Skiers flocking to Vail Resorts’ properties boost revenues

Vail Resorts is reporting revenue being up this season compared to a year ago at its six ski resorts based on data through Jan. 6.

Highlights for the two California and four Colorado resorts adjusted as if Northstar-at-Tahoe that was acquired in October 2010 was owned in both periods include:

• Season-to-date total lift ticket revenue up approximately 7.4 percent.

• Season-to-date total skier visits up approximately 10.1, including higher utilization by season pass holders.

• Season-to-date ancillary spending increased significantly, with revenue from ski school up 11.5 percent, dining up 13.3 percent, and retail/rental up 17.5 percent.

Lots of snow in Colorado this season is helping Vail Resorts' bottom line. Photo/Kathryn Reed

CEO Rob Katz, in a prepared statement on Jan. 10, said, “Our early season visitation was strong, especially as our growing season pass holder base enjoyed the outstanding snow conditions across all of our mountain resorts. While the Christmas to New Year’s week was negatively impacted by storm related challenges in the Northeast that kept some of our guests at home, as well as two days of unusually cold temperatures in Colorado, we feel great about results to date and the momentum we have going into the remainder of the season. Importantly, we observed strong ancillary spending, yielding gains in all categories that outpaced lift ticket revenue growth and marked a continuation of the improving consumer spending trends we first reported in the spring of 2010. Furthermore, in our first season of operation, we are pleased with the performance of Northstar-at-Tahoe, as it is showing improved results to date over the prior year. Northstar is proving to be a great addition to our family of premier resort properties and Tahoe area skiers have embraced the opportunity to ski our two Tahoe resorts on one pass product, which contributed to the strong growth in visitation by season pass holders. We also saw strong revenue growth across our lodging division and are seeing a continued strong booking pace at all of our resorts.”

The publicly traded company, which also owns Heavenly Mountain Resort in Tahoe, closed up 0.45 to $51.95 on Monday.