The National Ski Areas Association is reporting that ski resorts in New England and New York rebounded this past winter from a lackluster 2012 season with a 20 percent increase in skier visits.
The National Ski Areas Association says there were 13.3 million skier and snowboarder visits at New England ski resorts this winter. The Vermont Ski Areas Association will not release official numbers until its annual meeting on June 3rd. Spokesperson Sarah Neith explains that the association is still receiving reports from across the state, but the just-completed ski season easily outpaces the previous winter.
Neith says it wasn’t just heavy natural snowfall that helped boost resorts’ business.
Bill Stenger is President of Jay Peak Ski Resort in far northern Vermont.
The Olympic Regional Development Authority - ORDA - manages three ski areas in New York: Whiteface, Gore and Bellayre Mountains. Spokesman Jon Lundin says visitor numbers were up substantially at all of the resorts. He says Whiteface parallels the regional report, with visits up about 20 percent.
The additional revenues should help ski resorts recover from losses in 2012 and, Bill Stenger explains, prepare for future seasons.
One Vermont ski area is still open for spring skiing. Killington will have intermediate and advanced trails open weekends only through June 2nd, if the snow lasts that long.
