By August 3, the base had fallen to 110 centimetres, from 131 centimetres on July 14. It peaked at 230 centimetres last year.

Miriam Bradbury, a senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, said early snowfalls had suggested a promising ski season but the outlook was for a warmer, drier winter than average.

“It is still winter and you can get cold fronts moving through in August and even into September, but that is not something we can really forecast more than a week out,” she said.

“We’re unlikely to see a complete turnaround of the snow season, but we may see a little more coming through.”

Jindabyne Chamber of Commerce president Olivier Kapetanakos said accommodation bookings were down 20 to 40 per cent compared with last year. He blamed the snow conditions and consecutive interest rate rises that had curtailed early bookings.

“People haven’t been cancelling – some people have tried – but the bookings that usually come in now for September have not arrived, and that’s the double whammy. We started with a lower booking rate [because of the interest rate rises], then the snow was very patchy,” he said.

“The resorts are doing a fantastic job doing as much as they can [to stay open], with the exception of Selwyn, poor buggers.”

Perisher and Thredbo have kept most of their lifts running but Selwyn, which has the lowest peak of the NSW resorts, closed on July 29 and is yet to reopen. It told guests that “Mother Nature has washed us out” and it would reopen if conditions allowed.

Samantha Freeth, who manages Boss Outdoor Sports snow and chain hire in Jindabyne, said the slower season was at least helping the town’s housing crisis, where the median price has more than doubled in the past five years and made it hard for employers to accommodate seasonal staff.

“Every house that’s been built or bought [over the last five years] has been turned into an Airbnb,” she said.

“[But this year] once June hit, the Airbnbs weren’t getting the bookings, so they started putting up their places for seasonal rentals. There have been more this year than I’ve seen in a long time.”

Freeth was hopeful the snow that started falling this week would allow the season to push through the September school holidays.

“I’ve never seen it not make it to the holidays and there’s a fair bit of promising snow coming,” she said.

Nelson, who travelled to Thredbo from Sydney for her holiday, said while the snow conditions were disappointing, her family had enjoyed their time together.

Loading

“Overall, it was a really lovely family holiday. We were having barbecues all together. The kids were all playing. My parents were there, helping with our kids.

“It was nice being able to show the kids how to ski, and to see them progress. They were getting really into it. And they don’t know what real snow is ... they were just like ‘Yay! Snow!’ It’s slushy and brown, but it’s still fun.”

Thredbo has been approached for comment.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.