If you’re a Sydneysider whose idea of a good weekend is set in the snow, you’re in luck – Australia’s first indoor snow resort is popping up in Penrith. Taking over what is currently a horse paddock located within Penrith’s Riverlink Tourism Precinct, Winter Sports World will offer year-round access to snow sports and mountain fun, complete with mountainside cafés, a 300m advanced open ski run, a competition venue and a 170-room hotel.
The proposal to build Winter Sports World in Sydney’s Western Suburbs was granted State Significant Development Application (SSDA) approval by the NSW Department of Planning and Environment on January 11. The ambitious project is expected to attract more than one million visitors every year, generating 1,350 new ongoing tourism jobs and injecting more than $220 million a year into the local economy.
Local developer, Peter Magnisalis, explains how the indoor mountain has turned from a “pie-in-the-sky dream” to “a real project and on course to bring the snowfields to Sydney.”
"It has taken an enormous amount of work by a lot of talented and experienced people to get the project to this point,” Magnisalis says.
The first stage of construction is set to involve a giant basement water tank/snow machine – all this before construction of the mountain itself can begin. Technical challenges aside, the design has considered cultural and environmental factors – designed to be net-zero carbon ready, with consultation with Dharug nation representatives informing the design.
Though approval is a stratospheric step for the project, it doesn’t mean that we’ll be donning our salopettes in Sydney anytime soon – the project will go into a detailed design phase in early 2024, with a construction commencement date still TBC.
And though we might have some time to wait, it doesn’t mean we can’t get excited – with the projected designs for the $400 million project featuring an advanced open run, a competition venue and a winter wonderland hotel. Stoked? Us too.