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« Previous Story | The Industry Report Home Page | Next Story » March 31, 2009 It’s ‘The Art Of The Deal’ As MTS Kicks In During Tough Times
Keystone, Colorado: Maybe Donald Trump was right. Sometimes it truly is in "the art of the deal." Hundreds of buyers and sellers - tour operators, lodges, resorts - went at it in almost a business-to-business frenzy Monday on the first day of the two-day MTS Trade Exchange. Customers want to know "what can you do for me?" The answer is clear: value added on top of the deep discounting,. The Group Exchange comes later in the week. "We began to analyze why five of our resort clients were up in business this season while all the others were down," Darryl Matevish of Rocky Mountain Tours told The Industry Report. "We discovered those resorts had come out early with products that were simple to understand and had a solid value-added component like a fourth night free included. "Customers understood it, saw the extra value, and it was slam bam from that point. The truth is that resorts like Whistler, Vail, and Taos carried the day because of that," Matevish said. ...continue reading »March 23, 2009 Mountain Travel Symposium Forecast: 'It's All Business This Time'
"All we hear from registered participants is that this year's Mountain Travel Symposium is all about business," Mike Pierson, President of Michael J. Pierson Associates, Inc., told The Industry Report. Pierson is co-producer of what has become North America's largest and most important business-to-business exchange and educational forum. "I have observed a level of intensity within the mountain travel industry that I have not experienced before in my 14 years of involvement with MTS. "Our regular and new participants have already recognized it is going to be crucial that they work effectively with their partners and that trust in those relationships and connections is going to be paramount in what remains, for the moment, a rather precarious economic environment," he said. ...continue reading » Snowboarding Is The Industry Bright Spot - It's, Well, 'Sick'
Americans were almost evenly split between skiers and snowboarders as of the winter of 2007-08, say the statistics. It's too early to have much more than anecdotal and retail sales data from this season as all of us focused on the sliding economy, but it's clear snowboarders did their share of sliding on snow. Greg Johnson of Vail, Colo., Competition Director for the U.S. Open, said snowboarding's appeal seems to lie in freedom and flow. ...continue reading » Blogosphere Mostly Mellow Over Vail Pay Cuts
March 18, 2009 Occupancy At Destination Resorts Down 16.3 Percent Over Last Winter
The Industry Report has learned the latest data from MTRiP will show that destination resorts are off 16.3 percent from last year in occupancy for the winter season, and 7.6 percent off in revenue. Ralf Garrison, Mountain Travel Research Program director, said, "Short-lead, short-haul business has been the defining pendulum this year. It has made the day for some, saved the day for others, and spoiled the day for yet others. Whether this proves to be a fad or a trend will determine how this season ends and how momentum for next season gets established." ...continue reading »March 16, 2009 VacationRoost Acquires Assets Of RDM/Moguls: Industry Chaos Avoided
The Industry Report has learned exclusively that VacationRoost has closed on the deal and plans to formally announce it later today. The deal itself - the acquiring of RDM's key assets, including its "experienced sales agents, strategic supplier relationships, and strong geographically-targeted Web sites," has been in the works since January when RDM/Moguls stopped accepting new reservations and approached VacationRoost as the economic slump worsened. It was clear that RDM could not withstand the downturn as a standalone company. In current parlance - RDM/Moguls was "underwater." ...continue reading » March 09, 2009 Quelle Economie? Quebec's Le Massif Defies Gloom And Doom With Dramatic Makeover
"This is a positive story, and we all know there aren't a lot of them out there," Groupe Le Massif Vice-President Frederic Gonzalo told The Industry Report on a day when the global economic news was anything but pretty last week. "It's the largest investment going on in Eastern Canada right now." The Territoire Le Massif project involves a 30 percent increase in skiable terrain from 410 acres to 533 acres, new base area and lifts; a train from Quebec City to La Malbaie, with a station at the ski area; a hotel and conference center in Baie Saint Paul; a new summit village; and a total of 850 rooms of various types. ...continue reading » How Smart Can We Get? Pretty 'Smart' In The Alps
Combining hands-free lift tickets and their electronic readers at the lift turnstiles with GPS technology, a link to the ticket holder's cell phone, and to their credit card or bank account are the four key elements that are coming together in an ever growing range of applications. The giant European ski business equivalents of Intrawest or Vail Resorts, such as the French Compagnie des Alpes (CdA) and the Italian Dolomiti Superski, are busy investing millions in their own technologies, with growing customer loyalty the key consideration. ...continue reading » Once Around The Ski Pole...
Five Star Greenery: Saas-Fee has opened Switzerland's first climate-neutral mountain hut called Vernissage Berghaus Plattjen, reports OnTheSnow.com's UK-based Alicia Gough. Vernissage will offer five-star services and culinary delights at a lofty height of 2418 meters above sea level. The CO2 emissions of the hut will be offset by the purchase of certificates and the proceeds will benefit people in Southwest Madagascar and the production of solar cookers. Stay with us, here. This reduces the use of firewood for cooking purposes, which in turn reduces CO2 emissions. Rockin' Out The Season: Pond-skimming may not be the swan song of choice for season-ending parties in the Alps. OnTheSnow.com's Sam Thorne tells us that Joe Cocker will headline SnowpenAir concert up on the Kleine Scheidegg at Grindlewald, Switzerland April 4. Meanwhile, Alicia Gough says Kylie Minogue will headline the Top of the Mountain concert in Ischgl, Austria May 2. Aw, somebody has to ski across a pond over there across the pond, don't they?... ...continue reading » March 05, 2009 Hold On - Tamarack Wants Ruling To Allow Reopening
The lawyer for the receiver, Douglas Wilson, said they had no choice but to close up shop as there was no money left to run the resort. Lawyers for both sides met with Judge Patrick Owen in 4th District Court today (March 5), with Tamarack challenging the decision. They claim that the receiver who had been appointed in October made a "unilateral" decision without consulting the judge or any other parties before taking what they call drastic measures. Lawyers for Credit Suisse, Tamarack's lenders, said that the loss is projected to be $3.6 million by April 30 so they chose to stop the bleeding. Tamarack's owners want to fire up the lifts, man the slopes, and reopen for skiing immediately. Judge Owen will issue a written ruling Tuesday (March 10). Then, there will be a new hearing to decide what will happen to Tamarack after April 30. ...continue reading » |
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