SAM Magazine—Gatineau, Quebec, May 30, 2025—More than 560 attendees gathered in Gatineau for the Eastern Canada Ski Areas Conference and Tradeshow, May 26-29. Conference recap HNASSQ CEO Yves Juneau (and his discerning taste in reading material) with SAM's Katie Brinton.It was the first time the event has been held since 2016. The conference brings together ski industry vendors and resort members of the Quebec Ski Areas Association (ASSQ), Ontario Snow Resorts Association (OSRA), and Atlantic Snow Resorts Association (ASRA) for education, networking, business, and awards.

The mood was optimistic after a strong 2024-25 winter for Canadian ski areas. The Canadian Ski Council’s preliminary estimate of 19.5 million skier visits represents a year-over-year increase of nearly 9 percent nationwide. Numbers will be finalized in June, and it’s expected to be the second-best season on record. ASSQ chairman and CEO Yves Juneau said Quebec ski areas were up about 4 percent with a total of more than 6.2 million visits in 2024-25.

The number of active winter-sports participants in Canada grew to 2.6 million, or 6.5 percent of the population, up from 5.8 percent last year, according to Canadian Ski Council CEO Paul Pinchbeck, who said the growth is “a good indication that we saw more beginner and revival (casual, weather dependent) skiers and riders out this year.” 

Representatives of MCE Conseils, which conducts the Economic and Financial Study of Quebec Ski Areas annually, pointed to the impact of climate change on industry operating practices and visitation. Climate resilience was a hot topic throughout the conference, with sustainability, diversification, and snowmaking regular features of the education sessions. Lift safety, change management, AI, customer experience, and capturing new skiers and riders were also explored. Conversations about tariffs and variable weather patterns were had throughout.  

  • 20250528 Congres Assq J3 Prix Amour Du Ski Gleason
  • 20250528 Congres Assq J3 Prix Tremblant 2
  • 20250528 Congres Assq J3 Prix Gestionnaire De La Releve
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  • Mont Sutton's Jean-Michel Ryan (left) and Les Sommets' David Dufour (right) present the ASSQ Louis Dufour Best Customer Satisfaction Award to the team at Mont Gleason (L to R): Vicky Anger, Éric Labarre, Nadia Pepin, and David Grenier.
  • Mont Tremblant and Routes to Rootz were recognized with the Best Skier/Rider Development Award by ASSQ. In the photo (L to R): Yves Juneau, ASSQ; Annique Aird and J-F Gour, Mont Tremblant; Jamillah Jean, Joey Odman, and Paula Ingerman with Routes to Rootz; and Megan George, Menelik Media.
  • Mont Sutton's Jean-Michel Ryan (left) and ASSQ's Yves Juneau (right) present the ASSQ Young Leader Award to Mont-Blanc's Nicolas Fortier.
  • Canadian Ski Council CEO Paul Pinchbeck presenting the year-end visitation numbers.
  • The team from Ski Saint-Bruno, QC (L to R): Vicki Villemure Ménard, Stéphanie Grenier, and Penny Paris.
  • The team from Camp Fortune, which hosted the welcome event on the first night of the conference (L to R): Erin Boucher, assistant general Manager; Rick Flowers, director of F&B and executive chef; Gabriel Sudermann, mountain operations manager; and Britney Amarica, food and beverage manager.
  • SAM's Sharon Walsh (left) with Elyse and Robert Bertrand from Mont Avalanche, QC, at the reception.
  • ASSQ CEO Yves Juneau (and his discerning taste in reading material) with SAM's Katie Brinton.
  • (L to R): Katie Brinton, SAM; Simon Page, Les Sommets; Sharon Walsh, SAM; and John Barnowski, Ski Montcalm, QC.
  • Eric Lipton of SNOW Operating presenting, “Understanding and Mastering the Customer Journey in Ski Areas.”

While the mood at the conference was boisterous and cheerful, a word cloud generated from the prompt “how do you feel about the state of the world?” in a session about the customer journey, led by Snow Operating COO Eric Lipton, pointed to continued global incertitude. Among the largest words in the cloud: uncertain, sad, and angry. 

One antidote to that, proposed Lipton: Fun (something intrinsic to the industry but occasionally obfuscated).

There was plenty of fun to be had at the conference. Bookending the educational sessions and trade show were a fiesta to kick off the event at nearby Camp Fortune, Quebec, and a closeout cocktail party and awards gala at the Hilton Lac-Leamy, where the conference and trade show were also held. 

Some of the awards given out on the final night by ASSQ included:

  • Claude Péloquin, Bromont executive vice-president and former ASSQ general manager, received the Réal Boulanger Award, the highest award given by ASSQ. 
  • Mont Gleason was recognized with the Louis Dufour Best Customer Satisfaction Award, or Prix Louis Dufour pour l'Amour du Ski.
  • The Young Leader Award went to Mont-Blanc's Nicolas Fortier.