Ski resorts await first snow over weekend

Ski resort operators throughout northern Greece are keeping a close watch on the weather bulletins this week as the first real snowfall of the winter season is forecast for the weekend, ending a nearly month-long period of unseasonably fair weather in the east Mediterranean country — in stark contrast with snow-bound north and northwest Europe.

Operators this season are expected to offer more competitive holiday packages in tune with the crisis-plagued economy, along with added attractions, such as night-time skiing.

“We’re ready, the necessary works have already been done, and the only thing we’re waiting for is enough snow in order to open the ski resort to visitors. We’re hopeful that the coming weekend will be the one,” Thomas Apostolou, the manager of the Kaimaktsalan resort on Greece’s northern frontier said.

Other ski resorts further to the west, such as Vassilitsa, in mountainous Grevena prefecture, and the noted village of Tria-Pente Pigadia, near Naoussa, expect the forecast freezing temperatures to lure excursionists to the mountain resorts, regardless of the amount of snow that sticks to the slopes.