 Poster: A snowHead
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Basically, I thought I'd tap the collective wisdom on this one as it's something I've never managed to get much information on but bugs me every time I go skiing!
Some general questions will probably be best: How do ski resorts form? If we take a resort like Morzine, who decides to build lifts and where? Who generally owns them, and who gets the profits? Are the mountain restaurants privately owned or rented? Does anyone own the land over which we ski? Who decides where to expand and when to upgrade lift stock?
Of course, I imagine there are a million different answers all pertaining to specific resorts - but still, is there any kind of typical practise?
I suppose I ask because I am really interested in the future of the Portes Du Soleil - it strikes me that there is a great deal of potential to be made by linking some parts with others (such as La Chapelle d'Abondance with the Linga area) - but I don't really know anything about how these resorts work and so how this kind of development would take place.
So what do people know? Anybody got any links to any useful sites on this stuff?
(Apologies if this has already come up - I did a search and it didn't seem to have).
Cheers!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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who decides to build lifts and where?
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Originally, land-owning peasants with an eye for an opportunity. Following a load of consolidation etc, lift companies or local communes.
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Who generally owns them, and who gets the profits?
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As above.
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Are the mountain restaurants privately owned or rented?
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Either and both, depends on the business.
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Does anyone own the land over which we ski?
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Aforementioned peasants, lift companies, local communes (lots of your skiing is communal grazing - ie alp). Depends on the land.
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Who decides where to expand and when to upgrade lift stock?
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The lift company/commune.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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tomopope, Lizzard,
I think I am right in saying that in many places, certainly Tignes is a good example, the development of a ski resort has been wholly or partly funded by the French government when the original village was drowned with a hydroelectric scheme. I think this also is the case for the development of Oz village as part of the Alpe d'Huez skiing area, which included the construction of the cable car from Vaujany to the Dome de Rousses.
With regard to the lifts although I think in the past most communities either owned or controlled the lift company themselves, and I think this is still the case in Alpe d'Huez and some others, with the town council having a majority stake, it is now more likely that they are owned by a large conglomerate like Compagnie Des Alpes ? Maybe you could correct me if that is wrong Lizzard ? Whether that is good or bad I do not really know. I think generally the Piste rescue service is also run by the lift company, although I think in Tignes it is still run by the local council, independent of the lift company, which sounds a strange arrangement but seems to work.
Sorry to keep using Tignes and Alpe d'Huez as examples, I just know more about them than elsewhere.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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It's interesting how the private/public partnerships seem to work so well, then - are these resorts generally profitable yet?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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tomopope, http://www.perso-laplagne.fr/Histoire.htm has a very interesting history of La Plagne, use google translate to read it in English. At the moment the history section is being translated into English by a local who has been in London for the last 30 years,
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It's interesting how the private/public partnerships seem to work so well, then
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Hmm. Not necessarily. There's a fantastic amount of in-fighting and local politics - and lift developments can be held up for years because one maire isn't speaking to the next one, etc etc etc.
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pam w, ..... or companies can't build where/what they want because the peasants are revolting. 
However, it is entirely just that large companies should be unable to ride roughshod over the rest of us and the Alpine environment just to make an extra few bob on lift passes. Long may it continue. Besides, it has comedy value.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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tomopope, the regional government, ie Savoie or Haute Savoie can throw their oar as well. Until about 5 years ago the lifts in La Rosiere were still owned by the commune but they couldn't afford to make the investments needed to upgrade the lifts. So the lifts were sold and leased back, part of the deal with the lift company who promised to make substantial improvements was that the commune would allow development to increase the capacity of the village to 14,000 beds per week, just about 40% of Val d'Isere's capacity. However the regional government refused to upgrade the N90 to allow this number, setting a limit of 10,000 beds. Which is one of the reasons why La Rosiere doesn't get overrun at peak season.
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