Where to Ski And Snowboard - Bumper ski season for US resorts

Bumper ski season for US resorts

18th June 2013, by Abi Butcher

Aspen reports 3 per cent more skiers during the 2012/13 season

America is reporting a bumper ski season, thanks to great snow conditions over the 2012/2013.

Eleven per cent more skiers and snowboarders visited US ski areas last season than during the 2011/12 season, the largest year-on-year increase in 30 years, according to provisional figures released by the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA).

Visits to resorts were up in all regions, and the most substantial increases were recorded at the end of the season — with 25 per cent more skiers choosing to head to the mountains from 26 March to the end of the season than over the same period the season before.

The 2011/2012 season was one of the worst ski seasons on record for the US, with a 10 per cent drop in skier and snowboarder visits to resorts blamed on bad snow conditions and the economy.
A spokesman for the NSAA said the good results were “another indication of the widespread rebound” for US ski areas.

Visits were up in all regions, with the biggest rebounds seen for the Pacific south west, up 20.5 per cent. The north east region was next, up 20.3 per cent, with the south east up 17.2 per cent. Impressive gains were also recorded in the midwest, up 11.5 per cent, and Pacific north west, up 7.5 per cent. Rocky Mountain resorts posted a 1.9 per cent increase last season from the 2011/12 season.

The NSAA will release final figures next month.