SAM Magazine--Salt Lake City, Utah, May 17, 2005--Thanks to great snow that came early and often, increased marketing efforts and the unfortunate lack of snow in other regions, Utah logged 3,895,578 visits--a new all-time record. The visits represent a 12 percent increase over last year which logged the state's second-most skier visits at 3,386,141. And thanks to Snowbird, the stellar season is not over, yet. The area will close on May 30.

Utah resorts are also optimistic that the growth will continue. The State Legislature has appropriated 18 million dollars to fund tourism promotion over the next two years.

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