For the second consecutive year, Colorado hosted a record number of skier visits, bolstered by momentum from the previous season as well as early snowfall.
More than 12.56 million visits were recorded by the state’s 26 resorts between October and June, according to figures released Thursday by Colorado Ski Country USA, a nonprofit trade organization.
Colorado also broke a national record by grabbing 23 percent of the U.S. ski-industry market share.
“We have a lot of great advantages in Colorado, and one is the consistency of the product,” said Rob Perlman, chief executive of Ski Country. “It’s an unbelievable winter vacation experience.”
Resorts and retailers from Durango to Eldora touted Colorado’s consistent snowfall but also pointed to the inconsistency of snow in other resort markets.
“The publicity from the Denver snowstorm last year told the world that Colorado had snow pre-Christmas,” said Bill Jensen, president of the Mountain Division of Vail Resorts. “At that point, there was no snow in Europe and no snow to speak of in New England.”
Colorado was the first state to open the ski season in mid-October, Perlman said.
Loryn Kasten, director of communications with Durango Mountain Resort, said that when snowfall began to wane in the spring at her resort, others across the state were still big draws.
“There’s always good snow somewhere in Colorado,” Kasten said.
International tourism also helped Colorado, with just under a millionskiers coming from outside the U.S., Perlman said. At 8 percent of skiers, the international visits were also a record for Colorado.
“With the current weakness of the U.S. dollar on the international market, we certainly see that as an opportunity to bring more international visitors to the state,” Jensen said. He also pointed to the addition of flights from Munich, Germany, into Denver International Airport as a future incentive for international skiers.
Perlman credited the Colorado Tourism Office with some of the success.
“The $19 million they spend to promote Colorado helps to create a louder voice in the market,” he said.
Retailer Joe Larkin, regional director with Aspen Sports, said he noticed increased foot traffic throughout the year.
“We had wonderful snow conditions during Christmas and as a result, fashion sold really well,” Larkin said.
Spokespeople at Colorado resorts said they will continue to focus on customer relations and hope for good, early snowfall next season.
Staff writer A.J. Miranda can be reached at 303-954-1381 or amiranda@denverpost.com.
