Are Ski Resorts Ready for a Warmer World?
Photo Credit: The Cache House in downtown Jackson Hole, Wyoming, is crafting a new ski experience for millennials. Cache House / Mikael Kennedy
Skift Take
Climate change is more than an existential threat to the outdoor ski economy. It will take a combination of greener operations and smarter business practices to ensure its viability for decades to come.
The ski industry has long epitomized luxury winter travel. Now it's grappling with how to make money if there's less snow.
As global warming cuts down the length of the traditional ski season, mountain hotel and resort operators need to more efficiently make their own snow. They also need to shift their business models to attract new customers — many of whom are millennials with an environmental bent — and get them coming year-round.
How bad is it getting? In the Alps, the ski season has shrunk in recent years from 150 days to just 120, with some fearing it could further fall below 100, according to France Inter.
The Rocky Mountains face the same problem. Resorts are investing heavily in snow-making machinery — and ones they hope will please green-conscious customers.
Vail Resorts, in the last two years has installed more than 400 new “low-ene
