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Hotham ski resort
Epic PassView resorts
Tier E — Deep timing play — aim late winter

📷 Hotham

Oceania

Hotham

34

Solid

→stable

Last Snowfall

--

Past 24 Hours

0cm

Reported by Hotham

Past 48 Hours

0cm

Past 10 Days

0cm

14-Day Forecast

11.1cm

Snow Depth

18cm

Resort reported (website)
🎿

Powder Days

10

2026 season

☀️

Bluebird Days

1

2026 season

Updated: Aug 28, 8:04 AM•Weather at base: 1450m

Overview

Hotham is a ski resort in Oceania, Australia. Today's SnowSure™ Score is 34/100 (Solid), snow base 18 cm (7.1 in). The 14-day ensemble forecast across seven weather models (ECMWF, GFS, GEM, JMA, ICON, Météo-France, Met Norway) calls for ~11 cm (4.3 in) of new snow. Conditions last updated 2026-08-28 08:04 UTC.

Resort Guide

Hotham is a premier alpine resort located in Victoria, Australia, renowned for its high-altitude village and panoramic mountain views. The resort features 320 hectares of skiable terrain, catering to all abilities with a mix of challenging runs, tree skiing, and gentle slopes. Signature experiences include unique ski-in, ski-out accommodation, a vibrant après-ski scene, and a range of snow activities such as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Hotham stands out for its dramatic ridgeline setting, reliable snowfall, and diverse winter offerings.

Resort Info

Summit1861m
Base1450m
Vertical411m
Lifts3/14
Runs9/105
Skiable Area1952.1 acres
Average snowfall300 inches / 762 cm
CountryAustralia
Visit Resort Website →Follow on Instagram →View Trail Map →

Season dates

OpenedJune 6, 2026
Projected closingOctober 4, 2026

Future dates are operator estimates and may change.

Ski passes

Epic Pass

Epic Pass

View resorts →

Access tiers change by season — confirm benefits on the pass operator's site.

Top Après Ski

The Bird – Renowned for its cozy alpine atmosphere and panoramic mountain views, The Bird is Hotham’s most popular après-ski bar, offering craft beers, hearty food, and live music that draws both locals and visitors for a vibrant post-ski social scene.

SnowSure™ ScoreAI
34
Solid
→stable

Adequate snow - check forecasts before booking.

Currently, Hotham has clear skies and a temperature of 2°C, with a snow depth of 18cm. While no new snow has fallen in the past week, the 14-day outlook suggests a potential for 11cm on average, with some forecasts indicating up to 22cm.

AI-generated summary
—

Depth

18cm depth — adequate for most conditions.

—

Recent

There has been no new snow in the past week.

↓

Forecast

The 14-day snow outlook averages 11cm, with forecasts ranging from 3cm to 22cm.

✓

Historic

This season's snow total of 160cm is 165% of the 5-year average for this date, which is 97cm.

Data updated Fri, Aug 28, 08:04 AM UTC

Snow Summary

1861mECMWF Model

Updated Aug 28, 2026 at 8:04 AM

0cm
24h
11cm
Past 10d
14-Day Forecast
0
Prev10d
—
Now28
—
S29
—
S30
—
M31
—
T1
—
W2
3.1
T3
Past
Today
Forecast

Snowfall Forecast Maps

Australia & Tasmania region

Current Conditions

Reported Fri, Aug 28, 08:04 AM UTC

Depth by source

every reading we have
  • Resort ReportedBase 18cm

The headline depth uses the most trusted available source. We show every reading so you can judge for yourself.

Freezing Level

2092m

☀️ Above summit - warm/wet conditions

Base

1450m

Temp

4.2°C

Wind

6.6km/h

Snow Depth

18cm

Resort reported (website)

14-Day Forecast

9.6cm

Mid-Mountain

1656m

Temp

--°C

Wind

7km/h

Snow Depth

18cm

Resort reported (website)

14-Day Forecast

11.1cm

Summit

1861m

Temp

1.5°C

Wind

6.6km/h

Snow Depth

--

Resort reported (website)

14-Day Forecast

10.8cm

SurfaceHard Pack

Ops signals

  • ●Freezing level above summit — rain risk at lower elevations

Lifts Open

3/14
0%

open

Runs Open

9/105
9%

open

El Niño Outlook · Winter 2026

Hotham El Niño rank & forecast

Hotham ranks #475 of 488 SnowSure resorts — Tier E, −30% in strong El Niño winters.

Tier E — Deep timing play — aim late winter: Strong El Niño winters ran clearly below this resort’s own baseline (≤ −8%). Still skiable — schedule late season; one storm cycle can beat the climatology.

#475 of 488Tier E — Deep timing play — aim late winter

Strong-event signal: −30% vs this resort's 30-yr avg

In the three strongest El Niño winters on record ('97-98, '15-16, '23-24), Hotham averaged -30% versus its own 30-year snowfall baseline. Historically this is a timing play rather than a reason to stay home: aim for late winter (February–March) in winter 2026. Analog winters: '97-98 -60%, '15-16 -39%, '23-24 +8%. A pattern, not a promise.

'97-98 −60%'15-16 −39%'23-24 +8%

In-season scorecard

Predicted signal

−30%

Measured to date

+137%

Season total

160 cm

Vs predicted

+167%

Predicted signal vs measured season-to-date against this resort's own climatology.

Signal = average snowfall in the three strongest El Niño winters since 1996 ('97-98, '15-16, '23-24) vs this resort's own 30-year ERA5 baseline. n=3 — a lean, not a law. Updated monthly against measured snowfall Dec–Mar.

Full El Niño report →

Live Conditions

Hotham Webcams

All Webcams

Mt Hotham

Mt Hotham

Mt Hotham

Mt Hotham

4 webcams • Click to expand

Avalanche

No bulletin for this mountain

No official warning service is mapped for this resort’s country yet (v1 covers the United States, Canada and Switzerland). A bulletin may still be published locally.

SnowSure relays the official avalanche bulletin and does not issue avalanche forecasts. Read the full bulletin at the issuer’s link and make your own terrain decisions. Not a substitute for avalanche education, equipment, or local knowledge.

Local Reports

0 reports
SnowSure™ Forecast Range

Daily Snowfall Forecast by Model

Black line = verified SnowSure™ blend (not a simple average). Weights update weekly from measured snowfall at SNOTEL stations and resort reports.

SnowSure™ blend — verified model weighting

The black line is not a simple average. For Hotham (southern alps), we combine seven global weather models using weights learned from daily forecast verification — comparing each model's prediction to measured snowfall (SNOTEL, resort reports, ERA5).

  • 1.Horizon buckets: days 1–3, 4–7, and 8–14 each get separate weights — short-range skill differs from long-range.
  • 2.Regional calibration: weights come from verified error in this geography (Rockies, Alps, Japan, etc.), recalculated weekly.
  • 3.Ground truth only: we never grade a forecast against another model — only against measured snow.

Building verification history for this resort.

How we verify forecasts →

Hourly Forecast Detail

AM / PM / Night breakdown with wind and freezing level

NWP models refresh up to 4× daily · Last synced Aug 28, 8:04 AM

Hourly Forecast Detail
 
Today
9 / -40.3mm
Sat, Aug 29
11 / -3
Sun, Aug 30
13 / -1
Mon, Aug 31
13 / -1
Tue, Sep 1
7 / 10.7mm
Wed, Sep 2
6 / 29.1mm
PeriodAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNight
Snow (cm)000000000000000000
Precip (mm)00.30000000000000.71.516.6
Temp (°C)27-2410051215121362363
Wind (km/h)7119382874798232924182222
Gusts (km/h)2433231225821249182718738464626066

14-Day Snow Forecast by Model

Summit elevation (1861m)

ECMWF
3.3cm
GFS
22.3cm
GEM
0.1cm
JMA
11cm
ICON
0cm
Météo-Fr
0cm
SnowSure™
11.1cm

10-Day Forecast

Today

28

🌧️

8.5°

-4.4°

14 km/h

Sat

29

☀️

11.4°

-2.8°

10 km/h

Sun

30

☀️

12.7°

-0.9°

9 km/h

Mon

31

☀️

12.9°

-1.1°

13 km/h

Tue

1

🌧️

6.8°

0.7°

35 km/h

Wed

2

🌧️

6.1°

2.1°

35 km/h

Thu

3

🌧️

0.9°

-2.6°

3.1cm

27 km/h

Fri

4

🌧️

3.2°

-0.6°

26 km/h

Sat

5

🌧️

3.5°

-4.6°

25 km/h

Sun

6

🌧️

6.9°

-6.5°

0.1cm

13 km/h

Summit elevation (1861m) • ECMWF model

Season vs Historic

Updated Fri, Aug 28, 08:04 AM UTC

160cm

Season Total

This Season to Date

+65%

vs 5-Year Avg

97cm avg by now

+132%

vs 30-Year Avg

69cm avg by now

97cm

5-Yr Avg by Now

This season is at 55.7 cm to date. The last completed season totaled ~160.1 cm. That's 65% above the 5-year average (97 cm). Versus the 30-year baseline: 132% above the 30-year average (69 cm).

Hotham Snow History

Average annual snowfall is 87cm with an average of 37 snowfall days per season. The table below shows monthly averages across 31 seasons of archive data (modeled snowpack at mid-elevation).

Average monthly snowfall history
MonthAvg SnowfallSnowfall DaysAvg Base DepthMax Base DepthBiggest Snowfall
June18cm7 days1cm5cm7.7cm
July24.2cm10 days2cm8cm8.6cm
August28cm10 days2cm9cm8.1cm
September10.4cm6 days0cm4cm4.9cm
October4.3cm3 days0cm2cm2.9cm

Source: SnowSure archive · Open-Meteo ERA5 reanalysis at mid-elevation. Depth is modeled, not resort-reported.

Season at a Glance

Current season(2026)

Opened Jun 6, 2026

Scheduled close: Oct 4, 2026

Multi-season averages will appear once SnowSure has tracked more than one full season.

ENSO seasonal analog

History · not a forecast

In 5 past El Niño winters at Hotham, ERA5 season snowfall median was 54 cm (21 in), about 32% below this resort’s long-term median. This is a historical analog from reanalysis — not a prediction of this winter’s storm track.

Prevailing ONI

El Niño

MJJ 2026 · ANOM +1.39°C

Analog season median

54 cm

5 El Niño winters · 32% below median

All-season median

79 cm

Across 30 ERA5 seasons (2026)

PhaseSeasonsMedianp25–p75Recent analogs
El Niñocurrent554 cm42 cm – 56 cm2023, 2015, 2009, 2002, 1997
La Niña483 cm69 cm – 106 cm2022, 2010, 1999, 1998
ENSO-neutral2180 cm70 cm – 103 cm2025, 2024, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018

Season snowfall from Open-Meteo ERA5 reanalysis (~9 km). ENSO phase from NOAA CPC Oceanic Niño Index. Relative phase differences are more trustworthy than absolute cm totals. Source: NOAA CPC Oceanic Niño Index + Open-Meteo ERA5 via SnowSure season archive.

Best Months to Visit

August

Peak Season

July

Peak Season

September

Good

June

Good

Note: Based on typical ski season patterns for this region.

Back to All Destinations

Frequently asked questions about Hotham

Where is Hotham?
Hotham is a ski resort in Australia.
How high is Hotham?
Hotham runs from a base elevation of 1,450 m (4,757 ft) to a summit of 1,861 m (6,106 ft), giving a vertical drop of 411 m (1,348 ft).
How big is Hotham?
Hotham has 1,952 acres (790 hectares) of skiable terrain, 105 marked runs and 14 lifts.
Which ski pass covers Hotham?
Hotham is on the Epic Pass. Access terms such as blackout dates and day limits vary by pass tier, so check the pass operator for the current season.
When is ski season at Hotham?
Hotham typically operates from June to October. Exact opening and closing dates shift each year with snowfall — check the resort's current season dates before booking.
How much snow does Hotham get in a typical season?
Hotham averages 300 inches / 762 cm of snowfall in a typical season. Any individual season can run well above or below that.
How will El Niño affect Hotham in winter 2026?
El Niño Signal Rank: #475 of 488 SnowSure resorts · Tier E · strong-event signal -30% vs its own 30-yr average. In the three strongest El Niño winters on record ('97-98, '15-16, '23-24), Hotham averaged -30% versus its own 30-year snowfall baseline. Historically this is a timing play rather than a reason to stay home: aim for late winter (February–March) in winter 2026. Analog winters: '97-98 -60%, '15-16 -39%, '23-24 +8%. A pattern, not a promise.

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