Cosmos to focus on ski hotspots after SKI NEWS
YOU CAN USE Tom Irwin reports
Cosmos Holidays has outlined its aim to secure ‘ski strongholds’ following a positive debut season selling European ski holidays. The operator
has reported strong demand and a high number of forward bookings, with Austria
proving the most popular destination so far with 55% of bookings. It also offers resorts in France and Italy. Emma Thomas, regional purchasing manager for Cosmos, said: “We started fairly slowly, but that was anticipated, bearing in mind that we only launched in July. “We’ve really seen an upturn in late bookings,
so we’re focused on making sure we have availability.”
Thomas said the
operator’s plan was to consolidate on a successful first season and to improve availability for next year. “We have a
better idea of where the demand
TOM’S EXPERIENCE
The two days I spent in St Anton were my first time on the slopes, and I chose to fulfil my teenage dream of snowboarding. The resort has numerous ski and snowboard schools, with prices from about €173 for three days’ instruction (four hours a day). I had a great instructor who got me on a blue slope within four hours. I thought that might be the last thing I ever did, but thankfully I survived and calmed my
40 •
travelweekly.co.uk — 23 January 2014
is now – we’re not looking to massively expand, but our growth will depend on getting more of what has worked this year. “We’re not going to take over the ski market overnight, but we’re looking to grow some ski strongholds in places that can be easily reached by transfers and where we have good relationships with hotels.”
Thomas said that adding ski seemed like a sensible move to maximise the potential of Monarch’s scheduled flight network, despite the stagnation of the ski market in recent years. “It seemed like the right time
because the signals were that demand was increasing. We also had the Monarch network already flying to locations that work for ski, so it seemed like a natural move.
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