Lift lines, the bain of every skier and snowboarder’s life. Right?
Everyone wants to grow the snow industry and keep it alive for decades to come, but no one likes it when that means more skiers and snowboarders on the slopes.
We all know the combination of peak season and lifts on wind hold make for the viral images of a gazillion skiers and boarders lined up for the one lift that is open, like pre-teens trying to get a Tay Tay ticket. We also know that line has probably dissipated half an hour later, but never let the truth get in the way of a social story.
Either way, there’s no doubt lift lines just seem to keep getting longer with the advent of global multi-resort season passes that offer skiing and snowboarding in both the southern and northern winters. They’re saving the ski industry and reducing the cost of skiing and snowboarding for consumers but have come with their own industry challenges as more people embrace the joy of snow sports.
Australia’s Thredbo Resort in New South Wales has tackled the challenges head on and put into place a number of elements to help streamline the lines.
The resort has limited the numbers of skiers and boarders on the hill each day, which means less wait time to get on Australia’s only ski gondola and 14 other chairlifts and t-bars.
In a genius move Thredbo capped the number of season passes to be sold and then implemented a pricing system for multi day passes and day passes that mean it’s cheaper to ski mid-week and non-peak times of the season. Then capped the sale of them too.
Better yet they also launched a limited number of Value Season Pass which included unlimited skiing but with July school holiday blackouts to manage the numbers during school holidays. Then they also offered a limited number of Mid Week Season Pass for unlimited skiing and boarding Monday to Friday only (blackout during July school holidays).
Those utilising multi day passes and day passes then use an online reservation system to ensure the number of peeps on the hill on any given day is also capped. If you plan to ski or board and don’t have a season pass then you book your dates in online when you pay.
Concerned you’ll need to change plans due to weather then the Flexible Lift Pass option allows you one change of start date and the ability to exchange for another product.
The result? Happy skiers and boarders on the slopes.
Guests can also drive and park in one of multiple car parks with a free shuttle between the car park, the chairlifts and the village. The new Snowy Mountains Bus Service from Jindabyne runs every thirty minutes during peak times and is a super easy way to get a day’s skiing in.
Hello streamlined skiing and boarding with minimal crowds.
