Ski touring potential in Tyrol

Ski touring is becoming increasingly popular as a sport in Tyrol, but scientific studies on the subject are often restricted to limited geographical areas or specific issues. The aim of this study is therefore to visualize and analyze the travel and consumption patterns of ski tourers for the first time.

The basis

The study is based on a comprehensive literature analysis, a market and potential analysis with the German Sport University Cologne on the German source market, an analysis of the existing ski touring offers on the TVB websites in Tyrol and the identification and description of various types of ski tours based on an on-site survey and online data collection in spring 2018.

The results

As an excerpt from the results of the study, we will look at two comparisons in this article. Firstly, the comparison between off-piste and piste tourers and secondly between day trippers and vacation guests.

Off-piste vs. piste tourers

The motives of off-piste and piste tourers differ significantly in statistical terms. While piste tourers focus on health and fitness aspects as well as social needs and balance/stress relief, off-piste tourers focus on experiencing the landscape and nature as well as rest and relaxation. Only in terms of "sporting challenge" was no significant difference found. While off-piste tourers tend to long for the summit, for most piste tourers the hut is the goal. With 24 tours (compared to 16 tours), off-piste tourers also lead in terms of average tours per season, as well as daily expenditure (€20.44 for off-piste tourers compared to €14.40 for piste tourers).

As can be seen in Figure 1, there are also differences in the socio-demographic characteristics. While the average income and age differ only slightly, men predominate among off-piste tourers at 71.4%. Among piste tourers, on the other hand, the ratio is more balanced with 50.8% male and 49.2% female.

What is most important to ski tourers?

Various pull factors play a role when choosing a destination for ski touring. Pull factors are supply-side factors that ski tourers value and are often the decisive criterion for choosing a ski tour. Here, too, there are differences between off-piste and piste tourers. The beauty of the landscape (point 1 in figure 2 below) is the most important factor for both groups. In the backcountry, naturalness, untracked snow and few people are also important. On the piste, skiers appreciate the infrastructure and good accessibility of the areas.

Day guest vs. vacation guest

As illustrated in Figure 3, there are also differences in the target group of ski tourers between vacation guests and day trippers.

The vacation guest is predominantly male (69.7%), 41 years old and has a monthly net household income of over € 3,000 (median). He is a member of the Alpine Club and is very safety-conscious in his ski touring behavior. He usually decides on his tour three or more days in advance (48.3%). They go on up to 30 tours per season, mainly in the backcountry (84%) and usually spend the night in a mountain hut (45.3%) or in the 1-3* area (13%). They stay in the region for 2-3 days (45%).

Day visitors are also predominantly male (64.2%) and on average 38 years old and have a monthly net household income of €2,500 to €3,000 (median). They are looking for a summit victory, but also like to go on the slopes to a hut or mountain pasture. Depending on the type of tour, he is very safety-conscious and is a member of the Alpine Club.

The group of day trippers also differs significantly from the group of vacation guests in terms of expenditure. The comparison refers to ski tourers with at least one overnight stay (=holiday guests) and day trippers who return home on the same day. The values in Figure 4 correspond to the average value in the categories par and mountain guide. Excluding travel and mountain guide, day guests spend an average of €12.50 per person/day on travel costs, parking, food & drinks, cable car tickets, rental fees and other expenses, while vacation guests spend €37.22.

In a side study as part of a master's thesis at MCI Tourism, factors relating specifically to a stay in a hut were also surveyed. What do ski tourers dream of when they think of the perfect hut?

The increased product development and the corresponding tourist marketing of ski touring in open terrain in Tyrol could lead to further ecological conflicts, but the individual "ski touring experience" could be jeopardized by the marketing itself. Moreover, natural factors such as the beauty of the landscape and snow reliability cannot be influenced. Ski touring as an additional offer in ski resorts, on the other hand, still offers day-touring potential.