Strong Winter Season Reported By Graubunden Lift Co’s
The winter of 2021/22 will go down in history for Bündner Bergbahnen with the rating "very pleasant". Transport turnover increased by 24 percent compared to the long-term average. This was the best winter season in the past 15 years.
The 2021/22 winter season in Graubünden ended yesterday with the cessation of ski operations on the Diavolezza. An above-average winter, which developed very positively despite initial uncertainties and increasing numbers of Covid cases. Compared to the long-term averages (5 and 10 years), transport turnover increased by 24 percent and the number of guests by 16 and 13 percent respectively. Compared to the challenging winter of 2020/21, the increase is even clearer; 31 percent in transport sales and 24 percent in first-time entries. Compared to winter 2018/19, the last pre-Corona winter, the increase in transport sales is 12 percent and in guests 4 percent.
This very positive development can be attributed to several reasons. For one thing, the weather conditions were almost ideal: lots of sunshine, natural snowfall at the right moments, cold temperatures for snowmaking and few days lost due to wind/storm or snowfall/avalanches. On the other hand, the mountain railway industry benefited from the positive experiences of last winter in dealing with the pandemic, the very loyal home market and the increasing number of guests returning from the European market.
Furthermore, the willingness to consume and the need for conviviality fueled the positive course of business. The latter was particularly noticeable in mountain gastronomy. It was noticeable in winter 2021/22 that the capacity utilization of the ski areas increased during the week. Bergbahnen Graubünden attributes this primarily to the change in guest behavior as a result of the pandemic.
In the 2021/22 winter season, however, there were also challenges to be overcome. At the beginning of winter, this was primarily to show the federal government and the cantons why the introduction of the obligation to have a certificate for the transport sector in the Swiss ski areas was not expedient and was difficult to implement.
A solution-oriented argumentation with corresponding suggestions and agreement within the mountain railway industry led to the continuation of the "Swiss way". Knowing the health and economic developments of the last few months, this was the right decision.
From January 2022, the mountain railway companies were challenged by the deployment planning of the employees. The contagious omicron variant, in combination with the quarantine and isolation regulations, left its mark. Only thanks to the willingness of many employees to get involved was it possible in many places to provide the range of services in the expected quality. However, it was not always possible to avoid isolated closures of catering establishments, sections or restrictions on the range of dishes. The guests showed understanding and did not let their snow sports fun be spoiled.
As is well known, after winter is before winter. Due to the positive experiences with the protection concepts on the mountain, the behavior of the guests and the cooperation with the authorities and the administration, Bergbahnen Graubünden is looking forward to winter 2022/23 with confidence. In the summer of 2022, the number of guests and transport turnover is likely to tend to stagnate or decline slightly compared to the last two years. This is not least because many guests long for trips abroad and to the sea again after two years.
