Vermont Tourism Reports
Strong Winter Season
MONTPELIER, Vt. — Vermont is wrapping up one of its best winter
seasons in recent memory, thanks to an ideal combination of significant and
persistent snowfall that drew millions of visitors here to enjoy a variety of
recreational activities.
According to the Department of
Tourism and Marketing, tax revenue collected for Rooms and Meals is showing
that this year’s snowy winter has been a good season for Vermont’s
tourism industry. Rooms and Meals tax revenue generated during December,
January and February is up $2.08 million (6.94 percent) over the previous
winter season, and $1.73 million (5.67 percent) over the same period two years
ago.
“The winter season has
been tremendously successful for our ski areas and local businesses that rely on
Vermont’s tourism economy,” said Governor Jim Douglas. “Many
of Vermont’s ski resorts, Nordic centers and snowmobiling trails remained
open through mid-April with excellent conditions, giving local businesses a
late-season boost during what is traditionally a quiet time in Vermont.”
A handful of ski areas are
still open, and the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers closed its
snowmobiling trails for the season on April 16. VAST’s entire 6,200-mile
snowmobiling trail network opened for the season on December 16, and the sale
of VAST trail passes increased from 27,000 during the 2006-07 season to 32,000
during the 2007-08 season.
“We’ve had an
incredible winter season that’s still going strong,” said Tourism
and Marketing Commissioner Bruce Hyde. “The amount of snow we’ve
received since December has certainly been a terrific boon to the
industry.”
The National Weather Service
in Burlington reported December as the fourth-snowiest on record, and that
February had its snowiest month ever with 42.3 inches, beating the previous
record of 34.3 inches set in 1958. In December, the Vermont Ski Areas
Association had its highest percentage of early season terrain open in eight
years.
“The winter ski
season has been phenomenal,” said Parker Riehle, president of
Ski Vermont, the Vermont Ski Areas Association. “The season was
marked by not only record snowfall, but with timing that was just perfect
because every weekend and key holiday period started with a fresh blanket of
snow with exhilarated skiers and riders close behind every
snowstorm. And, with so much snow still in the mountains, several ski
areas will be open well into late April.”
Visitors make 13.4 million
trips to Vermont each year and visitor spending adds an estimated $1.57 billion
to the state’s economy, according to VDTM research. The research shows
that 28.3 percent of those visits, or 3.8 million, are during the winter
season.
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