Is skiing becoming a sport for the rich?

Saturday, 7 October 2023

Kirsty Dowman is a long-time fan of skiing, but fears only the wealthy will be able to afford the sport as ski-pass prices continue to rise.

If the Queenstown local takes up the “special renewal pass” for the 3 Peak Pass, it’ll cost almost $2400 for her and her family.

“It’s just getting to the point where I don’t know if I can afford it… It’s a lot of money,” Dowman said.

Seasonal ski-pass holders for Coronet Peak, Mount Hutt and The Remarkables who want to renew last year’s pass will have to pay $945 each – up from $899 last year.

Dowman, who works at the local high school, said NZSki was making it nearly unaffordable for locals to go skiing.

The 40-year-old has lived in Queenstown for over 30 years and the only times she’s stopped skiing were when her children, now 14 and 16, were born. The family has had seasonal passes for nearly a decade.

Dowman said last year her children got their seasonal passes at a discounted price through the school for $219 each, but she was expecting that to rise too.

“It’s definitely turning into a rich man’s sport, I hate to say it.”

The prices are even higher for anyone buying the 3 Peak Pass for the first time: the “super earlybird” discount, which ends on October 31, was $1045, the “earlybird” discount is $1145, and those buying an in-season pass will have to fork out $1495.

Dowman said NZSki should look after locals and offer special prices for ratepayers who live in the region. NZSki has confirmed the school discount price will remain the same in 2024.

However, NZSki chief executive Paul Anderson said the company was facing cost increases and the price rise of 3 Peak Passes was to make sure the business was sustainable.

“The scale of our operations is enormous. We have about 700,000 skiers per annum across three ski areas,” he said, adding that $23 million was also going towards the redevelopment of the Shadow Base ski lift at The Remarkables.

Anderson said the company employed 1500 staff and had replaced five ski lifts over the past 10 years.

He said while ticket prices had increased, they were still roughly comparable to 10 years ago, when renewing a 3 Peak Pass cost $899.

“A few years ago, in about 2016-2017, we reduced the prices of the season passes significantly to stimulate the market and a lot of people came back into skiing and riding.”

Chris March is another keen skier feeling the pinch, having over the years seen an increase of almost $200 in the cost of a season pass to Mt Hutt – up from $379 four years ago, to $575.

March, a mechanical engineer who goes skiing 10–12 days a year, driving 12 hours return to the ski field from his home in Motueka, said he was also worried the sport could become unaffordable.

March said it was a small increase compared to last year’s $549, but soon he might not be able to afford it any more.

“I understand they have to put their price up … [but] given that skiing is already a very expensive pastime for me, if they keep going the way they are going, within a couple of years they’re just gonna price me out,” he said.

“In my opinion, if you continue to jack up the price … then it’s gonna get to the point when only the wealthy, or people who don't have children for example … will be able to afford to do it,” he said.

In the North Island, meanwhile, the price for an adult season pass for Ruapehu, which includes the Tūroa and Whakapapa ski areas, is $599.

As prices rise, though, there are some fans – like Scott Lange – who will keep skiing regardless.

Lange first hit the slopes when he moved to Christchurch from Australia four years ago, and hasn’t stopped since.

“The price hikes in the last few years certainly seem excessive, but I am one of those people who are totally addicted to skiing and would buy it anyway.”

The skiing latecomer now takes it “extremely seriously”.

“I go every day I'm not working, and have started training at gymnastics for it during the week. When I'm not skiing or working, I'm watching ski movies.”

Correction: NZSki has 700,000 skiers per annum and employs 1500 staff, not 70,000 skiers and 500 staff as mentioned in a previous version of this story. (Amended 9am, October 9, 2023). The earlybird discount ends on October 31, not 21, as previously reported. (Amended 3.35pm, October 9, 2023.)