The economy may have fallen off a cliff last year, but the ski industry’s drop was a lot gentler. Preliminary reports show there were 57.1 million visits to ski slopes in the U.S. during the winter, a 5.5 percent decline from the record 60.5 million visits the year before.
It could’ve been worse without favorable weather in most parts of the country that helped offset the slumping economy, the National Ski Areas Association said Friday.
The figures were released as ski executives attended an annual convention and trade show in Florida, where spokesman Troy Hawks said many ski managers felt they had dodged a bullet.
“The positive thing is that it was a fairly strong snow year,” Hawks said. “Many of the resorts said they would probably rather have a bad economy and a good snow year versus a good economy and a bad snow year.”
Those suffering the most from the economic meltdown were destination resorts, many of which reported fewer overnight visits and shorter stays, the association said. By contrast, many day-ski areas benefited from skiers who chose to ski closer to home.
As for the coming ski season, industry officials offered mixed reviews. An early indicator of skier enthusiasm will be the sales of season passes, Hawks said. Many season passes were sold last summer before the stock market took its big dive, he noted.
You may also like…
- Europe – A review of the ski season for 2008/09
- Vermont ski resorts win awards for going green
- Ski resorts in Bulgaria under investigation
- Vermont ski resorts survive the tourism blizzard
- Profits for 3rd quarter at Vail Resorts drop by 29 percent
- Vail Resorts income slides 52%
- Skier visits down 5.5% for the season in Colorado
- New tourism model looks at skiing visitor experiences and passions
- New Hampshire ski resort results for 2008/09
- Air Alps Aviation report drop in ski travel demand
Loading ...
