Many voices are speaking about the crisis in the domestic winter sports industry, and it is indeed a crisis. This is because the lack of natural snow has led to the need for artificial snow, which is causing operating costs to rise every year. Meanwhile, as temperatures rise, the operating period is getting shorter, and sales are decreasing. Without government policy support, more ski resorts in the country will not be able to overcome their difficulties and will go out of business.
The news that domestic ski resorts are in crisis is no longer new. In 2009, there were 17 ski resorts in the country, but currently, four have closed or suspended operations. In addition, with climate change increasing operating costs and shortening the operating period, the number of visitors is also decreasing. It’s a lose-lose situation. The domestic ski resort industry peaked in the 2012 (2011–2012) season, with the number of slope users reaching 6.86 million. However, the number of visitors has decreased every year since, falling to 1.46 million in the 2020 (2019–2020) season when slope closures were implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fortunately, the number of visitors rebounded to 3.83 million in the 2022 (2021–2022) season, 4.21 million in the 2023 (2022–2023) season, and 4.43 million in the 2024 (2023–2024) season, recovering to pre-COVID-19 levels, but there is no reason to be optimistic. In a situation where there are many alternatives to winter sports, such as overseas travel and gaming, the perception that "skiing is dangerous and expensive" persists, leading people in their 20s and 30s to no longer visit ski resorts.
Im Chung-hee, the president of the Korea Ski Resort Management Association, which formerly represented Elysian Gangchon, noted in a recent interview that "climate change is leading to decreased sales, and ski resorts are developing various management strategies to survive." He added, "It is clear that domestic ski resorts are in crisis, but we must not forget that there are cases like Yongpyong Resort, where sales and operating profits are consistently increasing." Established in 1990 as a ski resort council, the Korea Ski Resort Management Association (Ski Resort Business Association Of Korea—SBAK) is a non-profit corporation under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, overseeing guidance, supervision, and promotion of the ski resort business. Below is an interview in a Q&A format with President Im.
Domestic ski resorts are in crisis. What about the situation at overseas ski resorts?
Due to abnormal high temperatures caused by climate change, ski resorts in the European Alps are also facing serious difficulties. The 'Alpes d'Huez,' the largest ski resort in the Northern Alps, suspended operations after 85 years due to cumulative losses from decreased snowfall and increased costs of artificial snow production due to global warming in 2024. The 'La Sambuy' resort near Mont Blanc in the Alps also decided to permanently close its ski resort due to lack of snow caused by climate change. This situation is a common problem faced by all ski resorts in the Alps region, including France, Switzerland, and Italy. There are cases where slopes are converted into mountain bike trails or where ski resort operations are ceased due to lack of snow. Similarly, three ski resorts in Korea (Yangji Pine, Vivaldi Park, and Bearstown) have closed in the past three years. Ski resorts globally are in crisis.
The number of visitors has been gradually recovering since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The number of visitors to ski resorts, which was 4.39 million in the 2019 (2018–2019) season, dropped to 1.46 million due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but in the 2024 season, it recovered to 4.43 million, returning to pre-COVID-19 levels. However, the current domestic ski industry is facing more concerns than expectations due to decreased snowfall caused by climate change, diversification of leisure activities, challenging economic conditions, and changes in lifestyle due to demographic shifts.
Ski resorts seem to be attempting to transform into complex leisure spaces during winter.
Ski resorts are evolving to keep pace with changes in the times. Currently, it is difficult for ski resorts to generate profits solely from skiing. Since they cannot earn profit from skiing, ski resorts have been changing their structure into complex leisure spaces for a long time. They create snow sledding areas that the whole family can enjoy, or generate revenue through water parks and golf courses during the off-season.
While discussing the "crisis of ski resorts," MONA YONGPYONG has been seeing annual increases in sales and operating profits.
The seemingly successful performance of MONA YONGPYONG is primarily due to its well-executed sales of premium condos. Personally, I believe it is the result of the efforts made by Shin Dal-soon, the representative of MONA YONGPYONG, who continuously contemplates customer-centered changes around the clock. They are constantly pondering how to develop services that customers want and how to introduce products linked to the surrounding areas of the ski resort. Examples such as the Baekdamsan cable car and hydrangea tea are representative success stories. Other ski resorts in Korea should take a lesson from MONA YONGPYONG's success stories. They need to develop products that can generate revenue during the off-season and actively promote products connected to the surrounding areas to visitors. While premium strategies are important, developing customer-centered products is even more crucial. Jisan Forest Resort is also doing well. The representative Go Ho-rim is fiercely contemplating how to leverage its proximity to Seoul, which is an advantage, and there are indeed parts that are improving.
There has been a noticeable increase in foreign tourists visiting ski resorts.
This is the result of ski resorts focusing on attracting foreign tourists to replace the dwindling domestic visitors. They are particularly targeting Southeast Asian tourists, who usually do not have access to snow. Ski resorts are developing and selling products specifically for foreign tourists. Examples include MONA YONGPYONG's "Fun Ski," High1 Resort's "Go Go Ski," and Vivaldi Park's "Viva Ski." Additionally, they are hiring foreign instructors directly and providing multilingual services in English, Chinese, and Japanese. The Korea Ski Resort Management Association is collaborating with the Korea Tourism Organization to offer shuttle services that move directly from the airport to ski resorts, supporting these efforts. Furthermore, they are participating in international tourism fairs with local governments like Gangwon Province, making various efforts such as product development with foreign travel agencies. They are creating packages that combine airfare and ski resort admission.
There is a perception that ski resorts have not changed from the past. Are there any examples of applied information and communication technology?
Of course, there are. Ski resorts mainly depend on having good snow conditions. However, since ski resorts operate until the early morning, managing snow during those hours is not easy. Therefore, nowadays, snow management is done automatically by unmanned grooming machines equipped with artificial intelligence (AI). If snow is spread out in the early morning, the AI-assisted grooming machine can operate automatically, reducing labor costs. There are IT technologies that visitors can directly experience, such as palm vein authentication for season pass verification and smart lift systems. Visitors can check real-time lift boarding information through an app. Additionally, there are also virtual reality (VR) based ski education programs for beginners.
Ski resorts are united in calling for government policy support. What kind of support are they referring to?
Ski resorts, excluding Gonjiam, Jisan Forest, and Vivaldi Park, have been renting national forest land for use. However, the rent has been rising steeply every year due to increasing publicly announced land values. In the case of Elysian Gangchon, where I was a representative, this amounted to an increase of nearly 100% over the last 4-5 years. Consequently, the expenses borne by individual ski resorts have increased by as little as 500 million won to nearly 2 billion won. This poses a significant burden on the ski resorts.
There is also a peak electricity usage system. To create snow, ski resorts inevitably use a large amount of electricity concentrated in early December when they open. However, Korea Electric Power Corporation calculates the highest electricity charges during July, August, September, December, January, and February as the base fee for the following year, so ski resorts must pay a basic fee monthly for the electricity consumed in December even after they close. This means they have to pay basic charges for the electricity used in December even in April and May when the ski resort is closed. For this reason, individual ski resorts are adding payments of 500 million to 1 billion won for electricity every year. Government policy support is desperately needed.