Vail infusing cash into Whistler ski resort
By Natalie Obiko Pearson, Bloomberg
Last fall, in a record-setting deal, Vail Resorts paid $1 billion to acquire Whistler Blackcomb, betting it could improve upon the resort’s already abundant selling points.
“It’s a game changer for our company. We’ve just added, arguably, the crown jewel of the ski industry,” says Pete Sonntag, Whistler’s new chief operating officer, who previously ran Vail’s Lake Tahoe operations.
In the next seven years, Vail will invest $276 million in capital improvements at Whistler, on and off the mountain. This season, Vail’s EpicMix app will allow skiers to compare lift lines in real time—minimizing concerns about Whistler’s increasingly large crowds. Vail is also opening a new après-ski spot at the renovated Roundhouse Lodge, that has a heated, open-deck bar with views across the valley.
$1.2 billion is a lot of money, too bad none of that’s gets invested in South Shore.