On the slopes of the world’s largest indoor ski resort in Shanghai, fun is more important than the climate – Technologist

LETTER FROM SHANGHAI

There’s always an anxious moment when you wonder whether you’ll manage to fit the pair of skis into the compartment provided on the side of the moving gondola, and the discomfort of the shoes and others trying to do the same thing before the doors close doesn’t help. Eventually, students Chen Yiluo and Ma Yuxiao managed to board the dangling gondola, with its prominent advertisement for Lindt’s Pyrenean chocolates, soon soared above the snow-covered slopes, set against a backdrop evocative of Europe’s far-flung peaks, with fake chalet storefronts and a Tyrolean-style Alpine-inspired castle.

Just the sight of the Poma logo on the lifts brought back memories of French ski school lessons as a child and the Ovaltine energy bar that accompanied them. But the ascent was fast, making the presence of the cable car in competition with the detachable four-seater chairlift almost questionable, except perhaps on busy days. There’s no altitude sickness once you’ve reached the 60-meter summit, where those still afraid of taking on the slopes can stop off at the Glacier Bar, the high-altitude restaurant. “It’s pretty impressive,” commented computer science student Chen, 18, in a black jumpsuit, as she looked around the world’s largest indoor ski complex, while hesitating between her bunny-eared beanie and the helmet that came with her skis. Ma Yuxiao, in a blue Burton jacket and pants, had been several times before.

Located at the far end of Shanghai, some way past the international airport and an hour and 20 minutes’ drive from the city center, the L + Snow Indoor was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as soon as it opened in September, when it was still over 30°C outside and the city had just experienced its hottest August in 60 years. The complex is clearly visible from the windows of approaching planes, with its rooftop assembly of solar panels depicting a skier. Here, for the equivalent of €50 for four hours, including equipment, there are three slopes, one blue, one red and one black. The latter has its own security guard to dissuade novices from venturing onto it. There’s also a children’s play area in the snow, an electric train that takes visitors up and down the slopes, a large outdoor water park and a hotel.

Ski and snowboard brands have sensed an opportunity, with Salomon, Rossignol, Head and Volcom stores already open outside the complex, clustered around a building with stained-glass windows that houses a Starbucks café. There are private lessons for making your first tracks, and many wear a tortoiseshell-colored buttock protection pad belted to their hips. But there are also experienced snowboarders, who are obvious as soon as they arrive at the ticket counter with their own snowboards.

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