While no natural snow had fallen to date, there were crowds galore enjoying the man-made efforts on offer.

The mountain resort opened a week early as temperatures dipped below freezing in the region .

John Dryden and his daughter Lily, 5, took a drive out to the snow play area near Canberra where they enjoyed a "perfect" winter's day.

"We had snowball fights and we went tobogganing," Mr Dryden said.

"It was fantastic, we're going back next weekend."

Mr Dryden said Lily was planning on learning to snowboard when the ski and board area opened at Corin.

"For the start of the season it was actually more snow that what we were expecting," he said.

"We think it will only get better from now on."

Corin Forest team member Chris Shackleton said the weekend was a warm-up for the rest of the snow season.

"There wasn't quite enough snow for the ski area to open but there was plenty for snow play," he said.

Mr Shackleton said it was the first time Corin Forest had opened early for the snow season, and they experienced huge demand on the first day.

"We probably had about 600 to 700 people," he said.

"We actually weren't sure what to expect, it was a bit of a soft opening to make sure everything was working the way it should."

He said there were plenty of smiling faces, and cold bodies warmed up next to the open fire, enjoying warm food and drink from the cafe.

"There were people making snow men, we had the toboggans and the alpine slide going, there were families roasting marshmallows around the fire in the lodge," Mr Shackleton said.

"We're hoping for a bit more of the same on Sunday."

Mr Shackleton said they weren't expecting natural snowfall overnight.

"We're hoping there will be some towards the end of the week, but it's one of those things, no one quite has the crystal ball to work it out."

Tickets need to be pre booked via the Corin Forest website at corin.com.au

Perisher's front valley and Victoria's Mount Buller also had the ski lifts turning a week ahead of the official season opening.