Vail Resorts will be spending a considerable amount of money to make improvements at a number of its ski resorts for the 2015-16 ski season.
Vail Resorts will invest approximately $110 million to $115 million in resort improvements for the upcoming season to elevate the guest experience, bringing its five-year resort investment total to more than $500 million.
The centerpiece of this plan will be linking Park City and Canyons, transforming the two resorts into one and completing a number of critical upgrades to the infrastructure.
The $50 million project is one of the most ambitious and impactful capital programs in U.S. ski industry history and will create the largest ski resort in the United States with over 7,300 acres of skiable terrain.
“The overall capital plan reflects our goal to target high return investments which support a premium experience and our improvement plan in Utah will be one of the most transformative ever undertaken in the ski industry,” said Rob Katz, chief executive officer of Vail Resorts.
Other improvements include upgrading Vail Mountain’s Avanti Express Lift (#2) to a six-passenger high-speed chairlift, expanding the “refreshing” snowmaking system at Beaver Creek, adding new snowmaking to the recently opened Peak 6 terrain at Breckenridge, refreshing the rooms and common areas at the Keystone Lodge and Spa, and unveiling EpicMix Time, a new crowd-sourced, real-time technology which will bring transparency to lift line wait times.
Projects underway and planned this summer: Combining Park City and Canyons into the largest ski resort in the U.S. – The plan to combine Park City and Canyons Resort into the largest ski resort in the U.S. includes the eight-passenger, high-speed, two-way Quicksilver gondola which will transport guests from the base of the existing Silverlode Lift at Park City to the Flatiron Lift at Canyons.
Miners Camp restaurant: Located at the base of the Silverlode Lift, will accommodate 500 indoor seats and will be equipped with a top-of-the-line kitchen. The plan will also complete a number of critical upgrades to the infrastructure of both resorts, including upgrading the King Con and Motherlode Lifts, upgrading the Summit House Restaurant and expanding Red Pine Lodge, new and widened trails, and additional snowmaking.
Six-Passenger Avanti Express Lift (#2) at Vail: Vail Mountain continues its wave of investments, replacing the Avanti Express Lift (#2) with a six-passenger lift. The Avanti Express Lift (#2) is a primary lift on the front side of Vail Mountain, serving intermediate and advanced terrain, dispersing skiers and snowboarders from the Lionshead area to mid-mountain. Upgrading the lift will reduce wait times and improve reliability. A loading conveyor and gates will improve efficiency and increase capacity by up to 30 percent, vastly improving skier and snowboarder circulation.
Beaver Creek snowmaking: Beaver Creek’s commitment to providing high-quality snow surfaces for skiers and riders further expands this season. Last season, Gold Dust Trail was equipped with 24 fully-automated fan guns. This winter, 23 fully-automated fan guns will equip Red Tail and Centennial trails, two of the most popular intermediate runs on the mountain. Snowmaking guns will also be added to enhance the “Snowmaking Refresh” fleet and tasked to add a dusting of snow atop the groomed trails. This one-of-a-kind system ensures, regardless of natural snowfall, the resort’s guests will always be skiing or riding on the freshest snow available every day.
Snowmaking at Breckenridge: The Colorado resort will lay a mile of new snowmaking pipes on Lost Horizon and Barton Breezeway trails on Peak 6. Adding snowmaking to this lower-mountain terrain is critical to get the popular new area open in the early season regardless of natural snowfall.
The Keystone Lodge and Spa Refresh: Will undergo its own rejuvenation where the hallways will have a new feel after being re-carpeted and the woodwork and room doors being replaced. In addition, the guest rooms on all six floors will be upgraded with new soft goods (pillows, bed spreads, etc.)
EpicMix Time, crowd-sourced lift line wait times: EpicMix™ Time– an expansion of Vail Resorts’ industry-leading and award-winning ski and snowboard app, EpicMix – will allow guests at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone to access real-time lift line wait times enabling them to better navigate the mountain and make the most out of their ski and ride experience. Leveraging recently developed technology, EpicMix Time will calculate and display up-to-the-minute chairlift and gondola line wait times across 55 core lifts and gondolas, as well as 13,600 acres of skiable terrain in Colorado.
Jeffrey Weidel can be reached at skiweidel@gmail.com. Thanks for visiting his website at www.tahoeskiworld.com
