We are absolutely planning for there to be a ski season – people need that break now more than ever
Chris Logan, managing director of the UK’s leading ski operator Crystal Ski Holidays, shares his thoughts on what will get ski holidays back on track this winter
I know it looks difficult at the moment if you look at major ski destinations across Europe, but we at Crystal Ski Holidays are absolutely planning for there to be a ski season – it is our biggest day-to-day focus.
As it stands now we’re left with Italy in terms of lack of quarantine, but from a realistic point of view we are three months out, and we all know that three months is a long time in our current situation.
The impact of yesterday’s announcement by Boris Johnson on ski holidays is probably going to be two fold. There will be a polarisation of people’s intention to book.
We acknowledge there is a percentage of the population who have decided unfortunately now is not the time to be booking a holiday, and will cut their losses until next year when things are a bit clearer. The latest announcement might edge that section of the population up – it has already grown in our research, from five per cent in May to 15 per cent in recent weeks.
However, on the flip side, and I count myself in this, there’s a core section of skiers who are saying “I really need to get away from all this.” The new rules introduced yesterday will cement that thinking – if they are still able to, people are going to want that break more than ever.
I understand how difficult and changing the situation is for the Government, but I would have hoped by this point in time that they would have reached a more coherent approach. Both for the travel industry and for the customers, so they absolutely know where they stand and so they don’t have this fear of constant changes.
When travel corridors have to close I understand why, they’re closing because the rates are constantly changing, but therefore if that’s the system then the system is always going to be volatile. The Government needs to push forward, we’re now six months down the line, with approaches that are going to be more effective.
One of the things we’re crying out for as an industry is stability. Airport testing is absolutely fundamental.
It appears to me that major airports are chomping at the bit and are ready to go on this. Statistics suggest 30 countries around the globe have got airport testing in place already, so why can’t us in the UK and the EU can’t get on board with that?
The trails are encouraging and if the technology being put in place comes off, and can offer really quick results, it’s not going to impact the customer journey in the airports – what’s another five minutes wait in an airport?
If it means somebody can go on a ski holiday at Christmas and the worst that happens is that they have to quarantine for five days on their return they can have a family Christmas holiday and still get the kids back to school at the start of January.
There’s not this hokiokio, in, out, shake it all about, approach for different destinations – airport testing is a constant, international approach.
The thought of getting up that first lift on holiday, standing at the top of a mountain about to do my first run of the season, compared to our day-to-day life at the moment, is incredible – we need to make everyone comfortable that everything is as safe as possible and then we can talk about the great experience itself and get back to what we love.
