The Eye doesn’t agree with Bulletin Editor John Costa about very many things, but one thing Costa says has always made a lot of sense to us: You can’t offer less and charge more and expect to get more customers.
So what’s up with Mt. Bachelor’s decision to raise Saturday lift ticket prices in the teeth of what promises to be a real bear of a recession?
The mountain announced today that the cost of an adult lift ticket on Saturdays will jump by $10, to $69. Teen lift tickets for Saturdays will jump by $12, to $59 from $47. And tickets for kids between age 6 and 12 will increase by eight bucks, to $42 from $34.
Naturally, Bachelor officials are trying to spin this as something positive: “In order to maintain an enjoyable on-mountain experience while accommodating a larger number of season passholders, starting this season the Saturday single day ticket will be ‘peak’ priced.” They also describe the increase as “modest.”
We don’t see how a 23% price hike can be called “modest.” “Hefty” is the adjective that first comes to mind. Under the new price schedule, it will cost a couple with a 10-year-old kid $180 to spend a Saturday at the mountain. A weekend (Saturday and Sunday) will cost $331.
That is a considerable chunk of change. It is more than one-third of the American median weekly household income. Who the hell does Bachelor think can or will pay that kind of money – especially at a resort that has been plagued with complaints of long lines, frequent lift breakdowns and poor trail grooming?
With the economy in the tank, stocks plunging, foreclosures rising and gas prices high, it appears to The Eye that Bachelor ought to be moving in the opposite direction price-wise.
Of course Powdr Corp., the Utah-based outfit that owns Bachelor, has the right to run its business as it sees fit – including running it into the ground, if that’s what it really wants. But this decision could further cripple the already limping Bend economy by cutting down the flow of winter visitors from Portland, the Valley and points north, south and east.
It’s looking more and more like a long, grim winter.
This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 5, 2008.
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“complaints of long lines,”…
You are using a result of lower ticket pricing as an argument against raising prices?
Some additional info that has been skipped over in this discussion. Maybe it wasn’t intentional, maybe it was.
1) Mt Bachelor announced that Saturdays would be priced with Holidays 35 days ago, once it was clear that season passholder numbers were on their way up significantly. This is absolutely a service to their investment. It also allowed everyone to make a more informed pass decision. It was not dropped as a bomb yesterday.
2) Aside from this one change in structure (that our main competitor does on both Sat and Sun) the rates have gone up between $0 and $3. Regional resorts have gone up between $4 and $10.
3) The lowering of season pass prices generated more local and total passholders. If we also generated more day visitors on our peak days we would be irresponsible and not respecting our passholders. We choose to respect them in a way that is commonplace throughout the industry.
4) Every mountain has a max capacity. Pricing in a way that ignores demand (long lines) is not responsible.
I am not calling into question the comments in regards to past issues with operations or customer service. Those have been acknoweldged and we are clearly making efforts to address them. We look forward to earning respect in that realm.
But pricing? Any responsible business has to go by the displayed and anticipated demand. If you don’t like lines, but in the same breath want us to price based on some other model than demand, then we are damned if we do and damned if we don’t. If we dropped rates or held below competition and put 40% more people on the mtn on a busy Saturday, we are not acting responsibly.
While some prefer to damn us no matter what, and the blog world allows that, there’s also plenty of folks in the this town that want us to succeed, so that we all do. Those folks can appreciate my above response as to why there has been an adjustment in our pricing structure. These are likely the same people who understand there is a correlation between pricing and the amount of skiers and riders on the mtn.
Happy Halloween!
Alex
I agree keep the prices sky high. I hate crowds. Midweek pass is still a great deal.
In case the full cause/effect is more than some want – the simple version:
Lower season pass prices = more pass holders = more people on the mountain on Saturdays. The people that ski on Saturdays know that more passholders and more day ticket holders is a mix that isn’t smart business on those days for the viability of the mtn(unless we were looking to maximize at all costs which we are not), thus the adjustment to manage demand. As said, it’s super normal for resorts to do.
Folks who want lower pass prices and lower day passes in the same breath simply must not ski on Saturdays and Holidays to grasp that demand, or are willing to ignore facts to slander the mtn.
Though I’m sad that The Source would publish this (they are skiers too and surely grasp skiing/business/demand), I’m glad for the opportunity to set the record straight.
Well, seriously Bruce. Any family who can afford $150 for a day of skiing in this economy should not have much of a problem paying $180. Any family bitching about the $30 increase is bitching simply because they have to part with some more money and ‘don’t feel like they are getting anything more out of it’ (as you stated in your criteria for raising prices).
There’s a heap of a difference between people who have actual disposable income who can SENSE a rise in prices and the person who is absolutely wondering how to stay warm this winter because turning on the heat will make rent impossible
There is something frickin insulting about listening to people with real money bitch about prices when, really, an increase here and there for food, heat, and god forbid entertainment goes up. They can afford it; they just don’t like parting with the cash. That is NOT economic stress.
Boo hoo… a rich family in their Cadillac Escalade who wants to scrimp on entertainment expenses so they can feel better about the expense of their Hawaii vacation over Christmas? waahhhh
That said, I can’t imagine the increase in expenses that Mt Batchelor is seeing. Did you notice entire airlines are going out of business, Bruce?
TO the defense line AK
Not everyone in town buys a season pass… being part of a discussion is one thing, but your constant sugar coated posts belong on your website
Hope you feel positive about the management choices when you are all standing in the unemployment line this spring.
Alex —
Thank you for your comments. I would like to point out, first, that the opinions expressed on this blog are my own, not those of the Source or its publisher.
Second, I have no wish to “slander the mountain” or its management. I was just commenting that IMO the increase in Saturday lift prices seems likely (a) to be a hardship for individuals and families, whether locals or visitors, who do not have season passes and only have the opportunity to ski on weekends and (b) to discourage folks from the Valley, Portland and elsewhere from coming over to Central Oregon for a weekend of skiing at Mt Bachelor.
I can understand the logic (sort of) of not wanting to overcrowd the mountain on Saturdays. However I would question how great a problem that realistically would be, given that Mt. Bachelor actually saw a decline in skier visits last season, while every other resort in the Northwest saw a pretty good increase.
As I said, I can’t tell you how to run your business, but this Saturday price increase just seems counter-intuitive to me. That’s my opinion; take it for what it’s worth.
Folks who want lower pass prices and lower day passes in the same breath simply must not ski on Saturdays and Holidays to grasp that demand, or are willing to ignore facts to slander the mtn.
…
‘Slander the mtn’, this is blasphemy, off with their heads.
Too bad that regional resort condo market collapsed. Now Powdrz has to get their ROI off the MT-B purchase based on lift-ticket sales, an outcome not exactly as planned.
I pity MT-B management, much like being an undertaker in a leper colony.
What happened to those condo igloos that Powdrz was going to market last summer at MT-B? What came of that project?? I think it was called the Mt-Borealis project after a similar Powdrz venture.
Thanks for the thoughts and clarification Bruce.
A couple other items to consider center around high level strategy to attain longer stays in our area. For example, the Saturday change helps us to persuade local and from away guests to purchase multiday products, which are value priced in comparison to a single day Saturday. Longer stays are good for lodging and all tourist based businesses. It also makes folks more likely to get a good weather day while here. The Saturday change does not impact any multiday products (simply makes them a better buy). We’re talking that up via a new massive marketing spend in Portland and Seattle with help from our tourism partners.
The 5 and 10 day ticket products are now available all year – never been done in the past. Lodging partners are offering buy 2 get 3 free ski annd stay packages – never been done before.
People like to talk about Vail’s crazy low pass prices, but in the same breath ignore their nearly $100 day price.
In the future if you would ever like to know some extra details before damning the mountain (which lowers us all), let’s get some coffee.
Alex, I would never “damn the mountain” — I LOVE the mountain (and all mountains). But I might be critical of Mt Bachelor Resort’s management from time to time.
Glad to hear that now, though imho the post fell well short of living up to it.
There is a difference between being critical from time to time and automatically discarding all strategy, industry norms and employed logic due to a habit of being critical, imho.
We appreciate feedback, but someone of your clout should at least consider learning up on the topic a tad before riling witchhunts that feed the monster. You may not like the reasons, but there are a ton of them, and they are not sinister, they are actually by the book of growing business and protecting our expanded local passholders experience. It’s relevant stuff.
As I said, I would love to chat if you care to at least hear what’s up. You don’t have to love it, but I think hearing why we are doing things would be a gain for you, the mountain, and the town. Many folks in your office have my email. Thanks.
Yet again Bachelor has proven one thing…They still suck!
Everything about them sucks, their services, their prices, and their flat mountain. Lower pass prices, raise ticket prices….ooooohhhhhhhhh What about point passes, what about mid week specials, what about giving something to locals that can’t afford season passes and can’t afford daily tickets, what about us???? Oh yeah it’s called Willamette Pass and Hoodoo….They should be doing well this season. Well done Gary..pat pat
I think this is what troubles me most.. comments from Mt. B management regarding themselves as the “mountain”. No one hates Mt. Bachelor, rather the opposite. All the frustrated comments come from those who love Mt. Bachelor. The past management at least seems to view themselves as “Mt. Bachelor”, and they are not … and they take the negative remarks from the locals as against Mt. B, we all love that Mtn. and the management is not the mountain ak. Get that right now. This is the main issue. “You don’t have to love it”.you comment right? Well right back at you.
How can anybody hate a mountain? It’s an inanimate object. Mt. Bachelor Resort and Powdr are not “the mountain.” They’re businesses.
I am just glad I found a new mountain to ride shortly after the Mt. B. sale. It was a great place to ride for so many years, but have been turned off every time I have gone back there. So many friends have the same story. Just a shame since Powder corp. took over.
Kudos to AK for being here. Like it or hate it, you have to respect that he’s here and having a conversation with the public. That’s new.
So even if you hate what AK is saying, give him credit for being out here, saying it, and hearing the response.
Rumor has it this is where they are headed and apparently they know it….
My last comment was not complete – it was meant to say rumors are swirling about bankruptcy or reorganization for the Mt Bachelor portion of the Powdr Corp group. Hope it ain’t so but hey rumors sometimes are true…..
Hey why not just do what works else where. Charge a reasonable rate and limit the tickets sold each day. Works in Utah. Concept new? No just different and it works.
We are not rich; we are not poor; we like to treat our grandchildren to one or more ski trips per season; when multiplying the price increase 7 times; and making it so expensive on weekends when it is the only time school children may ski seriously puts in jeopardy our plans to continue this tradition. Can’t MT. Bachelor management come up with some sort of plan to help family groups on weekends or vacations????????