The ski market is set for a recovery this winter despite the number of Brits travelling overseas dropping below the one million mark last season, Crystal Ski has predicted.
Speaking at the launch of its annual Industry Report today, Crystal managing director Mathew Prior said the UK ski market shrank by 11% across all sectors last season, falling to 956,300.
This followed a 13.3% fall in the 2008/09 season to 1.06 million.
However, despite the reduction in numbers for a second year in a row, Prior said he was confident the sector had turned a corner.
“The ski industry has coped well with the challenges posed by the reduction in numbers during winter 2009/10, with most organisations correctly anticipating the fall and scaling down capacity,” he said.
“We predict that 2010/11 will be a turning pointing and firmly believe that growth will return to the market.
“However, conditions will remain tough and only those able to keep inspiring customers with new offers, create good value and compelling holidays, will see the benefit.”
Tour operators saw a 10% reduction in sales, with 534,600 skiers booking a break last season, while the independent travel market fell by 13% to 285,000 skiers as some no-frills carriers reduced capacities to winter destinations.
Prior said the independent market also suffered a greater drop than the packaged ski sector as operators used their buying power to secure better pricing.
The schools market also suffered a fall in bookings for the first time since 1999/2000, with a 9% drop, largely due to the economic climate.
The seven largest operators retained the lion’s share of the market with an 84% market share.
And France remained the most popular ski destination, despite a 4% drop in visiting Brits.