Bookings at Western Ski Resorts Drop Sharply

 

The estimate by MTRiP LLC is based on a sample of 216 property management companies in 15 mountain destinations across Colorado, Utah, California and British Columbia.

The average daily rate charged for the November to April period, meanwhile, declined 6.1% from the same period last winter.  That marked the first time since MTRiP started the survey in 2004 that winter room rates have dropped, said Ralf Garrison, director of the Mountain Travel Research Program.

 

Only three of the resorts had better bookings for December than a year ago. The number dropped to one for January. The new data, record low consumer confidence and last month’s historic drop in retail sales mean resorts and resort-based retailers should not rely on snow to save their season this year.   “The time we’ve got to impact that is getting pretty short,” Garrison told clients in a webinar last week. “We as an industry should not count on a silver bullet.”  

As Garrison spoke, Intrawest – one of North America’s largest ski resort operators – confirmed it was laying off an undisclosed number of employees due to the “current economic environment.” The Vancouver, BC based company owns and operates the Whistler Blackcomb, Copper Mountain, Snowshoe, Stratton, Steamboat, Winter Park and other ski resorts.

However, at Christy Sports in Colorado, Director of Mountain Operations Bob Dapper said he is not ready to pull out the red pen yet. The company operates 30 shops in mountain resorts and another 12 in the Denver and Salt Lake City areas. While bookings remain weak at many resorts for the week after Christmas, Dapper is confident they will rebound quickly if lodging and airline companies bring prices down quickly enough. 

“We have trained people in this industry that the closer you get to the main event – MLK,  Christmas, President’s Day – if bookings are not strong the lodging industry drops its pants and the airlines get more competitive,” he said. “So in bad economy that type of booking is going to be much more prevalent.”

Remote destination resorts like Whistler Blackcomb appear most vulnerable, because they rely more on international and domestic tourists who plan further in advance. Resorts within driving distance of major cities can at least shift their marketing dollars toward those markets.  Lake Tahoe, for instance, has already boosted advertising in San Francisco. Vermont and New Hampshire, meanwhile, can focus on Boston and New York and resorts along Colorado’s Front Range can zero in on the 3.5 million people living between Fort Collins and Colorado Springs.

Rather than drop rates, destination resorts are offering free nights and meals to get drive-in guest to extend their weekend trips. Whistler Blackcomb, one the most remote in North America, is offering a ski-and-stay package for $98 per person per night for those booking 5-night trips for Jan. 4 or later by Jan. 15.

 

The offer, which includes free breakfast and early mountain access, is equivalent to getting a fifth night of lodging and fourth day of skiing for free. Peak rates have not declined, but some resorts are encouraging mid-week visits with special pricing, said Randy Friedman, director of ski and travel for the Boston Ski & Sports Club. The club has also noticed more interest in western U.S. resorts over European resorts, despite the appreciation of the dollar.

Preliminary data from Snowsports Industries America indicate snow sports sales slowed but held up relatively well in October, but it’s still too early to measure the impact of all the recent economic news. Sales appear to have been up in the Northeast, Northern Rockies and Northwest; flat in the travel oriented markets of the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest; but down in the mountain states of Utah and Colorado, said David Ingemie, president of SIA. “Apparel sales are showing the most strength, while equipment sales are down everywhere. It appears chain store sales are off 2%, or about where they were in August and September,” he said.

Those estimates are born out at King Keyser Ski and Snowboard, based in the affluent Chicago suburb of Hinsdale.  Sales are essentially flat, according to owner Rick Johnson. He said parents polled while buying apparel for their kids say they still intend to travel west to ski this year.  On the flip side, more customers than ever have inquired about upcoming sales. “People are watching their budgets at home and that is creeping in,” Johnson said.

That was also the feeling at the Ski Dazzle show in San Jose, CA and Colorado Ski and Snow Board Expo in Denver, according to Ken Gart, president of Specialty Sports Ventures.  SSV, which operates 140 shops mostly in Colorado and California, including Any Mountain, sells gear acquired in close-outs to consumers at the shows for discounts of 40% or more.

“Both of those shows showed demand in front-range/day-tripper kind of skier that is significantly stronger than current indicators on destination skiers,” said Gart. “There is definitely demand on the value side.”  Gart said the big concern right now is over how promotional the holiday season will become. He thinks close-outs will come sooner and will be larger this year.  

Big box retailers are definitely advertising last year’s gear in their Sunday flyers, according to Dapper of Christy Sports.  But so far, no one in its markets has broken price points on new product.
The only significant change at Christy’s this season will be a greater focus on renting gear.

 

The company added about 800 pairs of skis to its fleet this year because it sees a long-term trend toward rental.  “We believe there are some good opportunities for us to pick up some ground we lose in retail with rental,” he said, noting that increasingly popular ski systems now retail for $1,100. “Cowboy math lets you know that not everybody and their brother is going to be buying skis as they have in the past.”