By Brice Wallace
The streak of setting new records for skier visits is over, but Utah still had its sixth-best season ever during the 2017-18 ski season.
After setting new highs in both 2015-16 with more than 4.4 million skier days and 2016-17 with nearly 4.6 million, Ski Utah reported that the most recent season had 4,145,321, down 9.6 percent from the prior season and even with Utah’s 10-year average. The 2017-18 season started Nov. 21 at Brighton Resort and ended May 13 at Snowbird.
Skier days are defined as one person visiting a ski area for all or any part of a day or night in order to ski or snowboard.
For comparison, the worst season in the past decade in Utah was 2011-12, with 3.8 million skier days.
Nationally, skier days were down 2.8 percent, falling from 54.8 million in 2016-17 to 53.3 million in 2017-18. Snowfall, an important metric in driving visitation, was down in most regions across the U.S. Utah was not immune, with statewide Utah snowfall totals reaching only 60 percent of average, with Wasatch valley temperatures three to five degrees above normal during the ski season, according to Brian McInerney, hydrologist with the National Weather Service.
Still, total ski/snowboard-related spending in Utah reached its second-highest level, at over $1.32 billion, compared with the record of $1.43 billion set in the 2016-17 season. Out-of-state per-skier spending rose from $309 per capita per day in 2016-17 to $337 during the past season. Utah residents’ per-day spending was essentially flat, rising by $1 to reach $107 last season.
“Utah’s ski industry continues to be a strong player in driving the state’s tourism and economy,” said Nathan Rafferty, president of Ski Utah, the marketing arm of the Utah Ski & Snowboard Association. “Multiple factors need to come together to make a successful ski season, and with limited natural snowfall, Utah’s resorts stepped up by investing in snowmaking infrastructure and delivering unparalleled experiences for skiers and riders on and off the slopes.”