apennines it reaches 94 per cent. Even at higher altitudes, between 2,000 and 3,000 metres, the decline is 43 per cent in the Alps and 78 per cent in the Apennines.
For Legambiente, a paradigm shift is needed: investing in soft, sustainable tourism that is less dependent on snow. In this regard, there is for instance the European project BeyondSnow, led by EURAC Research, which aims to support mid-altitude ski resorts in transitioning towards alternative models.
Vanda Bonardo, Legambiente's head of Alpine affairs, sounds a call to action: "We need to rethink winter tourism along more sustainable lines and launch governance processes that involve institutions, local communities and territorial stakeholders. Good practices already exist, but they must become the rule rather than the exception." What is needed, in short, is a new and resilient model, because the old one seems destined to melt away — just like snow in the sun.