Mountain Holidays: Towards Year-round Tourism
While French ski resorts are already experiencing the consequences of climate change, mountain tourism stakeholders must rethink their economic model. In the coming years, mountain vacations will no longer necessarily be synonymous with skiing and winter sports. We invite you to discover how the French mountain ranges can adapt and evolve towards four-season tourism.
The climate is changing, so is the mountain
Mountain tourism developed during the 20th century with the allure of white gold and the development of ski resorts. But today, climate change is forcing mountain tourism stakeholders to rethink their economic model and to imagine other activities besides winter sports for the mountain vacations of tomorrow.
According to the Court of Auditors, all ski resorts will be more or less affected by global warming by 2050. This means that, in just twenty-five years, ski resorts as we know them today may no longer be able to operate due to insufficient snowfall.
It is therefore urgent for all destinations that thrive on white gold to develop year-round tourism that is not solely dependent on weather and snowfall.
Mountains are becoming climate refuges
Climate change, even if it forces mountain tourism to reinvent itself, does not mean that the mountain ranges of France will be deserted by tourists, quite the contrary!
If temperatures continue to rise in the coming years and decades, it is easy to imagine that the mountains will become a haven of coolness favored by vacationers. Already during the summer of 2023, the National Association of Mountain Resort Mayors observed an increase in summer occupancy rates of nearly 50%.
In summer, as soon as the thermometer exceeds 30°C or even 40°C in cities and on the Mediterranean coast, high-altitude resorts and villages serve as "climate refuges." But of course, for these destinations, it is more profitable to develop four-season tourism rather than welcoming visitors only in summer.
A year-round tourist offer helps to avoid overtourism during winter and summer periods and improves the profitability of accommodations and facilities.
The range of leisure activities in the mountains is being reinvented.
A change is already noticeable in French winter sports resorts to prepare for the future and meet the expectations of non-skiing tourists: the diversification of leisure activities, both in winter and outside the ski season.
According to industry professionals, non-skiing activities saw a 30% increase in 2023. At the same time, the demand for eco-friendly stays is also on the rise.
Non-skiing leisure activities and green tourism therefore represent two serious avenues to explore to ensure the future of tourism in our mountain ranges. Less seasonal than winter sports, green mountain leisure activities and eco-friendly stays can be offered year-round.
The new mountain tourism still needs to find its way
Four-season tourism in the mountains increasingly appears to be a necessity to adapt to the consequences of climate change.
However, this new mountain tourism still needs to find its way and become profitable. Currently, activities like mountain biking or hiking are much less lucrative than skiing. For example, renting a bike is far from competing with the price of a ski pass.
In practice, the transition to a less seasonal and more sustainable tourist offer is not so easy to implement:
• On one hand, skiing still represents more than 80% of the mountain revenue.
• On the other hand, developing new leisure infrastructures generally requires large investments with uncertain returns.
Diversifying leisure activities in resorts also carries the risk of transforming mountain ranges into giant amusement parks, with a significant impact on the environment and landscapes.
To keep their destinations attractive, local stakeholders must offer mountain vacations suited to each period of the year, while highlighting the local natural, cultural, and gastronomic heritage and reducing the ecological footprint of accommodations and tourist services. It is a significant challenge, but it is crucial for the sustainability of their activities in the coming years.
