What do we do when snow's on-snow

THIS December
Switzerland saw less
snow fall than it has in
more than 100 years and
France witnessed its worst
snow cover for 20 years,
says Serge Taboulot, head
meteorologist for the northern
Alps at Météo France.
Anthea Hay, managing
member of Peak Adventures,
says the lack of snow for the
last three years during the
early ski season in December
has been a concern, as most
SA ski clients have their
longer annual break during
this time.
But there are a few tips
that agents can follow to
ensure their clients’ skiing
holidays aren’t severely
impacted when snowfall
is low.
Get a guarantee
Anthea says there are some
resorts that can guarantee
snow, in France
especially, due
to their altitude.
“Austrian resorts
can rely on the
nearby glaciers but
the slopes and lifts
can be busy due to
everyone using the
same villages and
mountain runs over
the holiday period.”
Greg Taylor, gm
of Pure Skiing, says
agents can guarantee
snow for their clients
by picking a resort
that offers snow-making
facilities, adding that the
major European ski resorts
invest millions in these
facilities to ensure there
is snow.
Time it right
Anthea says agents should
also advise travellers to go
in January to get a better
experience. “Val Thorens in
France sits at a height of
2 300m but has ski lifts to
3 200m and has skiing from
November to May. It can be
very cold there, but skiing
is guaranteed for all levels
of skiers. It may be a good
idea to get clients to book
early as these resorts fill up
quickly in comparison to the
lower lying areas.”
Get reimbursed
What happens if a client
arrives at the ski resort and
they can’t ski because of
lack of snow? “This is very
seldom the case,” says
Greg. He says charges for
ski passes and ski hire
can be reimbursed when
not used.
Some insurance companies
also offer a ‘winter sports
extension’, which
includes cover
for piste closure
of more than 24
consecutive hours
due to lack of snow.
Uriah Jansen,
md of Oojah Travel
Protection, says
this cover applies
until March 31 (for
use in the Northern
hemisphere) and
that travellers will
be reimbursed a
small cash sum
for each day of
skiing missed.
Uriah says travellers who
have opted for a ‘Cancel
for any reason’ benefit and
cancel their trip more than
48 hours before departure
from South Africa (when they
are informed there is a lack
of snow) will receive 50% of
the non-refundable flights
and accommodation. 