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Northstar-at-Tahoe was recently purchased by Vail resorts for $63-million.
California’s Northstar-at-Tahoe ski resort has become the latest acquisition by Vail Resorts. After going through some major renovations and expansion, the resort became an acquisition target and was reportedly snapped up from Booth Creek Resort Properties LLC for $63-million. Continue reading ‘Vail continues expansion with purchase of Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort’
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Vail is launching a series of sites aimed at promoting corporate social responsibility and the environment.
Vail has launched the first generation of new websites aimed to drive the outline company’s efforts on the environment and social responsibility and community engagement. Continue reading ‘Vail promotes social responsibility with new website’
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Keystone Ski Resort
PO Box 38
Keystone
Colorado
USA
CO 80435
Telephone: (970) 4682316
Website: www.snow.com
Under same ownership as Breckenridge and aquired in 1997 by Vail Resorts INC., Keystone has the largest night-skiing operation in Colorado and North America’s biggest ice rink (five acres).
Under the same ownership as Breckenridge and acquired in 1997 by Vail Resorts Inc., Keystone’s numerous claims to fame include the largest night-skiing operation in Colorado and North America’s biggest ice rink (five acres).
The resort’s ski area is relatively unusual, resembling Les Deux Alpes in France, in that the trails and mountains stack out in a line behind the resort itself, rather than following the more common model of running side-by-side above the resort valley. The mountains become slightly higher and slightly steeper the further back you go, creating Keystone’s heavily promoted ‘Outback’ area beneath Outback Peak, the third and furthest mountain from the resort base. Here you will find the above treeline open bowl skiing that has become a requirement of all major Western US ski areas, as well as the equally obligatory tree skiing. In common with most of the resorts in the area Keystone’s history is relatively short with the familiar meteoric rise to fame of neighbours such as Copper Mountain and Vail.
Keystone opened in 1970 with three lifts and a $5 lift ticket attracting 75,000 visitors in its first season. After purchase by a St Louis based company in 1978 the resort acquired neighbour Arapahoe Basin in 1978, at the time allowing it to claim the highest lift-served terrain in the US. Although Arapahoe Basin has been knocked down to third place in the ‘highest lifts’ league of the US, and is no longer owned by Keystone since the Vail purchase, it is still on a joint lift ticket which also includes other Vail resorts including Breckenridge and Beaver Creek. The Ski The Summit Pass, which was for most of the ’90s one of the very few multi-area passes in North America and included Copper Mountain, no longer exists however.
The resort had the biggest terrain expansion in the US for ten years in 1984 when it opened its second mountain, North Peak, adding night skiing the following year. The Outback, the resort’s third mountain, was opened as part of a $32 million expansion in 1990. The following year the Alpenglow Stube restaurant, the highest gourmet restaurant in North America, opened.
The other two major events of the 1990s were the announcement of plans to build a $400 million base village in conjunction with Intrawest in 1994 (this has subsequently grown in to a 15 year $1 billion redevelopment plan) and the purchase by Vail in 1997. The on-going spending means that visitors see dramatic change and new dining, lodging and shopping options every season should they choose to visit regularly, and will continue to do so at least until the current plan is completed in 2009.
Keystone, Vail Resorts, Summit County, Colorado, Rockies, USA
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Heavenly Ski Resort
PO Box 2180
Stateline
California/Nevada
USA
NV 89449
Telephone: (775) 5867000
Website: www.skiheavenly.com
One of the largest ski areas in the United States and one of the few North American ski areas with more than a 1,000m vertical. Heavenly is now owned by Vail Resorts and has base areas in Nevada and California. There are spectacular views over Lake Tahoe and great nightlife and resort facilities along the south side of the Lake.
Heavenly is unique. For those of us that collect facts and figures about ski resorts it’s unique because it exists in two US States, with just over half of its lifts in California, the remainder in Nevada. It can also claim to have the biggest vertical on the western coast of the United States, the biggest ski area in California (and the second biggest in North America) and the highest skiing in the famous Tahoe region. More important than the numbers though is the stunning scenery as you look down on Lake Tahoe, North America’s largest alpine lake, and for many visitors the availability of Tahoe’s legendary ’24 hour nightlife’ once they’re off the slopes.
It was the view, and the ‘heavenly relief’ of the warm air rising, that lead settlers in the 1800s (arriving in the area from the backside of Heavenly rather than the Tahoe side), to give the area its name. A century later, the name ‘Heavenly ‘ fortunately turned out to be a marketing man’s dream.
Of course, this being a huge ski area, there is terrain to suit everyone, with sharp chutes on one side and long wide open cruisers on another.
Snow is another asset for which Heavenly is famous, its average annual dump of nearly 30 feet (around 9 metres) is of course vast, but 70% of the trails have snowmaking cover, one of North America’s largest machine-made blizzards, giving top-to-bottom coverage on both Nevada and California sides. Natural snow has been known to fall on the high Sierra where Heavenly sits during every month of the year. It means Heavenly is amongst the first resorts in North America and the world to open each season, sometimes by mid-October; and often stays open well into May.
Heavenly has been around for 50 years now and has gone through various metamorphises during that time. There were skiers here longer ago than in most places, most notably the famous Snowshoe Thompson who crossed over the area where Heavenly now stands when carrying the mail by ski in the mid-nineteenth century.
Heavenly’s current owner is Vail Resorts, the group’s first full resort purchase outside of Colorado. The company bought Heavenly during a period of major improvement both on the mountain and around the South Lake Tahoe area at its base. The biggest improvement for the ski area is the new Village at Heavenly with the Heavenly Gondola as it’s centrepiece. Two new Marriot properties sandwich the Gondola base lodge and the Village also included a Cinema, Ice Skating Rink anda multitude of shops, reastaurants and bars.
Heavenly, Ski Lake Tahoe, Sierra Nevada, California, Vail Resorts, USA
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Breckenridge Ski Resort
PO Box 1058
Breckenridge
Colorado
USA
CO 80424
Telephone: (970) 4535000
Email: breckguest@vailresorts.com
Website: www.snow.com or www.breckenridge.com
One of Colorado’s most popular resorts, with expert skiing up to 12,998 feet if you want to hike up the last two hundred feet. The ski area is spread over 4 peaks. Breckenridge is not purpose-built but an original mining town with 171 listed buildings. Breckenridge is the most popular US destination for European skiers and the second most popular ski resort in the US in terms of skier visits (1.2 million).
One of Colorado’s most popular resorts, with North America’s highest skiing since 2005, when the resort opened the world’s highest chairlift. The ski area is spread over four peaks. Breckenridge is not purpose-built but an original mining town with 171 listed buildings. It is the most popular US destination for European skiers and is consistantly one of the three most popular ski resorts in the US in terms of skier visits with somewhere around 1.5 million annually. The skiing is served by around two-dozen lifts, including an impressive number of high-speed chairs, and spreads over lift-linked mountains with double-black diamond bowl and chute skiing above.
Off the slopes its a busy and vibrant resort with an excellent range of eating, shopping and other leisure facilities, made all the more pleasant by the backdrop of historic buildings. In 2007 a new gondola opened connecting the resort toiwn to the base of Peak 8. At the end of the day skiers and boarders can ride back via the Skyway Skiway.
The resort’s history is a long one – with the Ute Indians knowing it for around 10,000 years as Nah-oon-kara before European settlers discovered Gold in the area in August 1859. It then took less than a week for a town of 360 acres to be established and for more than a thousand miners to arrive.
The Breckenridge Ski Area first opened in 1961 with two chairlifts serving a handful of runs on Peak 8, operated by a timber company, After a Denver businessman set up Breckenridge Ski Corporation in 1966 it was bought and owned by Aspen for almost two decades up to 1988 during which time the resort opened Peaks 9 and 10, introduced snow making and installed the world’s first high-speed quad, starting the on-going high speed lift technology revolution in 1981.
Breckenridge broke the 1 million skier visits record in 1988 when the resort was sold by Aspen to a Japanese company. In 1993 Peak 7 opened and a company called Ralston Purina bought Breckenridge from the Japanese owners. This company merged with Vail Resorts in 1997 to form the largest mountain resort company in the US, owning Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone and Beaver Creek
Breckenridge, Vail Resorts, Summit County, Colorado, Rockies, USA, Breckenridge Peak 9, Breckenridge Peak 10, Peak 8, Peak 7, USA
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Vail resorts have announced plans to spend between $75-$85m on resort improvements at its five ski centres ahead of next winter, although much of this investment appears to be going on new property developments.
Continue reading ‘Vail earmarks $85 million to upgrade five resorts’
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