In the middle of summer vacation, an increasingly expressive number of Brazilians have chosen to enter a cold – but only in the literal sense. They have exchanged the typical itineraries of the hottest season of the year and of a country with such a large coastline for seasons of snow and ski in the mountains of Europe.
In the 16 ski resorts that the Club Med network maintains between France, Switzerland and Italy, the wave of Brazilian guests has been growing by 30% a year in the last decade. Between 2019 and 2022, however, the increase in tourist bookings in Brazil reached 400%, according to the hotel chain.
In the 2022 winter season, which runs until April, Club Med claims to have booked 18,000 Brazilians in its ski resorts in Europe, despite the record devaluation of the real against the euro.
This year, the highlight is the new unit of the chain, Club Med La Rosière, located in the mountains that connect the French region of Savoy to the Aosta Valley, in Italy. It is 1950 meters high and just over two hours from Lyon airport in France.
With 438 rooms – not entirely available, to reduce the resort’s occupancy in times of a pandemic –, which the guest will find disinfected and sealed, La Rosière brings together comfort and convenience, sport, spa and gastronomy.
On one side, the resort is surrounded by snowy mountains, on the other, it is terraced with breathtaking views of France’s Tarentaise Valley.
Landscapes sometimes look like white-on-white paintings, punctuated by brushstrokes of rocks and pine trees. In some cases, the scenery even includes views of the famous Montblanc, the highest mountain in the European Union, another classic ski destination.
Built by the locals on the land where there was once a small airport, the hotel was built in typical mountain design, in stone, wood and zinc. It has two restaurants, gym, heated pool in front of a glass wall that allows guests to swim in front of the view of the mountains, the same that can be seen from the rest room of the Cinq Mondes spa and the yoga room.
The growth of Brazilians in ski tourism has made the country the second market for the international chain of luxury hotels, behind only the French themselves, and has promoted some changes in the services of the resorts.
The renowned kitchens of the Club Med units learned how to make beans to include in the children’s menu, the bars started to freeze their beers more, in line with the Brazilian taste, and the meals had flexible and multiplied schedules, allowing meals at any time, as they like to do. the tourist from Brazil on vacation. In addition, the program of shows at the units was increased.
“It’s details that make a difference. Luxury is personalizing customer service”, says Janyck Daudet, CEO of Club Med for South America, who celebrates the rise of Brazilians in ski resorts by outlining reception strategies for Brazilians, who usually travel as a family or in groups of families.
At Club Med La Rosière, 75% of the rooms are family-friendly, and the focus on this customer profile is evident in other wings of the resort. The massive mini club divides kids by age group and has activities, a kitchen, nap rooms and ski lessons for guests aged two and up.
“Half of our Brazilian guests are new customers. Many come to ski for the first time, their children have never seen snow and some do not speak English. Therefore, in addition to the structural facility, we have a team of Brazilians and employees who speak Portuguese”, he explains. . “The skiing experience needs to be simple,” says Daudet.
This is because, as a rule, skiing is not something that can be called simple. It takes place in a specific location, difficult to access. Requires clothing suitable for freezing cold, from head to toe, including gloves and goggles. It demands expensive and specific equipment, usually rented: skis and snowboards, as well as boots and poles.
The network’s familiarity with this instrument and the ski-in/ski-out model, in which the ski slopes are accessible directly from the hotel, actually make the experience easier.
In a room next to the mini club, it is possible to find ski equipment with the characteristics provided by each guest in a specific locker for each apartment, opened with the same bracelet used to open the bedroom door.
Daudet points out that, at Club Med ski resorts, the advantages of the all-inclusive system are extended – in which meals and drinks, even alcoholic beverages, are included in the daily rate.
The rate includes the so-called ski pass, which entitles you to classes of all levels and access to the cable car that takes you to slopes of different difficulty levels, divided by color: for beginners (green), beginners (blue), advanced (red) and specialists (black).
Purchased individually, these are services that usually cost just under 500 euros a day, around R$3,100.
Here, a personal addendum of this second-time skier, a little traumatized by the uproar of having rented clothes and equipment hitherto unheard of, carried to the top of a mountain, to spend moments of fear and delirium in an inhospitable and charming setting: amenities such as those at Club Med La Rosière can be important.
That’s because they make the skiing experience more fun, less scary and, come on, a little simpler.
To be even better, there could be the facility to rent ski suits on site. It is, however, an accessory in a hotel where seven-day packages start at R$29,000 per adult (children up to three years and 11 months are exempt), and where a shop in the lobby offers trousers. ski basics for around R$1,000.
Journalist Fernanda Mena traveled at the invitation of Club Med.
