Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA) reported that its 22 member resorts saw a slight bump in skier visitation for the first portion of the 2009-10 winter season over the same period of the year prior. CSCUSA resorts collectively posted an increase of 1% for the first period defined by the season's opening day of Oct. 7, 2009, through Dec. 31, 2009.
“It's a solid start,” commented Melanie Mills, president & CEO of Colorado Ski Country USA. “However, we still have a long way to go with a lot of season left. For now, we're glad to see a little momentum in the way of increased visitation and are hopeful it will continue.”
Late fall and early winter storms brought enough snow to Colorado that some resorts were able to open ahead of schedule and have the majority of their terrain available for holiday guests. Healthy snow conditions in the southwest and central parts of Colorado helped drive visitation to those resorts, while drier conditions in the northern part of the state in December limited first period visitation to some degree.
The holidays brought enthusiastic skiers and riders to the slopes, particularly during the New Year's week. Group business around the holiday time and robust international visitation in parts of the state also helped boost skier visit numbers. Ski schools were jam-packed, an indicator that skiers and riders are spending a bit more this year.
Skier visits are the metric used to track participation in skiing and snowboarding. A skier visit represents a person participating in the sport of skiing or snowboarding for any part of one day at a mountain resort.
