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2023-2024 China Ski Industry White Paper

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2024-11-14

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Recently, the "2023-2024 China Ski Industry White Paper" edited by Wu Bin, director of the Ice and Snow Entertainment Professional Committee of the China Amusement Machine and Amusement Park Association and CEO of Beijing Xuebang Xueye, was released. The white paper statistically analyzes data such as the current national ski resort construction situation and the main characteristics of the ski market; the white paper shows that China has become the world's largest indoor ski market. The following is the full text of the white paper:

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Chief Editor | Yang Ming

Editor | Liu Kaiye

Author | Wu Bin

Chapter 1 Ski Resorts and Ski Visits

Ski resorts and skiers are the two poles of the entire ski industry, and all the business and activities of the ski industry revolve around these two poles. Therefore, the number of ski resorts and the number of skier visits constitute the two most core indicators of the ski industry. This report will focus on outdoor and indoor ski resorts, excluding simulated ski venues. In addition, this report uses the "ski season fiscal year" as the cycle for the annual report, from May 1st of each year to April 30th of the following year. Considering both timely information statistics and comparability, the report has made minor adjustments to the statistical period of individual ski resorts. (For example, some individual outdoor ski resorts that are still operating in May 2024 will have their operating data included in this report period.)

I. Number of Ski Resorts, Ski Visits, and Number of Skiers

In the 2023-2024 ski season fiscal year, 30 ski resorts were newly built and put into operation domestically, including 15 indoor ski resorts and 15 outdoor ski resorts. 11 ski resorts were not open to the public due to the epidemic or other reasons, and 3 ski resorts reopened. The total number of ski resorts actually operating was 719, an increase of 22 year-on-year. As of April 30, 2024, there were 176 ski resorts with aerial ropeways and in operation nationwide, an increase of 10 year-on-year.

From May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024, the number of skier visits to domestic ski resorts was 23.08 million, a year-on-year increase of 16.3% compared to 19.83 million last year. The trend of the number of ski resorts and skier visits is shown in Figure 1-1.

According to the ski population model calculation in the white paper, during the 2023-2024 ski season fiscal year, the number of people participating in skiing was 12.8 million, an increase of 14.49% compared to 11.18 million last year. 2023-2024 ski season year, the average number of ski visits per skier at domestic ski resorts increased from 1.77 last year to 1.80.

Figure 1-1: Statistics of the Number of Ski Resorts and Ski Visits in China (by Ski Season Fiscal Year 5.1-4.30)

Note: In this figure, "Number of Ski Resorts" and "Number of Ski Visits" include outdoor and indoor ski resorts, but do not include dry snow, simulated ski equipment, etc.

II. Distribution of Ski Resorts and Ski Visits

In the past three years, the "National Sports Venue Statistical Survey Data" continuously released by the General Administration of Sport of China shows that as of December 31, 2021, the number of ski resorts nationwide was 811; as of December 31, 2022, the number of ski resorts nationwide was 876; and as of December 31, 2023, the number of ski resorts nationwide was 935. At the same time, sports departments in various provinces have also successively announced detailed data on sports venues in their respective provinces. This official data has been very helpful to the white paper research. Table 1-1 statistically details the distribution of 719 ski resorts in operation by province, and compares it with official data from sports departments, so that readers can fully understand the overall distribution of ski resorts.

Table 1-1: Distribution of Ski Resorts in China (by Province)

Note: After comparison, it was found that the statistics of ski resorts in some provinces included some "indoor ski simulators" (such as Guangdong and Shanghai) or snow play parks (such as Hainan).

In the 2023-2024 ski season fiscal year, the top ten (TOP 10) provinces in terms of skier visits are shown in Table 1-2.

Table 1-2: TOP 10 Provinces Ranked by Ski Visits (Unit: 10,000 visits)

From the table above, we can see that compared with last year, Hubei has been added to the top ten provinces in terms of skier visits. Jilin rose from second place to first place, Hebei fell from first place to second place, Xinjiang rose from fourth place to third place, Beijing fell from third place to fourth place, and Heilongjiang rose from seventh place to fifth place.

In terms of year-on-year growth rate of skier visits, among the top ten provinces, Heilongjiang, Xinjiang, and Jilin had growth rates of 88.65%, 56.48%, and 51.24%, respectively, ranking among the top three in terms of growth rate.

Chapter 2 Classification Statistics of Ski Resorts

In order to better understand the characteristics of domestic ski resorts, this report classifies and statistically analyzes ski resorts from six different dimensions: indoor and outdoor, core target customer groups, vertical drop, ski area, number of aerial cable cars, and number of skier visits.

I. Classification Statistics by Indoor and Outdoor

In 2023-2024, 15 new indoor ski resorts were added, and 5 indoor ski resorts closed down. The number of indoor ski resorts in operation in China reached 60, an increase of 20% year-on-year, accounting for 8.34% of the total 719 operating ski resorts. The 60 indoor ski resorts generated a total of 4.88 million skier visits, a year-on-year increase of 33.70% compared to 3.65 million skier visits last year, accounting for 21.14% of the total 23.08 million skier visits.

The indoor ski resort industry has fully exploded in China. Figure 2-1 shows the number of indoor ski resorts put into operation each year since 2013.

Figure 2-1: Statistics of the Number of Indoor Ski Resorts Put into Operation in China (Units)

The statistics of the number of skier visits to indoor ski resorts in operation in China are shown in Figure 2-2.

Figure 2-2: Statistics of the Number and Skier Visits of Indoor Ski Resorts in China

The year-on-year growth data of the number of indoor ski resorts and skier visits are shown in Table 2-1.

Table 2-1: Statistics of the Number and Skier Visits of Indoor Ski Resorts

Table 2-2 and Table 2-3 show the statistics of indoor ski resorts in operation, under construction, planned, and closed down in China by province.

Table 2-2: Distribution of 60 Indoor Ski Resorts in Operation in China in 2023-2024 (by Province)

Table 2-3: Statistics of Some Indoor Ski Resorts Under Construction, Planned, and Closed Down in China (by Province)

In terms of the development of indoor ski resorts globally, China has far surpassed other countries, becoming the undisputed world leader. As shown in Table 2-4, of the top ten indoor ski resorts worldwide ranked by snow area size, China occupies six spots. Furthermore, the top four largest indoor ski resorts by snow area are all located in China.

Table 2-4: Global Indoor Ski Resort Snow Area Ranking (TOP 10)

II. Statistical Classification by Core Target Customer Group of Ski Resorts

Based on their core target customer groups, domestic ski resorts are divided into three categories: tourism experience type, suburban learning type, and destination resort type. In the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, a total of 29 ski resorts met the characteristics of the destination resort type, generating 6.6 million skier visits, accounting for 28.61% of the total skier visits, with a year-on-year increase of 52.87%. Detailed statistics on ski resorts classified by core target customer group can be found in Table 2-5.

Table 2-5: Statistical Data of Ski Resorts Classified by Core Target Customer Group

III. Statistical Classification by Vertical Drop

The vertical drop of a ski resort is an important indicator of the scale of mountain resources where the resort is located. In the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, the number of ski resorts with a vertical drop exceeding 300 meters remained unchanged compared to the previous year, at 33, but the number of skier visits increased by 51.07% year-on-year, reaching 6.36 million. Statistical data on ski resorts classified by vertical drop is shown in Table 2-6.

Table 2-6: Statistical Data of Ski Resorts Classified by Vertical Drop

IV. Statistical Classification by Ski Run Area

Ski run area is another important dimension for measuring the size of a ski resort. The total ski run area of all operating ski resorts in China is more than 6,000 hectares, which is not significantly different from the previous year.

As can be seen from the classification statistics in Table 2-7, ski resorts with a ski run area exceeding 100 hectares account for only 1.95% of all ski resorts, but they generate 17.09% of the total skier visits, with a year-on-year increase of over 50%.

Table 2-7: Classification Statistics of the Number and Proportion of Skier Visits for Ski Resorts with Different Ski Run Areas

V. Statistical Classification by the Number of Aerial Lifts

The presence of aerial lifts is the most intuitive distinguishing standard for domestic ski resorts. As of April 30, 2024, there were 176 ski resorts in China with aerial lifts, an increase of 10 compared to the previous year. Among them, there were a total of 39 ski resorts with detachable lifts, an increase of 5 compared to the previous year. Table 2-8 shows the relevant information on ski resorts with aerial lifts.

Table 2-8: Statistics on Ski Resorts with Aerial Lifts and Skier Visits

The data in the table shows that ski resorts with aerial lifts account for 24.48% of the total, but their skier visits account for 60.35%. The 16 ski resorts with 4 or more aerial lifts account for only 2.23% of the total, but their skier visits account for over 20%.

Detachable lifts are gaining further market recognition. The latest phenomenon is that some newly built indoor ski resorts are also choosing to invest in detachable lifts. In the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, there were 39 ski resorts with detachable lifts, generating a total of 7.47 million skier visits, accounting for 32.38% of the total skier visits.

VI. Statistical Classification by Skier Visits

Just as Mr. Laurent of Switzerland focuses on ski resorts with over one million skier visits in his annual "Global Ski Market Report," using skier visits as an indicator to classify and screen ski resorts will become increasingly relevant. In the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, there were 50 ski resorts with more than 100,000 skier visits, a year-on-year increase of 19.05% compared to the 42 resorts in the previous year. The proportion of skier visits generated by ski resorts with more than 100,000 skier visits has slightly increased, reaching 54.47%. Specific statistical information is shown in Table 2-9.

Table 2-9: Statistical Information on Ski Resorts with More Than 100,000 Skier Visits

Chapter 3 Ski Resort Hardware Facilities

I. Ski Resort Uplift Facilities: Aerial Lifts & Magic Carpets

Uplift facilities fundamentally determine the operational efficiency of a ski resort and are the most important part for any resort. Currently, domestic ski resorts mainly use aerial lifts and magic carpets as uplift facilities. "Does the ski resort have aerial lifts? How many aerial lifts does it have?" are important KPI indicators for measuring the scale and efficiency of a ski resort.

1. Ski Resort Aerial Lifts

In the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, a total of 30 new ski aerial lifts were built and put into operation in China, including 13 detachable aerial lifts and 17 fixed aerial lifts.

Figure 3-1: Statistics on Ski Resorts with Aerial Lifts & Number of Aerial Lifts

As of April 30, 2024, a total of 355 aerial lifts have been built and put into use in ski resorts across China, distributed among 176 ski resorts. The total number of detachable aerial lifts in domestic ski resorts has reached 114, and the number of ski resorts with detachable lifts has also increased to 39.

Figure 3-2: Statistics on the Number of Detachable Aerial Lifts in Chinese Ski Resorts

Figure 3-3 shows the relationship between the number of imported and domestically produced detachable aerial lifts since 2015.

Figure 3-3: Statistics on the Number of Imported and Domestically Produced Detachable Aerial Lifts in Chinese Ski Resorts

Tables 3-1 and 3-2 provide detailed statistics on the distribution of detachable aerial lifts in domestic ski resorts.

Table 3-1: Ranking of Chinese Ski Resorts by Number of Detachable Aerial Lifts

Table 3-2: Ranking of Provinces by Number of Detachable Aerial Lifts in Ski Resorts

Jilin, Hebei, and Xinjiang rank among the top three with 32, 27, and 27 detachable lifts respectively.

2. Ski Resort Magic Carpets

With the widespread adoption of magic carpets in ski resorts, many domestic scenic areas have also begun to use magic carpets extensively as tourist transport equipment. Because various equipment manufacturers have not completely classified orders from ski resort clients and scenic area clients, this has caused some difficulties in the white paper's statistics of the number of magic carpets in ski resorts. According to incomplete statistics, in the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year, the newly added number and length of magic carpets in ski resorts were slightly lower than the previous year, approximately 110 and 18,000 meters, respectively.

II. Ski Resort Site Facilities: Snowcats, Snow Guns

Judging from the actual sales performance of major snow gun and snowcat suppliers, ski resort site facilities are generally still growing. The number of imported snowcats is approximately 60, while the total number of newly added snow guns is estimated to be around 1200.

III. Ski Resort Rental Facilities: Rental Snowboards

The ski resort snowboard rental market continues to show strong growth. On the one hand, outdoor ski resorts have a need to update and replace rental boards; on the other hand, indoor ski resorts have become the main force in the newly added rental board market. Furthermore, continuing the trend of the past two years, the snowboard market remained hot in the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year. Ski resorts across the country generally reported a serious shortage of rental snowboards.

Chapter Four: Summary

The following two conclusions can be drawn from the data for the 2023-2024 snow season fiscal year.

1. Indoor ski resorts have experienced an explosive and unstoppable surge.

2. The market concentration of outdoor ski resorts has further increased, and the growth rate of destination ski resorts is impressive.

Similar to previous white papers, this white paper omits the sections on "skier behavior characteristics" and "skier equipment." We recommend that you refer to relevant reports published by platforms such as Tmall Ski, Huabai, Le Bingxue, Xuezu Technology, and GOSKI.

Appendix: Chart Index

Recommended Important Cultural and Tourism Events

2025 China (Beijing) International Amusement Facilities and Equipment Expo

2025 Beijing International Tourism, Leisure and Entertainment Industry Expo

March 19-21, held in Beijing!

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