Park City’s winter coat is delayed, leaving locals and visitors wondering what to do with limited skiing at Wasatch Back resorts.
Park City Chamber and Visitor’s Bureau CEO Jennifer Wesselhoff said some people canceled their Christmas vacations to Utah. Looking ahead, it seems like skiers and riders are waiting for the snow to come before booking their February and March trips.
The town’s November numbers show occupancy following a national downward trend.
“We have started to see some leveling off, especially of our rates. You know, this is after two years of record-breaking transient room tax collections. So it's just some normalization,” she said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Monday. “And a lot of that has to do with the national headwinds that are not just in our area, but all over the country.”
Wesselhoff credited the trend to low consumer confidence, low national unemployment rates and fluctuating inflation rates.
Still, visitors are arriving in the Wasatch Back for the holidays.
With little snow at the ski areas, Park City leaders created a task force to ensure visitors have alternative ways to enjoy themselves around town.
The task force is made up of ski resort, city and county leaders along with the Historic Park City Alliance, lodging and restaurant associations.
Wesselhoff said the task force’s short-term plan, while locals and visitors wait for snow, includes using QR codes to get the word out about activities on Main Street and in town.
“And then in the long term, we feel that this group is a really important group to keep going as we start thinking about these conditions being potentially normal conditions, what can we do in the future to really ensure a positive guest experience and exceptional hospitality,” she said.
The chamber’s website has a list of paid and free activities for those looking to get into the holiday spirit.
That includes the Winter Carnival at the Utah Olympic Park.
The park will open its summer activities, including the alpine slide, tubing on the K90 ski jump, scenic chairlift rides and a ropes course from Dec. 26 through Dec. 31. Tickets are available at the park.
More local activities can be found on KPCW’s Community Calendar.
