globeandmail.com: Europe's case of ski-bum blues - by BERTRAND MAROTTE
Europe's case of ski-bum blues - by BERTRAND MAROTTE
Club Med and other top European ski resort operators are bracing for a tough holiday season as they endure the warmest winter in centuries and severe shortages of snow. In France, the Val d'Isere ski resort had to cancel two World Cup Races scheduled for early December as the snow wasn't abundant enough to secure the runs. At the same time, an OECD report this week said Alpine areas are experiencing the warmest weather in 1,300 years, posing a "serious risk" to lower-altitude ski stations.
That's all adding up to a much happier Christmas in Western Canada, where places like Whistler-Blackcomb, B.C., and other snow-choked ski centres in the Rockies are booked to the max and turning away European customers.
