International Snow & Mountain Tourism Report 2024 Published
16th April 2024
Last modified on May 7th, 2024
It lists and analyses data from nearly 2,000 ski resorts in 68 countries around the world. Facts, figures, investments, visits, trends, snowfall and more.
The International Snow and Mountain Tourism Report 2024 has been unveiled at the Mountain Planet trade show in Grenoble, France.
The report is compiled each year by the Swiss consultant, Laurent Vanat.
It has been published every year for the past 16 years in partnership with Mountain Planet.
It examines the ski, snow & mountain industry and its evolution.
It highlights the current situation, trends and potential of the ski & mountain market.
Laurent Vanat at Mountain Planet
The latest report on the 2022/23 season reported that the ski industry is healthy and reached attendance levels that matched the average of last two decades.
China was the only market where attendance still suffered from Covid-19 impacts.
In all other countries the pandemic was part of the past with skiers back on the slopes.
The winter of 2022/23 recorded more than 370 million skier visits across the globe.
The report said that despite what it called ‘the pre-formatted anti-ski ideology’ spread by mainstream media, politicians and part of the general public, skiing is not yet finished.
Many mountain destinations around the world seemed happy to continue welcoming their winter guests and their visits provided a substantial input to the local economy.
“Although everybody in the industry is aware about the climate issues and working hard to consolidate a 4-season logic when it makes sense, the path is long and not easy,” said Vanat.
“But there is no way to kill skiing while it is still perfectly alive and will remain so for long in most of the resorts that make most of the ski business.”
The dynamism of the skiing industry was demonstrated during the 2022/23 season by:
- Records of attendance in several major mature markets.
- Visitation derived from season passes on the rise in various countries.
- Development of innovative ticketing solutions, with continuous spread of dynamic pricing and alternative pricing models, such as pay per use.
- Move from the traditional guest service focused on selling lift tickets towards providing an experience on the mountain.
- Investments both to consolidate the ski business and to diversify activities.
- Increase of 4-season activity, improving economic sustainability of lift operators.
St Anton, the Tirol. Image © PlanetSKI
The report said that it is no surprise to the industry that season’s weather and snow conditions are a major driver of visits.
Some countries experienced favourable conditions, while others had to face a more reluctant Mother Nature.
Compared to pre-Covid 5-year average, the 2022/23 ski season features highs and downs depending on the countries.
Italy, Canada and the USA had their best season on record, while Germany had its worse.
Data from the 16th issue of the International Report on Snow & Mountain Tourism refutes the pessimistic views of many media and institutions on the development prospects of the skiing market.
Schlick 2000, Austria. Image © PlanetSKI
There are currently 68 countries in the world that offer outdoor ski areas with lifts & infrastructure.
Even if snowfields are much more numerous, about 2,000 ski resorts have been identified worldwide.
Besides the major ski destinations in terms of skier visits, there are a number of other, smaller destinations, where skiing has been an industry for a long time or is currently developing.
The most obvious emerging destinations are Eastern Europe and China.
There are a number of other small players spread out across the globe: Cyprus, Greece, India, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Lesotho, Morocco, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey and many more.
Skiing in Turkey. Image © PlanetSKI
PlanetSKI was skiing in Turkey last winter – PlanetSKI is skiing and sightseeing in Turkey
“Although climate change, among others, has indeed caused great uncertainty for the skiing industry, data from most countries show that most ski resorts are developing healthily and sustainably steady with more and more skiers willing to return to the ski resorts,” the report concluded.
Past International Snow & Mountain Tourism Reports:
- 2021/22: Skier numbers back to normal after covid
- 2020/21: International reports on snow & mountain tourism published
- 2019/2020: The worst ski season of the millenium
Laurent Vanat is a highly respected international consultant with a master’s degree in commercial and industrial sciences from the University of Geneva.
A specialist in strategy, business reviews, management, organisational analysis and market research – Laurent has become an expert in Alpine tourism.
Laurent Vanat. Image © PlanetSKI
He became involved in the industry in the early 2000s with business planning and economic surveys.
From 2009 on, he has published annually the International Report on Snow and Mountain Tourism.
Now widely considered the benchmark data publication for snowsports industry, his annual report has already been presented at numerous international meetings around the world, including OITAF, WTO, FIS, Mountain Planet, ALPITEC/ISPO, IMTA conferences and congresses.
