Club Med’s Indoor Ski Resort To Add World’s Longest Indoor Slope

A recently opened Club Med destination in China, which incorporates an indoor snow slope, has proved so successful in its first six months of operations that the company has announced plans to add a second slope, which will be the world’s new longest indoor slope.

Club Med’s Urban Oasis Taicang Resort, located an hour from downtown Shanghai, opened at the end of 2023 and has already attracted more than 300,000 visitors. Now the local Municipal Government has announced that it will fund ‘Phase 2’ of the development to the tune of 5 billion yuan ($690m US) which will include a 590 metre long indoor snow slope.

Although there have been plans announced over the years to build indoor snow slopes of up to 1.3km in length, the longest, for two decades now, both at around 620 metres, have continued to be at Amneville in France and The Alpincenter Bottrop, Germany.

The ski resort will feature three slopes: a freestyle slope, an intermediate slope, and a 690 metre  advanced slope with the two linked indoor snow centres together offering a total slope length of 1,700 meters (1.1 miles).

The new Chinese slope will also have the biggest indoor vertical in the world at 120m (the first of more than 100 metres) and with 190,000 square metres of indoor floor space will have more than twice the indoor snow area of its nearest competitor at Harbin, to its north in China.

The iconic French Club Med brand was purchased by the giant Chinese conglomerate Fosun in 2013 who have since set about modernising it global portfolio of resorts which currently includes 25 outdoor ski resorts worldwide, most in France, but also in Canada and Japan and three new outdoor ski resorts in China – at Yabuli, Beidahu, and Changbaishan.  Fosun will operate the expanded resort.

"As a key snow-themed one-stop high-end urban resort destination created by Fosun Tourism Group, Taicang Alps Resort has quickly become a popular destination for families and young people in the Yangtze River Delta region since its opening in November 2023. The signing of the Phase II project not only demonstrates our leadership in the ice-snow industry but also represents a significant milestone in Fosun Tourism Group's light asset operation strategy,” said Xu Xiaoliang, Co-CEO of Fosun International who added, “In the future, Fosun Tourism Group will continue to leverage its global resources and industry operation capabilities in the ice-snow industry, bringing more engaging and diversified ice-snow vacation experiences."

Besides the indoor snow slopes the complex will incorporate slopeside hotels, a water park, hot springs, an aquarium and themed restaurants as well as offer many activities bungee jumping, and interactive light shows.

“With the launch of Phase II, Taicang Alps Resort is moving closer to its goal of becoming the "world's leading and largest indoor ice-snow vacation and entertainment destination." The goal is to establish a globally recognized one-stop destination for winter sports tourism,” a spokesperson for the project commented.