Vail Resorts continues to grow and with all that development comes additional investment.
Most recently, Vail Resorts acquired Wilmot Mountain outside of Chicago and the resort group based in Broomfield, Colorado has just put down a significant investment in the mid-west ski area. How big an investment you ask– $13,000,000!
“We think our guests from Chicago and Milwaukee will be thrilled with the investments we are making at Wilmot for the 2016-2017 ski season, which represents one of the biggest transformations ever undertaken for a Midwestern ski area,”– Rob Katz, Vail Resorts Chairman and CEO
The new investment is targeting lifts operations, snowmaking abilities, and a “base area transformation,” according to the Vail Resorts’ press release.
Vail Resorts’ Planned Improvements:
- New Lifts. Three new four-person chairlifts will replace existing lifts. Combined with a new high-speed rope tow in the terrain park and two new surface conveyor lifts in the beginner area, the new lifts will increase capacity by up to 45 percent, allowing skiers and snowboarders more time on the slopes.
- Base Area Transformation. The entire base lodge will be transformed, including the addition of 400 seats and upgrading the food and beverage offering to accommodate more guests. In addition, the facility will be modernized to offer seating for families, groups and adults, including a new bar and Wi-Fi throughout the facility. The Iron Kettle restaurant will be completely redesigned and will include a new lounge and bar where parents will be able to watch their children ski and snowboard and enjoy a full-service bar and food service in an energized, yet comfortable, setting.
- New Kids’ Ski and Snowboard School and Enhanced Beginner Area. A dedicated and state-of-the-art children’s ski and snowboard center will be created adjacent to the learning terrain at the base of the ski area, featuring a playful open space for kids along with their own lunch and break room. This dedicated space will be a hallmark addition to create the premier ski and snowboard school experience in the Chicago area. The learning terrain will be re-graded to be more accessible for teaching beginners and two new surface conveyor lifts will be added for easy access.
- New Terrain Park and High-Speed Rope Tow. A new expanded terrain park will offer unique and innovative features designed and created by terrain park staff at the Company’s western resorts, as well as the addition of a new high-speed rope tow to enable skiers and snowboarders to spend more time in the terrain park.
- Expanded State-of-the Art Snowmaking. Significant improvements will be made to the snowmaking infrastructure including the addition of new energy-efficient snowmaking guns and pumps to increase the snowmaking capacity and allow Wilmot to open more terrain earlier in the season and create the ability to recover terrain quickly during the season.
- Enhanced Alpine Racing Features. Improvements to both the race arena and timing systems will be made to better support the local ski clubs and racing programs, and attract bigger races in the region.
Along with the tangible improvements to the Wisconsin ski area, Vail will implement its practices ski area wide to improve guest experiences.
Find the PR Newswire release here: Vail Resorts to Invest $13 Million to Completely Transform the Guest Experience at Wilmot Mountain