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It also found that the prices in resorts has almost doubled since 2014. According to the Bank of England, price inflation in the UK over the same period was more than 35 per cent. Dan Fox, the owner of the travel operators Ski Weekends and Flexiski, said: “This has been a time of extraordinary challenges for the UK ski industry.” In 2014, Mark Warner had 13 chalet-hotels in the Alps and now has only one. This year the family skiing specialist Esprit Ski stopped operating. So did Powder White and Alpine Action. Only a handful of British companies now offer flights-inclusive chalet holidays. Since Brexit, the cost of staffing chalets has soared, as have energy costs — a problem when you’re heating buildings halfway up an alp. Fox said: “Today we’ll pay £5,000 to £12,500 per staff member per season in the French Alps.” Nick Edwards, who has run the ski travel agency Snowfinders for 24 years, said: “These days, catered chalets are beyond the reach of many families during the school holidays. The decline of the catered chalet Percentage of skiers who book catered chalets for some or all of their holidays Pre COVID-192024 10 20 30% 38%13% Catered chalet Chart: The Times and The Sunday Times•Source: Ski Club of Great Britain and the Mountain Trade Network (in partnership with Snow + Rock and Racoon Events) “My estimation is that the market is now around 60 per cent smaller than before Brexit and Covid — and the scarcity is driving prices up even further. As a result, many skiers are now booking self-catering holidays and/or looking beyond the big name resorts.” James Gambrill, the general manager of the Ski Club of Great Britain, said: “To me, the best way to save money is not to stay in a big popular resort. “Either go somewhere smaller, with plenty of skiing for a week, or stay down the valley or at a satellite resort linked into a bigger area.”