Difficult Winter Season For Titlis
The corona pandemic is leaving deep marks on Bergbahnen Engelberg-Trübsee-Titlis AG, which as an international tourist destination has been particularly hard hit by the crisis. From November 2020 to April 2021, 341,515 guests visited TITLIS. The absence of international guests, the officially decreed closure over the festive season and massive restrictions on catering led to a decrease in first-time admissions of almost 25% compared to the previous year. Income from rail operations fell from CHF 18.97 million to CHF 11.99 million, while that of restaurants and hotels halved from CHF 6.31 million to CHF 3.03 million. Operating income fell by around CHF 10 million to CHF 17.12 million At the same time, operating expenses were reduced by 19% to CHF 17.08 million thanks to cost-cutting measures.
The planning and implementation of the past winter season was extremely demanding for those responsible at Bergbahnen Engelberg-Trübsee-Titlis AG (BET), and the opening of the ski areas caused many discussions and uncertainties. Despite excellent snow conditions and a perfectly functioning protection concept, this led to a marked decline in visitors to the popular snow sports area on the Titlis. The officially decreed closure over the Christmas period, the days with the highest turnover of the whole year, contributed significantly to this. The first entries from the beginning of November to the end of December were 48% below the same period of the previous year. Despite periods of bad weather in January and early February, the decline in first-time entries was still slowed down until the end of the season - overall, the BET 341 ' 515 guests and thus a decrease of 25% compared to the previous year. Compared to the 5-year average, the decrease is 40%.
Official closure and bans lead to a collapse in earnings
In comparison to the previous year, operating income in catering has halved, falling from CHF 6.31 million to CHF 3.03 million. This decrease is also due to the prescribed Corona measures - after the area was closed over the Christmas holidays, only takeaways were allowed when it reopened at the end of December 2020, and until February 6, no alcohol was allowed to be sold and no seating was offered.
Low point reached with 97 group travelers
The complete collapse of the international travel market had a dramatic impact on group business - the most important guest segment at BET collapsed completely. Compared to the previous year, which was already severely affected by the corona pandemic, the first admissions for group travelers were reduced by 99.87%. Compared to 2018/2019, the season before Covid-19, the number of group travelers fell from 148,735 to just 97. But the international individual guests also stayed away - vacations already booked in the hotels of the BET and the entire destination were almost without exception canceled.
Positive EBITDA despite a loss
The BET initiated cost-saving measures very early on, and operating costs and investments are constantly being checked and reduced. Thanks to strict cost management and the short-time work allowance, operating expenses were reduced by 19% or CHF 3.95 million to CHF 17.08 million compared to the previous year - by more than a third compared to the 2018/19 season. Due to the difficult circumstances, investments were cut back sharply and amounted to CHF 2.3 million. The planning work for the future project “Titlis 3020” was temporarily suspended by the Board of Directors and will not resume until autumn at the earliest. It was important to the company to refrain from mass layoffs - but layoffs could not be avoided entirely. Despite a loss of CHF 7.28 million BET are solidly positioned in terms of liquidity and equity and can report a positive EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of CHF 41,000. Thanks to its good infrastructure, strong anchoring in international markets, solid financing and innovative strength, the BET look confidently into the future after the corona pandemic.
Awarded as “the world's leading ski area up to 80 km of slopes”
In contrast to the drastic declines in first-time entries and income, there were also positive developments in the first six months of the year of operation. The BET could look forward to a toboggan boom, where an increase of over 800% was recorded. Another bright spot were the loyal owners of annual and season tickets, who generated an above-average number of first-time entries. In addition, the Engelberg-Titlis ski area was recognized by Skiresort.de, the world's largest ski area test portal, as the test winner in 2021 in the category "Top class: the world's leading ski area with up to 80 km of slopes"!
Counter the crisis with attractive new offers
International travel restrictions, a lack of planning security and different vaccination strategies around the world continue to bother the BET. Since a rapid recovery in global tourism cannot be expected in the short term, BET will focus on guests from Switzerland and neighboring countries for the summer of 2021. The popular family offer on the Trübsee is being further strengthened with a new, wheelchair-accessible children's playground and “Schmugglis Farm” and further expanded with attractive event formats. In summer, the Titlis mountain station becomes a space camp, the starting point for exciting day and night experiences with guided hikes, starry nights and sundowner events.
