SAM Magazine—Huntsville, Utah, March 24, 2023—Snowbasin and Club Med cancelled development of a 320-room hotel, the plans for which were unveiled in September 2021. The Club Med hotel was originally scheduled to open for winter 2024. It would have been the resort’s first on-site lodging and Club Med’s first U.S. ski area location since the closure of its Copper Mountain, Colo., hotel in the mid-1990s. 

The decision came after discussions with Snowbasin ownership about where the resort finds itself now and where it wants to be in the future, Snowbasin general manager Davy Ratchford told SAM. 

“We’ve seen quite a bit of growth in the last couple of years,” he said. “It’s different than when we first started this [development plan], so we decided: let’s pause now and look at everything that supports that growth so we can continue to provide the great ski experience we always have with these new volumes.”

Ratchford said Club Med was understanding of Snowbasin’s need to reassess what will be best for the resort moving forward, and the timing was such that the two entities amicably parted ways. “The Club Med folks are awesome,” he said. “They’re great people.”

In a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune, Club Med cited Snowbasin’s desire to focus on the skier experience and “delays” for the cancellation of the project: “Unfortunately, while we had hoped our first U.S. project would be at Snowbasin, there have been delays and Snowbasin is reassessing their development plans on the mountain, instead focusing on improving the skier experience. As a result of these delays, Club Med is shifting its focus to other projects in its pipeline.”

The hotel was one portion of a significant 2021 capital plan for Snowbasin that included lifts, expanded terrain, snowmaking, and parking upgrades, as well as a new base village. The base village, scheduled to break ground in 2025, does include some lodging on a smaller scale. Those plans are part of the ongoing reassessment Snowbasin is undergoing.

“We’re still looking at all of those things,” said Ratchford, who pointed to all the work that goes into planning such projects, which have been in the works for years, including water, sewer, and other infrastructure. The decision to hold on building the Club Med was the first to be made since it was more immediate, “Whereas the other things are broader plans in our future development, so we’re still evaluating everything else in front of us—it’s part of the process of looking at where we want to be in the future. We are always deliberate and thoughtful in our approach, and we put the guest first.”

In a letter to passholders on Tuesday, Ratchford did share that a new six-passenger lift, the DeMoisy Express, announced earlier this year, is on track to open later in 2023. It will serve primarily intermediate and advanced terrain in the area, which is currently served by the Strawberry Gondola.

Thanks to more than 450 inches of snowfall—nearing the resort’s all-time record—Snowbasin recently extended its season until April 23, setting it on track for its longest winter season in history.

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