Actual winter occupancy projections at a sample of North American mountain resorts as of Jan. 31 were running 1% below their low level of the same time a year earlier, according to data released by the Mountain Travel Research Program (MTRiP). Still, the figures mark a slight improvement from Dec. 31, when the projections were running 3% below the prior years low levels.
Reservations taken during the month of January for the next six months, meanwhile, rose 9.5% compared to January 2009 – the strongest pace seen in the past three months. Varying increases were also reported in five of the upcoming six months. Moreover, January marked the first month since April 2009 that actual occupancy increased compared to the same month last year. MTRiP combines season-to-date occupancy data with advance reservations through April to project actual occupancy for the winter resort season.
MTRiP estimated that as of Jan. 31, approximately 40% of winter guests have already come and gone, 40% have made their reservations, while the final 20% are still up in the air. As of last week, bookings for February were up 2.4% compared to February 2009 and booking for the next two months were strengthening, while reservations and bookings beyond March remained relatively weak.
