Club Med Offers Quality Ski Vacations at Affordable Rates - TravelPulse
For many U.S. travelers, Club Med conjures up images of all-inclusive tropical getaways to such destinations as Cancun, the Dominican Republic and Turks Caicos. But the company also features a considerable amount of mountain resorts – upward of 20 – within its portfolio of properties, which provide high-quality ski vacations at affordable rates.
"Planning a ski vacation comes with many elements and high costs, from daily accommodations and transportation to lift tickets and meals, especially if you're traveling with a family," said Amelie Brouhard, vice president marketing North America & USA sales, Club Med North America.
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"The benefit of booking an all-inclusive ski vacation with Club Med is that everything is taken care of and for one price. For a family of four booking a seven-night ski vacation, they can save more than $8,000 compared to a do-it-yourself ski vacation to popular ski destinations like Aspen, Colorado.
"Rather than paying separate fees for roundtrip flights, accommodations, daily meals, beverages, lift tickets, ski/snowboard lessons, entertainment, and wellness classes, families can pay one package and have all of that included – making their ski vacation a hassle-free and cost-effective experience."
With a dearth of snow at some European ski resorts, Club Med offers a complimentary "Snow Guarantee" program at select properties, enabling guests to be compensated or cancel a ski trip when there is a lack of snow.
In December 2022 alone, Club Med unveiled three mountain resorts – Club Med Tignes and Club Med Val d'Isere in the French Alps and Club Med Kiroro in Hokkaido, Japan.
Closer to home, Club Med Quebec opened its door in December 2021.
"In 2025, Club Med Utah will open in Snowbasin, which is a popular destination for American travelers," said Carolyne Doyon, president and CEO of Club Med North America.
"The resort will also be accessible to international travelers as it is less than an hour from the Salt Lake City International Airport," she added, noting that the property will be "Club Med's first U.S. resort in more than 20 years and its first-ever 5-star Exclusive Collection mountain resort in North America."
The property will couple "an American luxury experience with Alpine charm and Club Med's trademark French savoir-faire," Doyon said, with regionally inspired architecture and design elements, and a range of accommodations options including spacious two-bedroom suites and penthouse suites for families, interactive children's programs and elevated culinary experiences.
It will also offer direct ski-in/ski-out access with included lessons, and outdoor activities like guided hikes and mountain biking to enable guests to explore the area.
Club Med is actively working toward boosting its business from the U.S., Doyon said, which currently accounts for approximately nine percent of its overall business.
"In 1950, we introduced the all-inclusive resort concept in Europe, and it quickly expanded across Asia, Africa and the Americas – so our footprint has always been well-established overseas," she said.
"While awareness and interest in our brand from the U.S. market has also been growing steadfastly over the past number of years with resort openings and expansions throughout the Caribbean, Mexico and Canada, we still believe there is room to expand.
"With our newest resort coming to Utah in 2025 and as we are constantly striving to expand in the Caribbean and other destinations in North America, we hope to not only introduce the all-inclusive ski vacation concept to U.S. travelers, but also our French savoir-faire, 5-star Exclusive Collection, and our global sustainability program that makes us truly unique."
All things considered, last year was a successful one for Club Med. "We are surely back to pre-pandemic profitability levels with strong results in all our markets including North America, Europe and Asia," Doyon said.
Going forward into 2023 and beyond, the company will "grow and adapt to each market with three to five resort openings or renovations per year," she added.
The company is counting on travel advisors to help it expand its U.S. numbers.
"A large share of our business derives from travel advisors, with whom we have been able to achieve the incredible transformation of our business over the past years," Brouhard said.
"Thanks to their support and confidence in our brand, we continue to succeed toward growing our upscale vacations as well as mountain travel, areas in which our valued partners are bringing their expertise to play a critical part in our common success."
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