Problems with the Cairngorm Ski Product

4. Highlands & Islands Enterprise

Page 3

This leaves HIE with something of a dilemma. The Cairngorms area is heavily dependent on tourists (some may claim over-reliant) and yet the quality of the facilities in the Aviemore area - in particular the ski facilities - have depreciated over time.

I am well aware that over recent years tourists have become increasingly discerning and they expect good quality facilities. Yet the ski product within the Cairngorms just wasn't meeting these expectations. A lot of direct and indirect employment in the Cairngorm area can be attributed to the ski industry- yet visitor numbers were falling.

At HIE our remit is to boost the area's largest economic sector - tourism. The challenge for us at HIE was to keep tourism competitive and to encourage future growth as the area was reliant on it. Yet, the ski industry was becoming increasingly uncompetitive and major investment was needed to turn things around.

Many of the ski facilities on Cairn Gorm were outdated and did not meet customers expectations.

Outdated facilities in the Cairngorm