In part due to the recession skiing holiday sales went down this season.
This is even with cracking early season holiday sales and great snow conditions.
This reduction in numbers follows seven winters of sequential growth within the skiing industry, and the number of snowboarders decreased from 1 million in 2008/9 to less than a million last year.
Partly due to holiday makers giving their annual skiing vacation a miss, while other holiday makers who would normally take 2 snowboarding trips, merely took the one.
A fall of 15% was felt by the independent travel sector and some low priced airlines slashing the no. of flights to certain cities.
Moreover tour operators witnessed the numbers decreasing by a similar 15%.
All the same, the leading companies market share rested at just over a healthy 70% with ski chalets France remaining the most popular destination with about 37% of holidays.
Due to this several tour operators slashed the total number of chalets they rent this year.
Luxury catered chalets will surely witness a a drop in clients as a luxury catered chalet incurs more costs in terms of employees and rental if it is unsold.
It remains unlikely we will see the deals which were available this year.
Whilst prices are probably going to to go up, costs probably won’t rise much.
This winter doubtless presents serious challenges for an industry that is touched by by the consequences of the depression, exchange rate pressures, higher costs of fuel on top of high fixed running costs for snowboarding businesses.
This season vacationers will be progressively price sensitive, which shall lead to a turnabout of the last years which saw a development in independent travel.
Large ski tour operators might re-gain the customers lost to the independent ski sector if they utilise their purchasing power to get reduced prices and pass these savings onto clients as attractive deals.