In some resorts in the Alps, snow plows worked all night to welcome the first skiers on Saturday.
Several of these stations that open the first slopes on Saturday are a “warm-up tour.” As every year, the Savoyards Tignes and Val Thorens, partly located at more than 2,000 meters, are the first to be drawn. The second, affected by a cable car accident that left eight people injured, two of them seriously on Tuesday, indicated that it will remain open.
On the contrary, the Grands Montets station (Haute Savoie), which was also scheduled to open on Saturday, indicated that it would postpone its opening by a week. Most other areas will stagger their opening between now and Christmas depending on weather and snow conditions. The alpine massifs benefited this week from the heavy and early snowfalls caused by the passage of the Caetano storm on Thursday. But this weekend should be followed by a “powerful storm,” announced Météo-France.
Even open, the stations still will not operate at full capacity. “The challenge is above all to launch the season, form the teams, organize the tests. The activity really begins in the following weeks (…) There are more weeks of heating tower,” Frédéric Porte, explains to AFP, general director of Tignes Développement, the company that manages the station’s activity.
Customer reports
The same is echoed by the National Association of Mayors of Mountain Resorts (ANMSM), whose observatory foresees a 5% increase in the occupancy rate in December 2024 compared to December 2023. The truth is that this positive trend covers “differences (…) depending on the massifs and seasons,” recognizes the ANMSM.
In the Pyrenees, the first season openings scheduled for the end of November are uncertain due to the lack of snow. But the president of the Pyrenees section of Domaines Skiables de France (DSF), Laurent García, points out that “most of the season” takes place after Christmas.
Last year, many mid-mountain resorts faced difficulties during the winter holidays due to a lack of snow and too mild temperatures, which made snow production impossible. In contrast, high-altitude alpine resorts benefited from excess snowfall and a clear transfer of customers. The gap between these stations and those located lower or further south is expected to increase due to global warming, scientists estimate.
“Fatalistic customer”
At the beginning of the season, Fabrice Mielzarek, director of the Villard-de-Lans (Isère) Tourist Office, declared himself “not at all” concerned about the influx.
“A lot of people shoot on the same runways, so when we open 60 to 80% of the area, I want to say that’s enough,” he emphasizes.
The resort, located in the Vercors massif, between 1,500 and 2,000 meters above sea level, has also long had a wide “offer” of non-skiing activities adapted to its regional and family clientele in case of lack of snow, he explains.
“Some low and medium altitude resorts are facing the effects of global warming and the lack of snow with full force. They are rapidly changing their model and have to make difficult decisions,” the Minister Delegate responsible for Tourism said this week on France 3. . Ferrari Marine Economy.
Two areas, Notre-Dame-du-Pré (Savoie) and Seyne-les-Alpes (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence) announced their bankruptcy in autumn, while the isère resort of l’Alpe du Grand Serre, benefited from a one-year moratorium.
Source: BFM TV
