The world’s media is beginning its annual autumn-water cycle of publishing reports that imply that the end of skiing is vaguely imminent – kind of. The reports usually focus on a small to medium, low-lying and largely unknown ski area few of its readers will have heard of that’s decided to stop offering skiing. By missing key facts they give the impression that its closure means ski holidays as we know them are about to end.

These articles invariably:

• Do not say that few people travel to this now closed ski area (hence its closure) and all the higher areas people do travel to are operating normally. Sometimes this is a deliberate omission, but often its clear the writers have no knowledge of the ski industry and are just copying the source story.
• Do not say that this is one of hundreds, probably now thousands, of ski areas that have closed over the past 40 years …in part due to climate change but often equally or more so due to changing consumer trends (most book holidays at bigger, higher resorts) and fast rising costs (power, insurance, labour etc) they’re just no longer viable.
• Do not realise that the trend is the same on all continents, but focus on The Alps, Europe or one other locality, not spotting that global warming is, well, global…

These articles also usually:

• Talk about the efforts to cut CO2 emissions by ski resorts as if, whatever they do, that will make some difference to the existential threat of climate change which requires planetary action at all levels to resolve, not a few ski areas putting up solar panels.
• Talk about advances in snowmaking as if snowmaking can make up for a loss of natural cover, or work at scale if its too warm for them to produce snow. (Yes there are technologies that make snow in above freezing temps but only covering comparatively tiny areas, at great expense and once on the slopes it still melts).
• Focus on long-term trends of resorts not getting snow so reliably in October and November when few people go skiing anyway.

What they don’t usually say is that most of the big name ski resorts that 99.9% of people head to should be fine this winter. It’s true that everywhere is suffering to some extent but the big, high, destination resorts tend to continue to get enough snow for the ski season and hopefully will do for years, maybe decades yet. Some winters are good, some bad, as it has always been.

If they do have a poor start to the season for snowfall rest assured the media will be running ‘likely ski holiday misery’ stories soon enough.

The media reports also continue to fail to join up the dots, failing to spot that less snow is not just bad news for skiers but for the future of the planet on multiple levels.

This is only going one way and we’re completely failing to do anything about it.

Here are this season’s reports following the self-imposed rules detailed above:

The Guardian: Fears for future of ski tourism as resorts adapt to thawing snow season

The Daily Express: Alarm bells ringing across ski resorts in Europe as many forced to close for good

Travel & Tour World: Alarm bells ringing across Europe’s ski resorts, What you need to know about the future of winter sports tourism?