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NSAA ECONOMIC

ANALYSIS RESULTS

Breakdown of the

2016-17 Season

BY DAVE BELIN, DIRECTOR
OF CONSULTING SERVICES,

RRC ASSOCIATES

THE FINANCIAL HEALTH of the ski resort industry is an area of the country; snowsports visits rebounded strongly in
of ongoing interest to numerous stakeholders. Revenues, the Northeast (up 27.7 percent) and to a lesser extent in
expenses, margins, and other key ratios are important to the Southeast (up 5.8 percent), while declining slightly in
track and monitor over time and across different regions of the Pacific South (-1.3 percent), Midwest (-1.7 percent),
the country. Rocky Mountains (-2.5 percent), and Pacific North
The NSAA 2016-17 Economic Analysis of US Ski Areas is (-2.6 percent). Despite the variability in visits, financial
now finalized. The report accurately characterizes and pres- results showed generally very strong performance in all six
ents the ski industry financial performance over the past two regions of the country.
seasons, with regional and size breakouts for more precise Here are some summary highlights from the fiscal year:
peer groupings. The report provides a wealth of information • An increase in average gross revenue per resort to
for benchmarking and comparison purposes. $35.6 million per resort (up 7.5 percent). Average gross
A total of 112 ski areas from across the country sub- revenue was up in all six geographic regions and in all
mitted a completed Economic Analysis survey for both the four size cohorts.
2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons, allowing for an “apples to • An increase in revenue per snowsports visit (up 3.4
apples” comparison across the two fiscal years. These ski percent to $110.22).
areas represent about two-thirds of the total business in the • Increases in revenue in all operating departments.
US industry (as measured by downhill snowsports visits). Operating expenses were also up, but to a lesser
Participation in this version of the study was up from 103 ski degree as compared to revenue, resulting in higher
areas last year. profit margins.
The article in the prior issue of the NSAA Journal • Key ratios all improved, including return on assets,
focused on some overview financial information; this article return on equity revenue per employee, and health.
will cover additional key areas of interest, including long-
term revenue per visit, long-term EBITDA (earnings before Additional observations from the Economic Analysis report,
interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) per visit, long- available from NSAA, include the following.
term departmental revenue per visit, summer revenue, and
characteristics of profitable ski areas. REVENUE
The 2016-17 season recorded a final estimate of 54.8 Long-Term Increase in Average Gross Revenue
million downhill snowsports visits, up 3.7 percent from In the past 10 years, average gross revenue per ski area has
the 2015-16 season, as documented in the Kottke End of grown by an average of 3.6 percent per year, from $26 million
Season report. Visits were variable by geographic region in 2007-08 to $35.6 million per ski area in 2016-17 (figure 1).

46 | NSAA JOURNAL | SPRING 2018