Mountain sports industry
As France's premier mountain tourism destination, Savoie is the perfect place for the snow and mountain sports industry to experiment and innovate. Savoie is also one of the industry's largest markets, as the area's ski resorts invest more than €130 million each year in developing their facilities. Just as importantly, Savoie is also at the heart of the important Northern Alps market.
The largest ski area in the world
France has 1,200 km² of ski runs and 15% of the world's ski lifts. Savoie is responsible for 43% of France's ski resort turnover and 40% of investment in the country's mountain areas.
The Northern Alps (Savoie, Haute-Savoie, Isère) holds the world record for the number of visitors to a mountain area
Every year 500 million passengers use the ski lifts in Savoie, Haute-Savoie and Isère, and these three "départements" account for 73% of France's ski-lift turnover.
With 30 million overnight stays, 20 million of which are in the winter, Savoie is the destination of choice for 43% of tourists visiting the Northern Alps, a figure that rises to 47% during the winter season.
The largest concentration of mountain sports companies
Leitner, Prinoth, Snowstar, Skidata, IDM, Kässbohrer ESE, Prisme, SNC, Companie des Alpes, Société des 3 Vallées, Petzl Charlet-Moser, Doppelmayr, The North Face, Head Tyrolia, etc.
Developing the mountains and protecting the environment
In the mountains, protection and development are two sides of the same coin. This is why the "département" of Savoie is working with the University of Savoie to promote the Mountain Institute. The Mountain Institute was set up to initiate and coordinate research programs in fields such as climate change and the sustainable management of mountain regions, the future of tourism, and gravitational threats to the mountain environment. Through its resource center, its research findings and its development of state-of-the-art decision-making tools, the Mountain Institute provides essential support to decision-makers in the alpine arc, whether they are local authorities or companies.
