Crystal Ski, the UK’s largest Ski operator, today released its annual Ski Industry Report in London – the definitive guide to the state of the UK ski industry over the past 12 months, as well as future trends.

Despite such superb snowfalls this past season, there has been a surprising shortfall of 1.8% in the number of British people skiing compared with the previous season.  Last winter, just 894,700 British people went on a skiing holiday – a reduction in skiers by 16,200 compared with the previous season (and considerably less than the 1.2 million skiers and boarders reported at the peak during the 2007/2008 season).   

The schools and student market has been hardest hit with a fall of 4.1%, as families struggle.  The independent travel sector also experienced a cut in volume by 1.2% for the fourth consecutive year, mainly as a result of the continuing increase in flight and ski carriage costs.  

However, according to the Crystal Ski Industry Report 2012, tour operators have remained resilient and have increased their share of the ski market for the third consecutive year.  The top eight British ski operators’ market share increased by 1% to 85% of the total tour operator market.  

Packages including lift passes, equipment and catering have proven especially popular with consumers seeking good value and financial certainty.  

Crystal Ski strengthened its market leadership by 1% to 33%, due to the popularity of its value-for-money Ski Plus packages.  TUI Ski nonetheless remains the clear market leader with a 40% share of the market, despite small booking deficits at Thomson Ski and First Choice.   

Simon Cross, Managing Director Crystal Ski, commented: “The ski market has been resilient despite challenging market conditions. Tour operators regained a marginal share of the overall market due to their ability to produce exceptionally good value ski holiday packages.

“In 2011, an increasing number of skiers turned to online channels to research and book their holiday. We expect this trend to continue into the next season and beyond.”

If you would like to see a copy of the Crystal Ski Industry Report, please email us at admin@familyskinews.com.   Otherwise, click back tomorrow for more detailed analysis of the report here.

 

The Crystal Ski Industry Report gathers all the information available on the UK winter sports industry in one unified report, devised from tour operators’ own statistics, Snowsport GB data, CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) published statistics, tourist office figures and travel agency feedback.