Dream start to the winter season for Swiss mountain railroads
Published: Friday, Dec 15th 2023, 10:11
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After a super summer, the Swiss mountain railroads have had a dream start to the winter season. Thanks to the glorious weather and lots of snow, the ski resorts were overrun. There were more people on the slopes than ever before.
"The start was very good," said Berno Stoffel, Director of the Swiss Cableways Association, in an interview with the news agency AWP. The recent snowfall down to the lowlands had helped a lot. This is because it has also made city dwellers want to go skiing.
This is exemplified by the Andermatt-Sedrun ski area: at the opening of the season a week ago, twice as many people were on the slopes as usual on a peak day, attracted by the glorious winter weather, said marketing manager Pascal Schär.
There is optimism across the board in the Swiss winter tourism industry, said Stoffel, Director of the Swiss Cable Car Association: bookings and advance sales are good. "We had a strong surge in demand from mid-October." At that time, the weather changed and demand picked up from then on.
Further increase in demand expected
According to a trend survey in the industry, the marketing organization Switzerland Tourism is also expecting strong public holidays. Providers of accommodation in the mountains expect growth of 3.5 percent for Christmas and New Year compared to the previous year.
"It is striking that the level of bookings for the public holidays in the mountains is currently 'only' 1 percent above the previous year. This shows that - although already very well booked - many accommodation providers in the mountains are still counting on last-minute bookings for the holidays," says Switzerland Tourism.
The snow and weather conditions at Christmas last year were not ideal. That's why we're hoping for a plus this year," says Josianne Karlen from the Valais tourism organization Heidadorf Visperterminen.
Winter atmosphere all the way to the lowlands
After last winter's lack of snow and the white ribbons of pistes on the surrounding green mountain slopes made headlines, this winter looks completely different: Even at the start of the season, a winter wonderland atmosphere prevailed in glorious sunshine.
Although a lot of snow has fallen, artificial snow is still needed this winter. Despite the natural snow, a technical snow base is absolutely necessary, said Daniel Meyer, Head of Snowmaking at Andermatt-Sedrun Sport AG. Because the slopes have to last until April.
"An unsnowed slope made of pure natural snow doesn't last even in winter. Because it is softer from the ground up," said Meyer. However, guests have different expectations than 10 years ago. Guests also want to have as few bumps as possible at lunchtime, as is the case with a natural snow slope, said Meyer.
Today's skis need a more compact base
Today's carving skis also need a different base than pure natural snow, said Stoffel, director of the cable car association. "There are many more forces at work: cornering pressure and centrifugal forces are much higher and need to be absorbed." This requires appropriate snow consistency.
Natural snow traps much more air, explained Meyer. Half a meter of natural snow produces around 10 centimetres of surface on the slope. Less compact snow would be removed from the slope by the skiers within a short time and pushed towards the valley.
"A busy slope is broken in the evening. The snow is down and has to be pushed up again," said Meyer. Technical snow is also more resistant to higher temperatures or rain. Natural snow is quickly gone when it starts to rain.
Increased demands
Snow reliability and slope quality are high on the list of criteria for guests, said Stoffel, Director of the Mountain Railway Association: "People want perfectly groomed slopes from the first to the last day."
15 or 20 years ago, there were still stones on the slope from time to time on the first day and the slope was no longer in such good shape on the last day. "People accepted that back then. Today, guests no longer want that," said Stoffel. In the past, black slopes were only groomed every two to three days, said Meyer. "Today, you can no longer afford to do that."
Snow cannons are the insurance policy for ski resorts," said Patrizio Laudonia, the Swiss head of Technoalpin, the world's largest manufacturer of snowmaking systems from South Tyrol. With technical snow, the slopes can be prepared from late fall in order to be ready for the start of the season and for the important Christmas business. Because "you never know how much natural snow will come," said Laudonia.
If the important Christmas business falls through due to a lack of snow, the season is already over, said Martin Hofer, Sales Manager of Technoalpin Switzerland. Because that's when the industry makes over a quarter of its turnover.
Snowmaking not quite cheap
According to the cable car association, the season can also be extended with technical snowmaking. Just over half of the 22,500 hectares of slopes in Switzerland can be covered with snow.
However, technical snowmaking is not cheap. In a large ski resort, where the mountain railroads generate 25 million francs in revenue every year, an average day of operation costs 250,000 francs.
According to the cable car association, CHF 43,000 of this is for snowmaking, which is roughly the same price as slope grooming. These are therefore the second and third most expensive individual items after the operation of the lifts (CHF 120,000).
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