China’s southern cities have opened indoor ski facilities to lure people into a pastime that is mostly popular in the north. From 2023 to 2024, indoor ski slopes in Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces received 1.27 and 1.02 million visits respectively, up 2 and 41.7 percent. In 2019, Guangzhou Bonski opened an indoor ski slope with a capacity for 8,000 visits a day. During the first six months, the center grossed 100 million yuan (US$13.8m) in ticket sales. However, as the number of indoor ski centers increases in the south, price wars are brewing as the popularity of skiing is still lower than in the north. Some also question whether ski instructors are properly qualified to teach, especially as many seek private clients, rather than being employed officially through ski centers. Experts suggest indoor ski centers provide easy access to instructors as safety is always the top priority for skiing.
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