The beginning of December was marked by abundant snowfall, providing sufficient snow cover to allow the opening of the ski areas. Ax-3-Domaines thus kicked off the season on December 14, at the same time as Guzet and the Monts d'Olmes but as a pre-opening. All the stations finally opened their doors to the public at the start of the school holidays, on December 21.
Generous sunshine in the mountains encouraged a steady influx of holidaymakers and locals. Activity in the stations was particularly dynamic during this end-of-year holiday period.
Thus, tourist nights recorded a slight increase of 2% compared to the previous year, with an increase in activity coinciding with the start of the school holidays. The volume of excursions is down slightly compared to the previous year (-1%).
Professionals located in the Ariège Pyrenees destination are the most delighted: 90% of them observe activity at least equivalent to the previous year. The destinations Couserans Pyrénées and Foix Ariège Pyrénées follow, with respectively 84% and 82% of professionals satisfied with their activity.
Conversely, professionals located in the Portes d'Ariège Pyrénées destination express greater reservations: 75% of them indicate lower activity than the previous year.
Hosts report very positive attendance, particularly driven by the end-of-year festivities.
Across the department, 33% of hosts noted an increase in their activity compared to the previous year, 40% saw stability, while 25% recorded a decrease. The remaining 3% did not wish to comment.
Campsites and collective accommodation saw more dynamic activity, as did seasonal rentals and bed and breakfasts which maintained a similar level of activity to the previous year. Hoteliers present more mixed results.
Mountain destinations, benefiting from favorable snow cover in December and school holidays, performed particularly well.
Cultural activities
Half of the visit site managers report higher activity than the previous year. Several sites, usually closed during this period, have opened their doors, to the great satisfaction of customers.
-This is particularly the case for the Maison des Loups and the Rivière Souterraine de Labouiche, attracting vacationers in search of discovery
In the ski areas the winter season promises to be under the best auspices
The winter season promises to be auspicious for the resorts. The heavy snowfall at the beginning of the month allowed the season to begin with the opening of the resorts offering holidaymakers an ideal snowy setting for the end-of-year celebrations.
The generous snowfall and favorable weather conditions have generated enthusiasm among customers in the areas. The resorts are performing with record attendance over the Christmas holidays.
Encouraging prospects for the months to come
The end-of-year school holidays until January 5 are favorable for tourist activity at the start of January. So for the month of January, 17% of professionals consider their activity to be quite encouraging to very encouraging.
The winter school holidays run from February 8 to March 9. They start with the academies (Aix-Marseille, Strasbourg, Nantes). followed by (Montpellier, Paris, Toulouse) as well as the British and Dutch markets the following week.
Week 9, which coincides with the holidays in zones B and A (Bordeaux, Lyon), as well as the arrival of Spanish and Dutch tourists, should experience a peak in activity. The outlook is therefore positive for the month of February, since 22% of professionals anticipate somewhat to very encouraging activity.
The ADT economic report determines feelings over the past period and trends for the coming month based on the opinions of the professionals questioned. These results cannot in any way replace quantitative and qualitative analyses. The results presented come from an online survey conducted from December 29 to January 7, 2025 on a representative sample of professionals (response rate: 20%).
Partners: Tourist Offices, CRTL Occitanie
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