Ski resorts face a winter without tourists
WITH BORDERS CLOSED, OPERATORS LOOK TO CANADIANS TO BRIDGE GAP
As Canada’s world- class ski resorts brace for a winter without international tourists due to closed borders, many are betting that locals eager to get onto the slopes will help make up for the lost revenues for the resorts.
Canada closed its borders since March to all but immediate and extended family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents to limit the spread of COVID-19.
That poses a problem for both the ski resorts and their towns, mainly concentrated in British Columbia and Quebec, who rely on international tourists buying ski lessons, renting gear and spending locally, to buoy their economies.
“We are desperately trying to make that up with domestic booking,” said Michael Ballingall, senior vice- president of Big White Ski Resort, located around 450 kilometres east of Vancouver. The resort plans to roll out flight deals and discounts on long- term stays to attract Canadians.
Although international visitors represent just 21 percent of reservations, they contribute 32 per cent of revenue, Ballingall said, underscoring how the different spending patterns of domestic visitors won’t necessarily bridge the budget gap — Canadians take fewer lessons, buy little or no equipment and eat out less frequently.
Ballingall said the resort had lost $ 4 million in bookings as of Sept. 1.
Whistler Blackcomb, the site of the 2010 Winter Olympics and consistently ranked as the top ski resort in the world by trade publications, is optimistic about locals filling in the gap left by international skiers, said Marc Riddell, West Coast director of communications for the resort’s owner, Vail Resorts Inc.
The company, which also owns Vail and Breckenridge resorts in Colorado, and Park City in Utah, reported in its most recent quarterly earnings that it had sold 18 per cent more passes as of September than in the season prior, in part driven by more people renewing their passes.
However, the dollar value of those sales decreased by 4 per cent year- overyear, because of credits from lost passes in the previous year due to the pandemic shuttering resorts early. Vail does not track the number of passes sold by each specific resort.
In Whistler, Riddell said, the resort is “optimistic it’ll be a good season, but we are aware of what’s going on around the world. We understand the border closure will have an impact on our traditional customer base.”
Tourism Whistler declined to say how much accommodation bookings dropped this year, but said that in a normal year 60 per cent of Whistler’s visitors were international. The overwhelming majority of those people are unlikely to be able to enter Canada this season.
The town’s mayor, Jack Crompton, thinks this means it will be an unusually good year for locals because the mountain will be missing so many skiers.
“One of the big advantages of Whistler is that when you’re here you’re very close to no one,” he said.
ONE OF THE BIG ADVANTAGES OF WHISTLER IS THAT WHEN YOU’RE HERE YOU’RE VERY CLOSE TO NO ONE.
Another boost to Whistler’s tourism is expected to come from Canadians relocating on a longer- term basis to take advantage of remote- work policies, to the point where the local tourism board has created a landing page on the topic, Crompton said.
For Sophie Galloway, 22, online classes and a lighter course load at her university in Vancouver mean that it’s been worth it to buy a season’s pass at Whistler, hoping for shorter lift lineups and emptier slopes.
She has been social distancing since March and is “looking forward to have skiing as that one thing” to do during the pandemic, she said.
“I would like to think ( Whistler is) taking good precautions,” she said, adding that she feels safe skiing because “unless you have an accident, you don’t have contact with a lot of people.”
In Quebec, ski areas and their patrons will face new challenges as they prepare for the coming season.
On Oct 16, the provincial government gave the okay for ski centres to open with strict guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“It’s great news that Quebecers will be able to ski this winter, but we’ll have to adapt like everyone else,”
I WOULD LIKE TO THINK (WHISTLER IS) TAKING GOOD PRECAUTIONS.
said Christian Dufour, the director of marketing for Les Sommets, a collection of six Laurentian ski areas that includes Mont St- Sauveur, Mont Gabriel and Ski Morin Heights, told the Montreal Gazette.
Skiers will have to cover their nose and mouth while on the slopes and it will be important to plan ahead.
“We’ve limited the number of season passes and single- day lift tickets,” Dufour said. “Our season pass holders will be guaranteed a spot, but single- day skiers will have to reserve their tickets in advance.”
October is prime time for season- pass sales with most areas offering reduced rates.
“Our sales have been good because people aren’t going to be travelling to the United States and we’ve had a bit of a real estate boom here,” Dufour said.
Charles Desourdy, the president of Ski Bromont, also reports strong season-pass sales.
“We’ ll be limiting the number of season passes we sell and we’re encouraging the baby boomers and other skiers who have time to ski during the week,” Desourdy said. “We’ve raised our prices on weekends and Christmas, high season.”
Desourdy said the green light for the winter season and government subsidies will allow him to keep his full- time employees on the payroll until the snow flies.
Social distancing will be enforced. Lift and gondola capacity will be reduced and there will be limits on the number of people in chalets.