Crisis communication from ski resorts

Background & objective

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Austrian ski resorts had to simultaneously create an emotional connection with tourists and provide attractive offers for the local population. This study shows how mountain railroads have used Instagram to connect with their heterogeneous audience.

Procedure & results

The authors combined a quantitative hashtag analysis with a qualitative image and text analysis of 16 Instagram accounts. The results show a tendency for ski resorts to communicate positively connoted winter holiday content and to present themselves as attractive ski resorts. The focus was on the winter landscape, weather, infrastructure and vacation activities, while COVID-19 was rarely reported. Only slight differences were identified compared to the previous season. The study provides new insights into the previously limited research literature on crisis management in ski resorts and contributes to further COVID-19 research in tourism. The implications help ski resorts to prepare for communication in the coming seasons and future crisis management.

The full study report is available as a publication in the Journal of Tourism Science.