Cornelia Primosch, Katharina Wagner and Isabella Purkart report in the ORF correspondent magazine from France, Albania and Dubai
Vienna (OTS) – Austria was a skiing nation for decades. Winter tourism in the mountains is still an important economic factor today. Nevertheless, a trend reversal can be observed:
On the one hand, high inflation means that fewer and fewer families can afford a skiing holiday; on the other hand, more and more people are no longer skiing for climate protection reasons. According to current surveys, almost 60 percent of adult Austrians are no longer skiers. Can this development also be observed in other countries? Is winter tourism as we know it about to end? Cornelia Primosch, Katharina Wagner and Isabella Purkart report in the ORF correspondent magazine “WeltWeit” on Friday, February 9, 2024, at 9:20 p.m. on ORF 2 from France, Albania and Dubai.
For “WeltWeit” correspondent Cornelia Primosch is in the family ski area La Sambuy in the French Alps, which, like 30 percent of all ski areas in France, has had to close in recent years. She accompanies Yann Olliver-Henry, who previously ran a ski rental business and now wants to reinvent himself and his business.
Correspondent Katharina Wagner shows that Albania, on the other hand, is catching up when it comes to tourism. The number of vacationers increases by 30 percent every year. The reasons: still untouched nature and low prices. Guests still come to the country mainly in summer. An Austrian architect now wants to make the mountains of Albania – gentle and environmentally friendly – the new hotspot for skiers.
Correspondent Isabella Purkart took a look around the extreme of extremes and strapped on her skis in a winter sports hall in Dubai. While there is sweltering heat outside, winter is simulated inside. The air has cooled down to sub-zero temperatures and there is artificial snow on the slopes. While some are looking forward to extraordinary skiing fun, others are skeptical about the climate footprint of the ski hall. Is this perhaps what the future of skiing will look like here too?