A visitor to NSW’s Perisher Valley Ski Resort has described long lines for lifts at the weekend as “nightmare fuel” in the caption of a video showing a queue stretching more than 100m.
The viral TikTok video showed the wait for lifts at Front Valley — the main access to the resort — on Saturday at the start of the busy school holiday period, when many of the resort lifts were on hold due to strong winds.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Tourists at NSW’s Perisher Ski Resort slam long lines over the weekend.
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7NEWS understands Perisher’s Front Valley and Leichhardt were the only areas not on wind hold on Saturday.
Commenters on the video were quick to say they wouldn’t bother with visiting under those conditions.
“Thanks for this,” one person said. “I was considering going, but this made it an easy decision.”
“Drove up the mountain and turned straight around,” another said.
“So much for skiing this year,” another commenter said.
Others remarked on the time spent queuing compared with the time spent skiing.
“Wow, spend more time lining up than going down the slopes,” another person said.
$200 a day
Some people also complained about the price of lift tickets, which cost about $230 per day for an adult if not purchased in advance or as part of a package or season pass, when faced with such long queues.
“Imagine spending $200 to line up,” one person said.
“It’s not even worth it,” another said.
Some commenters, though, were quick to point out it was an extreme circumstance.
“That’s probably early morning,” one person said. “As the day progresses, everyone spreads out and it becomes bearable.”
“Go outside of school holidays later in the season, and you’ll be fine,” said another.
Other commenters said weekdays are also better for anyone who can ski then instead.
‘Safety the top priority’
Operations director of Perisher Michael Fearnside told 7NEWS.com.au that “staff and guest safety is our top priority”.
“In certain weather conditions, it just isn’t safe to operate every lift.”
Fearnside said wind speeds of about 100 km/h were reported at the top of the mountain over the weekend.
“Perisher has the advantage of a network of surface lifts which can operate in higher winds,” he said. “We had all the surface lifts that could safely operate spinning, in all four areas of the resort.“
The area had received 76cm of snow in the past seven days, Fearnside said.
“The Perisher team are working hard to continue to prepare additional terrain and lifts for operation during the school holidays,” he said.
“Up until now, we have not had sufficient snow to build the trails linking the four areas.
“The grooming staff will be working on building these access routes over the next couple of nights, with the expectation that skiing between the four areas will be possible by the weekend.”
He encouraged guests to check the Perisher app’s daily Snow Report to stay updated on weather conditions, road conditions, lifts and terrain openings, particularly during the school holiday period.
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