Every August, skiing does not stop. It moves. While the Alps are in hiking season, winter is in full swing along the Andes, and the southern ski season generally runs from June to September or October depending on the resort and the year.
Mr. Alps now covers mountains worldwide, so here is a grounded tour of the ski areas of Chile and Argentina in our directory: live pages with conditions, webcams where available, maps and stats for each destination.
Chile: high, dry and close to Santiago
The resorts above Santiago sit at altitudes that are hard to find in Europe. Valle Nevado reaches 3,675 m at the top lift with about 48 km of pistes, next door La Parva tops out at 3,585 m with around 58 km, and El Colorado combines a 3,477 m top station with roughly 70 km of pistes. The village of Farellones is the historic base for this cluster.
North of the capital, Portillo is the classic: a compact area at nearly 3,000 m beside the Los Libertadores pass, with a top lift at 3,349 m. Further south, the volcano country begins: Corralco (top lift 2,392 m), Centro Ski Pucón on the slopes above Pucón, Valle Hermoso, and Nevados de Chillán, long known for its hot springs. Chapa Verde and Volcán Osorno round out the picture.
Argentina: from Mendoza to the end of the world
In the Mendoza high country, Los Penitentes sits at 2,584 m with a top lift at 3,215 m, and Las Leñas is the famous high-altitude name of the province at 2,280 m. In Patagonia, Cerro Catedral above Bariloche is the biggest area in the country on our books, with about 55 km of pistes and 30 lifts, while Chapelco near San Martín de los Andes offers around 29 km.
Smaller and quieter: Cerro Bayo above Villa La Angostura, La Hoya near Esquel, Cerro Perito Moreno, and Caviahue in Neuquén. And at the far southern end of the country, in Tierra del Fuego, Cerro Castor runs about 30 km of pistes near Ushuaia.
Small hills count too. That is the Mr. Alps philosophy in the Andes as much as in the Alps: a one-lift snow park in Neuquén matters to the family that lives an hour away. You will find those in the directory as well.
Each page above shows live status, season windows, maps and nearby activities, and we keep adding data through the southern season. If you are planning an August or September trip, start with the full directory and filter by country.