alan Wrote:
Current exchange rates being a key phrase there - the Aussie $ is exceptionally strong atm, which is why I used the minimum wage comparison, it's probably a truer comparison in relative cost to a local than pricing in £s.
Any capital investment in snowsports costs the Aussie and NZ ski fields a significant premium over most of the rest of the world, simply due to where they are while most of the manufacturers are based in Europe or North America. Something which has been mentioned as a contributory factor to lift pass prices in the past.
I would agree with that, I don't think the Aus areas are a fair comparison when trying to assess impact of snow making on ticket prices. East Coast US is a much fairer comparison, since the equipment costs are likely to be similar and the exchange rate more realistic.
Mountain Creek NJ, which is similarly reliant on heavy snow making, charges US$61.99 (£37.19) for a day pass at the weekend, and $49.99 (£29.99) mid week (2010/11 prices). That compares quite well to the prices here when you consider the cost of snow making. I suspect having the NY market on their door step helps to keep skier numbers high allowing for lower prices.
If you look at the larger ski areas to the north in VT, where snow making is also heavily used the prices are much higher, eg Stowe are charging US$88 Prime/$92 Peak (£52/£55.20) for a day pass. Again, more than we currently pay in Scotland or the Alps, but much less than the Aus prices.
US Federal Minimum wage is $7.25, so the ratios don't even bare thinking about, but the US minimum wage has always been very low compared to median income.
If you move out to the Rockies where I would presume far less snow making is required, the major resorts (Vail, Breckenridge, Aspen etc) are charging $90 plus, so I don't think the cost of making snow is the only factor feeding into the higher prices. I've always wondered if the average amount of holiday time workers get feeds into this, in Europe we think nothing of going for a weeks skiing holiday and the big ski areas mostly operate on a weekly rotation. This is unheard of in the US, where the ski areas are mostly geared up for separate weekend and mid week packages (usually with big discounts for mid week). If your target market skis less days per year on average, but you have the same infrastructure costs then you will have to charge more per day.