Well-off skiing enthusiasts are giving holiday companies the one bright spot in the gloom after September 11.
Most of the UK's 1m skiers booked this season's holiday before the attacks in the US, and late bookers are now adding to their number. All this could raise the total 5% by spring, says the Association of British Travel Agents.
The skiers' enthusiasm means there are fewer bargain holidays on the slopes except in North America, where the strong US dollar and the terrorist attacks have dampened demand.
You can save up to £300 on a seven-night self-catering break in Banff, western Canada, at Travelcare, the UK's largest independent travel agent. The price is £526 a head for a party of four sharing accommodation in the week starting February 2.
There are good deals, too, for those willing to be flexible about when they go, says Travelcare's Julie Nolan: 'If you book in the week of departure, you could probably pick up something for £200.'
But she warns: 'There aren't that many late deals.'
Last week Nolan was quoting a week in Livigno, Italy, starting on February 12, for only £169.
Prices this year are much the same as last season's. 'Travel agents were worried, in the face of September 11, about how it would go,' says a spokeswoman for the Association of British Travel Agents. 'But it has done extremely well. A 2% or 3% rise in prices is normal each year - but this year's are pretty much the same.'
After a 'pretty much booked-out' Christmas, tour operator Thomson is having an extremely busy January. 'Skiers are aware that prices are perhaps a third lower in January,' says spokeswoman Marion Telsnig. They rise again in February, and Easter - at the end of March this year - keeps prices up
The season's end in April promises 'absolutely stunning prices', says Telsnig. A self-catering week in the French resort of Val d'Isère costs £265 then - down from £319 in January.
As well as staying upright on the piste and in the bar, there are other, less exciting, issues for skiers:
Currency
This is the first year of euro notes and coins in 12 European countries, so skiers must check change carefully.
You may choose to hang on to any euros, but use up the old currencies while you can.
Insurance
About 40% of skiers go without travel insurance, says insurer Primary Direct. They can be covered, if they have an E111 form (available from Post Offices), for treatment for illness and injury across most of Europe.
But there is no reciprocal medical treatment between the UK and Japan, where some affluent people now go to ski, nor with Switzerland.
Buy a home
The wealth of many skiers is confirmed by a new trend for buying homes in ski resorts.
Abbey National, whose Continental branches cater for Britons seeking mortgages abroad, saw a 66 per cent increase in demand from UK buyers in France and Italy last year.
An Abbey survey of property prices in ski resorts highlights prices for one-bed apartments at about £50,000 at Chamonix in France and £60,000 in Folgardia, Italy. Four-bedroom chalets fetch about £200,000 in Chamonix and £105,000 in Folgardia. Property prices went up only 5% on average in France in 2001, compared with more than 15% in the UK, according to the Halifax. Mortgage rates in the eurozone reflect its low base rates: Abbey's mortgage rate can be as low as 3.95%, depending on the amount borrowed.
David Wells of Abbey says: 'Most people buying a second home let it to family and friends. It's quite good to have the property visited. If people let it for a week here and there, we are not too concerned.'
If they want to let it commercially, they must negotiate new terms with Abbey, or find a new lender. Most of its customers for these properties are in their forties and fifties. 'It's a luxury purchase,' says Wells. 'The main reason they are doing it is for the lifestyle. The scenery is wonderful.'
