After earlier reports from Australia indicated there were expectations that the proposed $300-million indoor Winter Sports World at Penrith near Sydney would be rejected by councillors as it weas far higher than buildings normally allowed in the location where it is proposed to be built, Penrith Council have given the project the initial green light.

First proposed in 2018 the centre’s spec includes a 300-metre long indoor ski slope, an Olympic-sized ice skating rink, climbing wall and a revolving restaurant with snow views as well as conference facilities and a 120-room hotel have also been included in the proposal. One of those eateries will be a revolving fine diner, too, and everything will have snow views. A snow play area is also part of the plan, alongside conference and function rooms.

Penrith City Council appear to have balanced the reported concerns around the centre’s location and decided in favour of the project as part of their vision to double visitors and tourism revenue in the area by 2025.

It is hoped construction will begin next year and the centre open in 2024.

Australia previously had the world’s first indoor snow centre, Mt Thebarton (above), which opened in Adelaide in 1987, and it was Australian indoor snowmaking that was also used for the next two centres to open in Belgium and Japan shortly afterwards. There was more recently a snow play facility at the Big Banana theme park on the Gold Coast (below), and several other indoor snow facilities have been proposed over the years, but there’s no indoor snow facilities in the country at present.