SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Jan. 17, 2025—Vail Resorts reported that season-to-date total skier visits for North America were down 0.3 percent while lift ticket revenue rose 4.5 percent from the beginning of the ski season through Jan. 5, 2025, compared to the prior year period through Jan. 7, 2024.

Revenues from ancillary businesses were mixed. Snowsports school revenue was up 1.1 percent and F&B up 6.6 percent while retail/rental revenue for resorts and standalone store locations was down 5.4 percent.

Kirsten Lynch, chief executive officer, said the results "reflect the stability provided by our season pass program, our investments in the guest experience, and the execution of our mountain operations teams across all of our mountain resorts.” 

Lynch said that strong early-season local visitation, driven by improved weather conditions compared to the prior year, helped offset a decline in holiday visitation at its Western destination areas. She attributed the holiday decline to “the continued industry demand normalization” (i.e., a return to lower visitation as people return to traditional leisure activities that they avoided during the pandemic) and to “the late timing of the Thanksgiving holiday,” combined with “a shift of destination guest behavior to later in the season” that was amplified by last season’s poor early-season conditions.

Lynch added that ancillary spending trends reflected the higher mix of local visitation.

"For the remainder of the season,” Lynch added, “we are expecting improved performance compared to the season-to-date period … based on our significant base of pre-committed guests, current lodging booking trends, and historical guest behavior patterns.”

Lynch also said that VR was happy to have reached an agreement with the Park City Mountain patrol union, which went on strike during the Christmas/New Year’s holiday, disrupting operations from Dec. 27 through Jan. 8.

In a separate statement, VR said it will offer 2025-26 season pass credits to passholders and ticket purchasers who visited Park City during the strike, to compensate for reduced operations at the mountain. “We deeply regret the disruptions caused to our guests during the patrol union strike and are committed to … rebuilding their trust and loyalty," Lynch said.

In a letter to Park City guests, Deirdra Walsh, COO of Park City Mountain, wrote, “I want to sincerely apologize for the experience you had during the patrol strike at Park City Mountain which ended January 8. We deeply value your trust and loyalty, and while the mountain was open during this time, it was not the experience we wanted to provide you. We have heard your feedback and understand your frustrations.

“To address the on-mountain experience, we are providing all Pass Holders a 50 percent credit per day skied or snowboarded at Park City Mountain between December 27, 2024, and January 8, 2025, to apply toward the purchase of a 2025-26 pass of equal or greater value to their 2024-25 pass.”

The 50 percent credit is based on the pro-rated use of an Epic Pass of eight days, or the actual number of days purchased on an Epic Day Pass. The minimum credit is 25 percent of the cost of a pass holder’s 2024-25 pass.

Day-ticket buyers will receive a 50 percent credit of the price paid for each day of lift tickets, valid for the purchase of any Epic or Epic Day Pass for 2025-26.

“Our hope is that these customized credits demonstrate our commitment to you as a valued Pass Holder,” Walsh said.