7

The first to launch their ski lifts will be Vogel near the Bohinj Lake, Krvavec, some 20 kilometres north of Ljubljana, and Rogla, near the town of Zreče (NE).

If weather is favourable, ski lifts will also operate at Areh near Maribor, Golte, near Mozirje, and in Kranjska Gora.

Skiing at Vogel, where there is 70 centimetres of snow, will be free of charge this weekend and the guests will only have to pay for the cable car ticket.

Vogel will however wait until 7 December to operate with full capacity and will also stop its ski lifts temporarily in the week between 2 and 6 December.

Similar to Vogel, Rogla will also launch only a few ski lifts at the beginning of the skiing season. However, the ski resort's cross country tracks have already opened and skiers can enjoy them free of charge through Friday.

Last year, 1.26 million people skied in Slovenian mountains; 70% were Slovenians. The skiing resorts expect the number of visitors to increase this season.

All resorts will be running this season with the exception of Slovenia's highest skiing resort, Kanin, where cable car broke down in January.