NEW YORK— Representatives of the Colorado Ski Country USA trade association were in New York this week, outlining plans that hotels in their state have made to accommodate the influx of leisure travelers expected for the forthcoming ski season. After a strong season last year, hotels in resorts in Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Keystone, Vail, and other destinations are raising the bar another notch in the hope that 2006-2007 will deliver an even greater number of bookings. “The 26 ski areas of Colorado hosted more than 12.53 million skier visits during the 2005-2006 winter season,” noted association director Rob Perlman. This is an increase of more than 700,000 skier visits than in the 2004-2005 season and a million visits more than the state’s five-year skier visit average. The previous record had been set in 1997-1998. “With two back-to-back years of solid growth in the state, momentum is in our favor,” he said. In Breckenridge, Vail Resorts Development Co. has begun development of The Peaks at Breckenridge project, a master-planned ski-in/ski-out community that includes lodging, a spa, and dining as well as residences and skier services. Because hotels depend on top quality ski facilities to attract bookings and ensure repeat business, they tend to be big boosters of improvements to these facilities. A new gondola in Breckenridge, for example, will go into service this year with terminals at two peaks to transport guests to base areas more conveniently. The first phase of Crested Butte’s $200 million Mountaineer Square development is nearing completion. The ski area’s central Gothic Building is being demolished and reconstructed. Renamed Cimarron, the new building will house luxury resort residences as well as retail stores, F&B outlets, and ski and snowboard rental facilities. As in other resort markets, spas have become an increasingly popular amenity among skiers. In Keystone, the Keystone Lodge, a RockResort hotel, has completely renovated and expanded its spa. The new facility will feature 10 treatment rooms, including a relaxation room, couples treatment room, and hydro-tub treatment room. The spa is intended to serve guests at the Keystone Conference Center, the Inn at Keystone, and more than1,200 mostly residential condominiums in addition to guests at the lodge. Meanwhile in Vail, approximately $180 million has been spent in recent years to refurbish hotel rooms and upgrade facilities, including spas, restaurants, and retail shops. More than 100 new lodge units and 9,250-square feet of retail space are already open or are scheduled to open later this year.
