The U.S. overtook France during the past winter season as the leading destination for skiing. The number of days spent by skiers on its slopes reached 56.2 million, ahead of France with 55.3 million days and Austria with 50.8 million days. The number of skiing days fell in all three countries, but the 1.3 percent rate of decline for the U.S. was lower than the drops of 4.5 percent in France and 6.3 percent in Austria. The relative interest in skiing in the U.S. was also reflected in increases of 7 percent in dollars and 4 percent in volume for retail sales of snow sports products in the country during the 2013/14 season, based on the latest market intelligence by Snowsports Industries of America (SIA), reported in the American edition of SGI.

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