Industry News
France recorded 54.8 million skier visits during the 2024–25 winter season, a 5.5% increase from the previous year and its strongest result in more than a decade, according to new figures released by Domaines Skiables de France, the French national ski areas association. The impressive growth cements France’s position as the world’s second-largest ski market in terms of annual skier visits, behind the United States with 61.5 million in the 2024-25 season and ahead of Austria with an estimated 52.6 million skier visits.
The season’s momentum was fueled by strong snow conditions early on and a steady influx of international visitors, who account for 35% of skier days in France. While competitor Austria has an even higher share, with 66% international skier visits, France captures a large part of the British skier market, with around 12% of skier visits deriving from across the British Channel. Austria’s largest incoming market by contrast is from neighboring Germany. Visitors from the Benelux states are divided more equally between Austria and France. By contrast, U.S. resorts rely heavily on domestic traffic, with international skiers representing a small fraction of only around 3% of annual skier visits.
The French season began with favorable snow at all elevations, followed by weeks of clear weather that boosted attendance during the lucrative holiday period. Every major mountain range reported increases, particularly regions that struggled with sparse snow a year earlier. By January, skier visits were up 3% from the previous winter and 7% higher than the average of the three preceding seasons. The surge carried into the February holiday peak, when visits rose another 6% year over year. Even after a volatile March the cumulative increase remained significant. By early April, national skier days were still 4% higher than both last season and the recent three-year average. An unexpected boon came at the tail end of the season, as shifts in British and Flemish school holidays pushed more international travelers into April, extending business well past the traditional closing dates. Between April 4 and May 8, many resorts posted stronger numbers than in previous years.
The final tally—54.8 million skier days—illustrates a European market that is regaining stability. French operators credit both improved snow cover and renewed enthusiasm among foreign visitors for the growth. The French ski industry had been stagnating in the last few years, with skier visits hovering around the 50-million mark for most of the last decade—except for the Covid years when French resorts were essentially closed. France’s skier visits peaked in 2012-13 when French resorts recorded 57.9 million visits. Then followed a period of declining skier visits with slight improvements again in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 season. After Covid, France rebounded and recorded 53.9 million skier visits in the 2021-22 season, however a poor ski season in 2022-23 saw numbers drop -5.5% for that season. Last year, skier visits increased again to 51.9 million and this year’s continuation of the trend was a welcome break-out from the downtrend.
France has approximately 282 ski resorts and the 2024-25 season was a good year for most mountain ranges. While all areas saw more snow than lasst season, which had been marked by a lack of snow at medium altitudes, the Massif Central, the Vosges, and the Jura Mountains experienced the strongest growth. Small resorts accounted for about 7% of skier visits, while medium-sized resorts attributed another 12%. The remaining 81% came from big resorts, with 41% coming from just 15 resorts, including such names as Avoriaz, Chamonix, Courchevel-Méribel, Le Grand Massif, La Plagne, Alpe d’Huez, Les Arcs, Les Deux-Alpes, Serre-Chevallier, Tignes-Val d’Isère, and Val Thorens.
