Distant destination ski and snowboard resorts will be facing strong headwinds of rising airfares, diminishing flight schedules and new fees for transporting skis and snowboards. In the past, the main problems faced by marketers were financial and emotional — costs vs. great snow. Today, even when snow conditions are great, changes in airlift capacity might mean no airline seats to reach destination resort slopes.
What bodes poorly for distant destination resorts will be a boon for resorts with strong drive traffic and will mean more families choosing to take their vacations with a long drive. The increase in airfares and the decrease in airlift capacity are exacerbated by the new fee structures imposed by many of the airlines that can add another $50 to $100 to the airline charges when skiers and snowboarders carry their equipment. When baggage fees are considered, many air transportation costs are double what they were 12 months ago.
The disincentives to flying for skiers and snowboarders will be a two-edge sword for resorts within driving distance of major metropolitan areas. Many winter vacationers who might have traveled cross-country will opt to stay closer to home. Between the hassles of normal airline travel and the additional problems and costs of lugging winter sports equipment, driving a few hours with friends and family seems downright agreeable.
With gasoline prices now dropping to the $3-a-gallon level the differences between drive costs and flying costs for a famly of four become dramatic.
I expect resorts in New Engand like Stratton Mountain and Bretton Woods to have a banner season because flying to the Rocky Mountains will cost far more than driving to New Hampshire or Vermont. Even resorts in the north of Maine like Sugarloaf and Saddleback will be far more economical alternatives than Western resorts for East Coast skiers and riders. A good snow year for New England will clinch the deal.
The front range of Colorado within easy access of Denver and Colorado Springs will find their local traffic increasing and becoming more important to the bottom line than ever before. Traffic jams between Summit County and Denver will discourage some from driving to the mountains, however, weekday visitors will probably increase because skiers and snowboarders who might head out of state will probably stay close to home.
Some of the elite Colorado resorts like Aspen, Beaver Creek and Vail may face some economic backlash. However, until the recent financial crisis, many of their high-paying luxury customers were not concerned with costs. This year will be different. Fortunes have been decimated as the stock market crashed and financial firms went bankrupt.
In California, the Lake Tahoe region will take a heavy hit if the airfares into Reno don’t come down. The Reno airport has long been a linchpin for tourism in the region and has been the focus of the city’s tourism campaigns. Fortunately for the Reno businesses and the Lake Tahoe resorts, the nearby San Francisco metropolitan area provides plenty of driving-distance skiers and riders. Mammoth Mountain has historically relied on the LA basin for the majority of its skiers.
Utah resorts that have traditionally drawn the majority of their clients from out of state are already offering deals to bring skiers and snowboarders through Salt Lake City to their resorts that are legendary for dry powder snow.
Both Reno and Utah have the benefit of being major Southwest Airlines destinations with plenty of flights from the west coast to their airports. Southwest’s reasonable airfares and no-fee policies will help the Tahoe and Utah resorts make it through the season without the same levels of traditional traffic that once arrived from the east coast.
Canadian resorts are going to take a hit from the point of view of US tourists. Though the Canadian dollar has soften a bit against the US dollar, costs are about the same as in the US and airfares are more outrageous and more limited. Distant resorts like Lake Louise and Sunshine at Banff near Calgary are going to feel the financial effects. However, since their bed base is not enormous and their biggest money-making season is the summer, the community will live to fight another day.
Whistler/Blackcomb, way on the west coast, has the benefit of the coming Winter Olympics to add marketing muscle to combat the financial and transportation headwinds. But their destination business is sure to suffer as well.
Few winter seasons have presented marketers at North America’s ski and snowboard resorts with the challenges that will be faced over the next six months. The nearby markets will be more important than ever and group travel such as ski clubs will become a bigger factor. A good snow year, however, will bring smiles to every skier, snowboarder and resort owner’s face.
