Golan Heights — After roughly a year and a half of a tumultuous war between multiple sides, Israel’s sole ski resort has reopened.
On March 4th, Mount Hermon ski resort partially reopened. Some attractions are operating, like the gondola and mountain coaster. However, skiing and snowboarding will not open this season because of prior rocket strikes and minimal natural snowfall. The ski resort is also advising guests to keep an eye out for munitions that have yet to explode.
The ski resort was temporarily closed on October 7th, 2023, following the attacks by Hamas on Israel. The war that followed resulted in a prolonged closure, as the IDF used the ski resort as part of its military base.
While it remained closed over the next year and a half, a variety of notable things occurred. There were the aforementioned rocket strikes, which damaged lifts at the ski resort. In addition, the collapse of the Assad government led Israel to invade Syria’s tallest peak for security purposes. Following this move, the CEO of the ski resort, Raphael Naveh, told Israel Haymon in December 2024 that he dreamed of adding more slopes into the expanded Israeli military zone and perhaps onto the side of the mountain formerly held by Syria. As Naveh acknowledged, whether this is feasible is subject to debate.
It’ll be interesting to see what the future of this ski resort holds, as peace in this area appears to be fleeting, even if there are cease-fires currently in place.
Image/Video Credits: Ski Hermon, Israel
