Quebec Ski Areas Report 6 million Visits!
The 2024 Quebec Ski Resorts Congress concluded with a preliminary report which counts some 6,001,793 ski days on the snowy slopes of Quebec during the 2023-2024 season. This result follows the investigation headed by Michel Archambault, PH D. consultant and Professor emeritus in tourism at ESG UQAM who conducted the 36th edition of the Economic and Financial Study of Quebec ski resorts for the account of the ASSQ.
“ With this result, ski resorts demonstrate their capacity for resilience and the population's interest in practicing winter sports even when Mother Nature complicates the lives of ski enthusiasts and resort operators, ” declared Yves Juneau, president. -general director of the Association of Quebec Ski Resorts (ASSQ). The 2023-2024 season will have offered its share of complications to ski resort owners everywhere on the planet. Faced with a weakened economy, the absence of natural snow during the key periods of the holiday season and school break as well as pressure tactics from staff in the education sector here in Quebec, the results revealed demonstrate a decline in only 10% of traffic compared to the previous season which, it should be remembered, presented the best results in the last 16 years for the Quebec ski industry.
It should be noted that the Quebec-Charlevoix region is the only one to record an increase in its visits for the 2023-2024 season, showing a gain of 1%. In the Laurentians, the region managed to exceed the threshold of 2 million visits despite an 8% drop in traffic. The Eastern Townships performed at the same level as the entire province, recording a 10% decrease in visits. According to Michel Archambault and his acolytes, 44% of overall ski resort traffic now occurs during the period of January and February compared to only 11.7% of visits for the holiday season and 28.6% of ridership for the March school holiday period.
A unifying congress
The annual gathering of Quebec ski resorts held this year in Montérégie was a remarkable success, bringing together more than 430 participants from the four corners of the province. This annual event, which has become a must for ski industry professionals, has once again proven its importance by addressing crucial issues in the sector.
Conferences and workshops: Shedding light on industry issues
Participants had the opportunity to take part in high-level conferences and workshops, focused on current and future challenges in the board sports industry. Among the themes discussed, the positioning of winter tourism in the context of climate change, the resilience of the ski sector, the opportunity to structure itself through sustainable development approaches were at the heart of the discussions. Experts shared their perspectives and strategies for adapting ski resort infrastructure and operations in the face of these environmental transformations.
Celebrating excellence in the ski industry
The Excellence Awards were distributed to industry players who have stood out at various levels in their environment. Quebec's highest distinction, the Réal-Boulanger Prize , was awarded to Mr. Réal Lapointe, an external advisor in human resources, health and safety who worked for more than 25 years in the service of ski resorts, which was at the heart of multiple training programs developed for the industry, workplace health and safety initiatives and support for ski resort operations across the province.
Finally, several resorts and ski industry leaders were honored in the following categories:
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Eco-responsible and sustainable initiatives: Bromont, mountain of experiences , Eastern Townships
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Development of new skiers (100,000 ski days and more): Les Sommets , Laurentides
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Development of new skiers (100,000 ski days and less): Mont Avalanche , Laurentides
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Succession manager: Valérie Collette , Mont Orford & Mathieu Brosseau , Les Sommets
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Community engagement: Parc du Mont St-Mathieu , Bas-Saint-Laurent
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Safety and prevention: Les Sommets , Laurentides
* See the photos by clicking here.
A well-deserved honor
The For the Love of Skiing tribute prize, awarded in memory of Louis Dufour, builder of the ski industry, was awarded to the Mont Adstock recreational tourism resort. The mountain, located in the heart of the Chaudières-Appalaches region, received this honor thanks to the results of the satisfaction survey of skiers and snowboarders which awarded it the highest score in Quebec.
About the Association of Quebec Ski Resorts and the industry
Bringing together 75 Quebec ski resorts, the ASSQ is a non-profit organization which represents and defends the interests of member ski resorts, which promotes the practice of snow sports and improves product quality as well as performance and the sustainability of the stations. Established in the ski industry for more than 40 years, its mandate to develop the next generation of skiers and snowboarders in Quebec is achieved mainly through the sale of financing products such as Ski Passe-Partout. Annually, more than 50,000 young people are introduced to board sports thanks to various ASSQ programs.
