The ski season in California traditionally starts every year with the opening of the Mammoth Mountain ski resort. And comparatively early at that. Because skiing in California is possible from mid-November! Gradually, the largest ski resort on the West Coast was followed by other resorts. Almost all of the 1,185 kilometers of slopes are now open. 278 ski lifts take guests to winter sports fun. Whether you are having fun on Mammoth Mountain, heading to Sierra at Tahoe or whizzing down the slopes of Palisades Tahoe: This winter season brings some new additions.

© Shutterstock

Obligation to reserve parking spaces

Last winter brought between 15 and 20 meters of snowfall to the mountains of California's Sierra Nevada at times. So it's no wonder that more winter sports enthusiasts were out and about than ever before. "Last winter, California ski resorts experienced their second snowiest season on record, with nearly 8.3 million skiers and snowboarders taking to the slopes," says Mike Reitzell, president of Ski California, a non-profit industry association.

© Shutterstock

A direct consequence of this: Anyone wishing to visit Palisades Tahoe, Heavenly, Northstar California and Kirkwood in Tahoe must reserve a parking space in advance on weekends and holidays. Cars with four or more occupants park for free in Heavenly and Northstar California. If there are fewer passengers in the car, you pay 20 dollars. Palisades Tahoe takes a slightly different approach. Here you can reserve parking spaces for several days for a fee. Spontaneous parking is free. If you reserve for the weekend on Tuesday and there are still parking spaces available, the parking lot costs nothing. The same applies on weekdays or in the afternoon. There's also no obligation to make a reservation.

At high speed up Mammoth Mountain

In future, the high-speed chairlift will take you from Canyon Lodge to the summit even faster. In addition, 5.5 million dollars have been invested in the automation and expansion of the snowmaking system. One new attraction is an all-weather toboggan run in Woolly's Tube Park. Here you whizz down towards the valley at 40 km/h. The new ice rink in Mammoth Creek Park is also worth a visit.

© Shutterstock

To ensure that skiing in California continues to be fun for a long time to come, major investments have been made. Snow groomers, snowmaking systems, new lifts and even new attractions should attract even more visitors. Mountain High has invested around 1 million dollars. The Big Bear Mountain Resort, the largest ski resort in Southern California, even treated itself to a new ski hill: Snow Valley Ski Resort joined Snow Summit and Bear Mountain. 12 million dollars were invested in improvements, snow groomers and snowmaking equipment.

Ski passes, après-ski and culinary delights

The Powder Alliance as a ski association can also look forward to a new member. The Mount Shasta Ski Park has joined. For winter sports fans with a Shasta season pass, this means that they can now ski for free for three days at 21 member ski resorts in the USA, Canada and New Zealand. Another merger is the Cali Pass. It was joined by Dodge Ridge in Pinecrest. The Cali Pass is now also valid here. At June Mountain, children up to the age of 12 even ride for free.

© Shutterstock

With so much fun on the slopes, the culinary delights should of course not be neglected. This is taken care of, for example, with a new Brews and Views Après-Ski Party at the Lakeview Lodge in Heavenly/South Lake Tahoe. Slims Cantina complements the June Mountain Resort as a new location with outdoor seating and fantastic views. And in Northstar California, Vous at The Village at Northstar will be a casual meeting place for early risers, après-ski fans and lunch guests.