Western Mountain Destinations on Pace for Record Business

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SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Feb., 18, 2015—Aggregated mountain lodging revenues at 19 participating resorts in six western states are poised to eclipse the record business levels of the pre-recession 2007-08 season, according to the most recent data released by Denver-based DestiMetrics.

At the current pace, revenues will end the season up more than 10 percent over last year and 4.6 percent above the pre-recession record established in the 2007-08 season. As of Jan. 31, 97 percent of total revenues received last season have already been collected or are reflected in reservations made through the end of the season.

Participating lodging properties are also reporting an 8.7 percent increase in occupancy, with Rocky Mountain destinations—Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming—showing an 8 percent increase, while the Far West resorts—California, Nevada, and Oregon—have seen a 15.2 percent increase in occupancy compared to the same time last year. Corresponding revenues have been even stronger, with the Rockies up 14 percent and the Far West up 15.6 percent.

“Positive snow equity from last season and a brisk early season booking pace have been sustained through January, despite some erratic weather patterns,” said Ralf Garrison, director of DestiMetrics.

The impact of weather on destination visitation is modest compared to the impact it has on daily lift ticket sales, which tend to correlate more directly with weather, Garrison said. Still, short-term bookings can display a weather correlation. Despite that, reservations made in January for arrival in the same month were up 7.9 percent compared to the same time last year, despite a relative lack of major storms in the West.

All that points to a record revenue season for destination resorts. “Our end-of-season projections show that while seasonal occupancy still lags behind the 2007-08 pre-recession record by 0.4 percent, lodging rates are expected to be up significantly enough to generate the overall increase,” Garrison concluded.