Tickets for the highly coveted annual Oxford and Cambridge Varsity Ski Trip tend to sell out in hours, but this year’s lack of interest suggests the demand might be melting away.

The Varsity Trip Facebook page continued to advertise available tickets two days after sales opened on 20 October at 12pm, leading some to question whether the hype might be fading.

Additionally, multiple students have begun selling discounted Varsity Trip tickets on Ticketbridge and Oxtickets, the Facebook marketplace pages for Cambridge and Oxford students, and under the comments of the Varsity Trip Facebook page. One student claimed they weren’t looking to make profit: “[I just] want to get rid of it”.

Last year Varsity Trip experienced its fastest sell out time ever, reportedly selling out within 38 minutes of opening sales. However, reports of spiking at a club night, concerns of safety, and complaints around organisation of the trip were well known last year and perhaps have left a mark on the legacy of the trip this following year.

The slump in sales this year also coincided with a raise in the base price from £399 in 2021 to £499 in 2022, as well as the removal of the optional Three Valleys Pass from the booking options this year. Varsity Trip reasoned this price increase due to “the price of coach travel to the Alps [having] nearly doubled in the past year”, while the removal of the Three Valleys Pass was reportedly due to an issue with the “opening dates of neighbouring resorts”.

In response, Varsity Ski Trip said several factors have led to the trip not selling out compared to previous years including inflation and the cost of living. They argue that trends seen by the trip are representative of larger issues in the tourism industry. Moreover, the team said demand last year saw a spike due to the trip being cancelled in 2020 and this year number’s are back at pre-pandemic levels.

On concerns for safety, the team commented that last year concerns were taken very seriously and have this year moved the venue in light of this. Amongst other changes, the team said issues last year were “extenuating circumstances” related to the pandemic and they are hoping that this year will be free of Covid related issues.