New 2026 Edition of World Indoor Snow Centre Guide published. Total number of Indoor Snow Centres built passes 200 mark, 40 countries, 6 continents over 100 years.
12/July/2026
New 2026 Edition of World Indoor Snow Centre Guide Published as Total Number of Indoor Snow Centres Built Passes 200 Mark, Across 40 Countries and 6 Continents Over 100 Years
The new edition of The World Indoor Snow Centre Guide has been published. In addition to full updates of its contents, including detail tables on the world's largest resorts, the new edition has grown by more than 10,000 words and over 50 pages to reach more than 120,000 words and 600 pages.
2026 is turning into a landmark year for indoor snow centres. As well as marking 100 years since the first indoor ski centres, using artificial snow, opened in Europe, it also turns out to be the year when the 200th centre to be built opened. Indoor snow centres can now be found in more than 30 countries on six continents. More than 10 new centres opened in the past 18 months have been added to the latest edition.
Key Findings Of The 2026 World Indoor Snow Centres Guide
The number of indoor snow centres being built worldwide continues to accelerate. The 2020s has seen 60 centres open already, only two less than the total for the 2010s, which was itself ahead of the totals for the 2000s and 1990s.
The total number of indoor snow centres built in the past four decades has passed 200 for the first time; of these, more than 150 continue to operate.
More than 150 million people are estimated to have first tried snowsports on indoor snow over the past four decades.
China dominates indoor snow centre construction at present and has passed 70 centres open. It will soon pass the total of half the world's indoor snow centres, with the rest spread over 33 other countries and six continents. A quarter of the Guide, more than 150 pages, covers developments in China.
2027 will mark 100 years since the first indoor snow centres, with fake snow, opened in Europe.
New Sections In The 2026 World Indoor Snow Centres Guide
The new guide contains a section on the growing use of indoor snow centres for professional athlete training and rehabilitation, as well as indoor snow slopes receiving FIS (International Ski & Snowboard Federation) accreditation to host increasingly high-level snowsports competition.
The section on the companies that run multiple indoor snow centres has expanded from 2 to 8 pages to include more companies and go into greater detail on the main players. The section on environmental initiatives by indoor snow centres has also grown from 8 to 12 pages.
Full Contents Index Below
Introduction and Statistics
Introduction to the 2026 Edition (Page 5)
About This Guide and IndoorSnowNews.com (Page 6)
The world's largest indoor snow centres by slope area (Page 7)
The world's largest indoor snow centres by slope length (Page 9)
The world's largest Indoor Ski Areas By Combined Piste Length (Page 11)
Greatest Indoor Snow Vertical Drops (Page 12)
Number of Indoor Slopes Currently Operating (By Country) (Page 13)
Indoor Snow Centre Types (Page 14)
Indoor snow slope construction continental comparisons (Page 15)
Impact on World Skiing
More than 100 million people have learned to ski on indoor snow over 40 years (Page 16)
Bode Miller's Dream to Democratise Skiing (Page 17)
16 of 100 Countries On Planet Offering Snow Sports Only Thanks To Indoor Snow (Page 20)
Hosting The World's Best Racers and International Competitions
Growing Number of Snowsports Athletes Summer Training Indoors (Page 22)
First Officially Sanctioned Asian Championships (Page 24)
Indoor Snow Centre Racers Compete At Alpine Ski World Championships (Page 25)
Mikaela Shiffrin Trains Indoors in Hamburg (Page 26)
Shanghai snow centre Gets FIS Accreditation (Page 27)
Safe rehabilitation on indoor snow after injury (Page 28)
Environment
The environmental issues with indoor snow centres (Page 29)
Norway's SNØ Indoor Snow Centre Is More Than Carbon Neutral (Page 32)
Indoor Snow Centre Fully Self-Sufficient in Green Energy (Page 34)
Green Energy Helps Indoor Snow Centres Stay Open (or Close) In Energy Crisis (Page 35)
The Snow Centre Unveils Major Solar Installation (Page 36)
The Zero CO2 Groomer (Page 37)
Indoor Snow Centres See Business Boom As Temps Rise And Glaciers Melt (Page 38)
Table of Indoor Snow Centres Operating With Renewable Energy (Page 40)
Practical Information
Indoor snow - the various types (Page 41)
How do indoor snow centres work? (Page 45)
Snowmaking Indoors or Outdoors In Positive Temperatures (Page 48)
Most Frequently Used Indoor Snow Centre Names (Page 50)
Groups Operating the Most Indoor Snow Centres (Page 51)
World records set in/by indoor snow centres (Page 59)
The Never Ending Indoor Ski Run (Page 64)
History
The History and Future of Indoor Snow Centres (Page 70)
It's A Wonderful Life Revolutionised Movie Snow (Page 75)
Patents For Artificial Snow Substitutes (Page 76)
A chronology of indoor snow centre openings worldwide (Page 77)
Guide To Indoor Snow Centres Worldwide - Operating, Closed, Planned
Africa: Egypt, South Africa (Pages 83-86)
Asia: Abu Dhabi (UAE), Bahrain, China, Dubai (UAE), India, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Pakistan, The Philippines, Qatar, Ras Al Khaimah (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam (Pages 87-374)
Australasia / Oceania: Australia, New Zealand (Pages 375-392)
Europe: Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, UK (Pages 393-528)
North America: The Bahamas, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, USA (Pages 529-552)
South America: Brazil, Trinidad And Tobago (Pages 553-558)
Industry Providers & Activities
Indoor Snowmaking Companies (Pages 559-567)
Indoor Snow Centre Designers (Pages 568-575)
Indoor Snow Centre Operators (Pages 576-578)
Indoor Snow Centre Facility Providers (Pages 579-593)
50 Things To Do On Indoor Snow (Pages 528-537)
About The 2026 World Indoor Snow Centres Guide
The first edition of The World Indoor Snow Centre Guide was published in 2003 by ski writer Patrick Thorne (snowhun.com), who had been following their development over the previous decade. It has been updated and expanded every few years ever since. Patrick also runs IndoorSnowNews.com, a site dedicated to indoor snow, and publishes a bi-monthly newsletter.
The 2026 World Indoor Snow Centre Guide is available as a PDF document delivered by transfer and is available to purchase via: https://indoorsnownews.com/products/ or by emailing patrick@patrickthorne.com.
