This is how much the lift tickets cost at twelve different locations

The winter season is here and many people may be planning a visit to the mountains.
But the lift tickets are getting more and more expensive in most places and now critics say that the mountains are becoming a place only for those with money.
Accommodation and ski rental are also increasing in price.
One who reacted to the price increases is Malin Lernfelt, editor-in-chief at Liberala Nyhetsbyrån, who raised the issue in Östersund-Posten:
– I think it is a very sad development because this affects so many people, she says.

The ski season in the Swedish mountains is in full swing and many people put on their boots and put their weight on the valley skis on the slopes. But accommodation, lift tickets, food and possible rental of equipment mean that the cost of a skiing holiday can easily add up:

– It is becoming as expensive to go to the Swedish mountains as to go to the Alps, says Jennie Reidfors, who is on a skiing holiday in the mountains with her family.

Most expensive in Åre

The independent tourist site Visit Fjällen has mapped the lift ticket prices at the biggest winter destinations ahead of this ski season. The most expensive is in Åre, where a day pass in high season costs SEK 686. Next come Sälen and Vemdalen, where a day’s skiing costs SEK 598. Lofsdalen has the cheapest lift ticket, where you have to pay SEK 490.

Agree that it is expensive

But even there it is considered to be a lot of money.

– Yes, it is expensive, of course. I think so even though we are the cheapest in this survey. But it costs a lot of money to run a mountain facility with staff, avalanche control and investments, says Ola Andersson, CEO of Lofsdalen’s Mountain Facilities.

Critics now believe that the increased costs for lift tickets, accommodation and rental of ski equipment mean that many people are excluded from going on a mountain holiday.

– Yes, that’s right. When I was growing up, skiing was a folk sport and most families could afford to go to the mountains. But that is no longer the case. Going to the mountains has become a luxury that only those with money can afford, says Malin Lernfelt, at Liberala Nyhetsbyrån.