Slovenia’s skiing has been put
into the international spotlight by Tina
Maze, the most successful female ski racer in Slovenian history. Multi-tasking
Maze is one of the few winter athletes who competes - and regularly wins on the
international level - in all five skiing disciplines: Slalom, Giant Slalom,
Super G, Downhill and Combination.
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| Kdranjska Gora: Courtesy of Kranjska Gora Tourist Boar |
In her own country, Maze is a
superstar: five-time winner of best Slovenian athlete, a fabulous fashion model
and a pop star with Slovenia’s most watched You Tube music video. Born in 1983,
Maze grew up in Crna na Koroskem,
in northern Slovenia less than two hours drive from the country’s top ski
resort, Kranjska Gora which hosts the men’s World Cup Slalom
events every March.
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| Kranjska Gora: Courtesy of Kranjska Gora Tourist Board |
Tourists come to Kranjska Gora from
all over Slovenia, Germany, Croatia, Italy and also Great Britain. According to Kranjska
Gora Tourist Board Director, Mirjam
Žerjav, out
of a total of 177,398 overnight stays in the resort during the 2013/14 season,
domestic visitors accounted for 81,429 and foreign visitors 95,969. Of the
international visitors, the majority was from Croatia (21,117) followed by
Italy (17,416), Britain (13,997) and Germany (3,634).
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|
LTO
Kranjska Gora |
British ski operator Inghams has
been bringing skiers to family-focused Kranjska Gora on and off over the past 20 years.
Their numbers have ranged from year to year, from a maximum of around 3,000 to
about 300 predicted for the 2014/15 season. This is in line with national ski
visitation numbers which reached a peak in 2008/9 at 207,790 but were down to
just 128,296 skiers in 2013/14 - reflecting the slow recovery in the European
economy since the recession.
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| LTO Kranjska Gora |
Compared to typical ski holidays in Switzerland
and France, prices are low in Kranjska Gora. During the 2014/15
season, for example, a week’s stay with Inghams in a four-star hotel in
February cost around £579 per person (including flight, resort transfer,
accommodation, breakfast and dinner) and was discounted to £429 by the end of
January.
In the past two decades, there has been
considerable investment in hotels, new apartments and sports facilities, says Žerjav: “All the lifts are practically new - the
investment in the past ten years was over 20million EUR. And all hotels have been renovated, an investment of
around 50 million EUR.” Hotel beds have increased from 1,384 in 2006 to 1,905 in
2013 and apartment beds have risen from 1,384 in 2006 to 3,054 in 2013.
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| LTO Kranjska Gora - www.slovenia.info |
Set near the Italian and Austrian borders with
the spectacular Julian Alps as a backdrop, the affordable ski resort with 30km
of skiable slopes appeals particularly to novice and intermediate skiers. As
the most forested country in mainland Europe, the scenery is also highly rated.
With a good variety of ski trails and
the challenging World Cup run at Podkoren, this is one of Slovenia’s most popular ski resort for families, says Zuber Sameja, Inghams’ product manager for Slovenia. Snow
cannons, producing more than 500.000 m3
of artificial snow, supplement
precipitation on 85 percent of the ski terrain.
Factors which encourage skiers to try Kranjska Gora include family facilities, novelty,
affordable skiing, good value après ski, the blend of Austrian and Italian cuisine in traditional inns, and the
friendliness of local people. “Skiers want to try something else and also
Kranjska Gora holds the World Slalom and Giant Slalom Cup every year,” Zuber adds. The town of Kranjska Gora, set in the Zgornjesavska Valley
is picturesque, attracting
domestic and international visitors summer and winter due to its mountain and
lakes appeal.
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| LTO Kranjska Gora |
As well as the ski hill, winter amenities
include a snow park, cross country trails, ice climbing, night skiing, sledding, snowshoeing,
ski touring, and kids’ activities. Hotels are equipped with triple and quad
rooms, most with door-to-slope skiing. There are many family-friendly events
throughout the winter, including in December a live nativity scene which is
constructed in the Ice Kingdom. As well as the Vitranc Cup (part
of the World Cup series), the Planica World Cup Finals, a ski jumping event, is held each March.
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| Night skiing at Kranjska Gora - photo by Aleš Fevžerwww.slovenia.info |
The national profile of Slovenia’s ski industry
received a boost when ski racer Tina Maze burst onto the World
Cup scene around 10 years ago, winning in all five alpine disciplines, as well
as nabbing two Olympic gold medals at Sochi. Awarded best female
athlete of the year for 2005, 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014, she is a Slovenian
national heroine. “We’ve yet to see internationally but certainly she is a
great ambassador for ski Slovenia and she is present at many U.K. events hosted
by Spirit Slovenia,” says Zuber.
“Slovenia tourism is working very hard and,
as a frequent visitor, I have seen many changes that are positive - especially
new German ownership of the main airport of Ljubljana, quite a few gateways
from Croatian airports, too, so more possibility of improving numbers,” Zuber adds.
