Further proof, were it needed that globalisation is real comes from the international property firm Knight Frank. It says ultra high net worth individuals from countries such as China, India, Indonesia and Singapore are among those keen to buy a ski home.

Further proof, were it needed that globalisation is real comes from the international property firm Knight Frank. It says ultra high net worth individuals from countries such as China, India, Indonesia and Singapore are among those keen to buy a ski home.

In its Prime Ski Property Index 2014, Knight Frank said the average price of a luxury ski home located across 20 of the world’s most desired resorts rose 5.9 per cent in the year to June, following a 4.6 per cent rise last year. The index fell to a trough in June 2009 – in the aftermath of the global financial crisis – and has since risen 23.5 per cent. The trend matches those seen in the firm’s barometers of house prices and cities.

Among the details is that €1 million will get a buyer around 117 square meters of a property in Chamonix but less than half of that – 50 sq m, in Courchevel.

“In the year to June, Knight Frank’s Alpine enquiries came predominantly from prospective European buyers, who together accounted for 61 per cent of all applicants. Interestingly, the Europeans were followed by Asian and Middle East buyers (12 per cent each), Russian and CIS nationals (5 per cent) and North Americans (5 per cent),” Kate Everett-Allen, partner, international residential research at the firm, said.

She said research shows that the Chinese alone undertake an average of 7 million ski visits per year, showing that Asian resorts will expand, while also providing further demand for resorts outside the region.

Some 25 per cent of Chinese UHNW individuals are interested in owning a ski home, the firm said; among Indians, that is 20 per cent. Some 19 per cent of such Indonesians are interested in such a purchase. For Hong Kong and Singapore UHNWIs, that is 11 per cent. Only 10 per cent of UK ultra-wealthy want to own a ski home.