Staff report
Vail Resorts plans to invest about $180 million in the next two years to improve the guest experience across its 18 resorts.
Vail is making a two-year $35 million commitment to investments across its recent acquisitions, including Okemo Mountain Resort, Mount Sunapee in New Hampshire, Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado and Stevens Pass in Washington State.
Vail purchased Okemo, Mount Sunapee and Crested Butte Mountain from the Mueller family in September for $74 million. Vail purchased Stevens Pass from Ski Resort Holdings, LLC, for $64 million in August.
Vail plans to upgrade two on-mountain restaurants at Okemo—the Sugar House and the Summit Lodge—to offer new concepts and menus, as well as an updated look and feel to interior finishes and furnishings.
Okemo Public Relations Director Bonnie Macpherson didn’t have any more details available at the time of press. Vail said in a press release the upgrades within the next two years, pending permit approval.
“We are continuing to raise the bar for skiers and riders with meaningful, impactful improvements that will help to provide consistent, reliable and seamless experiences all season long,” said Rob Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts in a press release.
Vail has invested more than $1.2 billion in its resorts over the last decade.
Vail plans to increase express lift ticket fulfillment capacity by 40 percent through new handheld, mobile technology to allow skiers and snowboarders who purchased tickets in advance to bypass the ticket window.
“Reducing guest wait times is a top priority across Vail Resorts,” said Katz in the press release. “Direct-to-lift technology enhancements for advance purchase lift tickets is one of the more significant transformational investments we can make to improve the guest experience.”
