Winter Park replaces the pay-to-play Reserve Pass with “Rope Drop Club,” a free program that rewards passholders who ski early season with line cutting days later in the season.
A fifth detachable chairlift will debut at Holiday Valley next year, the resort announced yesterday. Preliminary work has already begun on the Doppelmayr high-speed quad, set to run in a new alignment along the Foxfire trail. A 1991 CTEC quad named Cindy’s will be removed, leaving the Cindy’s trail free of chairlift towers for the first time since 1978.
Holiday Valley’s on mountain team is already working to remove trees and widen Foxfire in preparation for lift installation. The new lift is expected to debut for the resort’s 70th anniversary season in 2027-28.
The Doppelmayr Group today reported positive results for fiscal year 2025-26, representing April 2025 through March 2026. The firm realized 109 ropeway systems and 45 logistics projects across 25 countries with revenue of €1.306 billion (US$1.506 billion). That represents a 9.1 percent increase versus fiscal year 2024-25. Employee headcount rose 5.4 percent to 3,987 FTEs worldwide. Doppelmayr does not publicly release profit figures.
Switzerland, France and Italy together comprised the largest share of revenue at approximately $467 million, with the marquee Campitello–Col Rodella 3S opening in the Dolomites and the first TRI-Line debuting in Hoch-Ybrig, Switzerland. The United States and Canada together formed Doppelmayr’s second largest market with approximately $346 million in revenue. Major projects here included the Explorer Gondola at Big Sky Resort and East VillageGondola at Deer Valley. Doppelmayr’s home market of Austria represented approximately $286 million or 19 percent of revenue. Latin America, Southeast Asia and Central/Eastern Europe each accounted for under five percent while the rest of the world made up 15 percent of revenue. “Our markets once again proved very robust in the business year 2025/26,” noted Thomas Pichler, Managing Director of Doppelmayr Holding SE. “We successfully implemented numerous extraordinary projects extending from Austria and the entire Alpine region to North America and Asia. This broad international positioning provides stability while also opening up new opportunities for further growth.”
The company described current conditions in certain markets as “challenging.” In the United States and Canada, project count is down about 20 percent this calendar year from last year. Doppelmayr remains bullish on the future, however. The 133-year-old company expects to open new country headquarters and manufacturing hubs in Salt Lake City, Utah and Saint-Jérôme, Québec next month. “With its strong market position, innovative technologies, and broad international footprint, the Doppelmayr Group considers itself well equipped for the future,” Doppelmayr said. “In the years ahead, the company will continue to invest strategically in research and development, digitalization, and the further development of its sites and employees.”
Doppelmayr/Garaventa submits the apparent low bid to rebuild the Cannon Mountain tram for $44.6 million, 36 percent above the state’s estimate. Leitner-Poma’s $49.5 million bid comes in 50 percent higher than estimated.
Indy Pass adds Ski Land and Skeetawk, Alaska; Showdown, Montana; Kendall Mountain, Colorado; Frost Fire, North Dakota; King Pine, New Hampshire; Powder Ridge, Connecticut and Mont Kanasuta, Quebec plus international partners with more to come next week.
Indy loses Midwest mountains Caberfae Peaks, Michigan and Crystal Ridge, Little Switzerland & Nordic Mountain, Wisconsin.
Telluride’s planned gondola replacement may not receive federal transit funding due to political optics, Buy America requirements and flat ridership on the current system.
An update on the Stagecoach Mountain Ranch private ski area approval process.
In just nine months, an urban gondola in Paris becomes the most-ridden lift in Europe with over two million passengers.
The Governor of Utah criticizes MIDA, a state entity started to support the military but now involved with Deer Valley East, Sundance expansion and a proposed data center.
Doppelmayr works to build the world’s highest capacity urban gondola system in Guatemala with two lines, 12 stations and 495 12 place cabins capable of moving 5,500 riders per hour/direction/line.
An urban gondola in Africa closes after just a few weeks due to low ridership, high ticket prices, vandalism and resident fears.
A new lawsuit alleges Alterra, Vail, Boyne, Powdr, NSAA and RRC Associates illegally colluded on destination resort pricing (full text here.)
Oregon OSHA fines Mt. Hood Skibowl $43,000 over a fatal maintenance incident, alleging staff operated a work carrier beyond limitations after receiving no formal training on it (the area has appealed.)
An investigation finds parts improperly installed decades ago combined with a misload and unevenly loaded chair caused a deropement at Vail last winter.
The Forest Service approves a slew of projects at Grand Targhee including Crazy Horse, Palmer and North Boundary infill lifts, replacements for Dreamcatcher and Shoshone, plus expansion lifts in South Bowl and Mono Trees (all subject to an objection period.)
One of the smallest-gauge gondolas in North American skiing could soon be headed for retirement. The Forest Service today posted Loon Mountain Resort’s application to replace the four passenger White Mountain Express Gondola with a 10 seat D-Line model from Doppelmayr. The new flagship would follow roughtly the same alignment and be constructed in 2027 or 2028. “The current gondola is one of the oldest detachable lifts in New England and nearing the end of its life cycle,” Loon wrote in its application to the White Mountain National Forest. “Visitation at Loon has increased significantly since 1988 when the current gondola was installed. Increasing the uphill capacity of the existing lift from 1,000 people per hour to approximately 1,800 to 2,400 people per hour would better serve guests.” Ten passenger cabins aren’t required to achieve such capacity but they’ve become the gold standard globally for gondolas. With ample space, families can ride together, lessons don’t need to split up and wheelchairs or mountain bikes are easily accommodated. Loon’s parent company, Boyne Resorts, recently partnered with Doppelmayr to install a similar 10 place gondola at Big Sky Resort. Like at Big Sky, I expect the new Loon gondola will feature Omega V cabins, heated seats and a direct drive.
The bottom terminal will move uphill and out of the Octagon Lodge while the top terminal will sit near the current one. Carrier parking will be included at one or both stations. The 7,000 foot long lift line will need to be widened from 35 feet to 65 feet, resulting in up to five acres of disturbance. At last week’s National Ski Areas Association convention, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment Michael Boren told the industry the Forest Service plans to work expeditiously moving projects through environmental reviews. The Forest Service expects to analyze Loon’s project via a Categorical Exclusion, the lowest of three levels under the National Environmental Policy Act. A smaller pulse gondola project is also currently under review by the Town of Lincoln, which would connect Loon’s South Peak base with RiverWalk Resort at Loon Mountain. It’s possible Doppelmayr could construct both lifts at the same time.
When Loon’s existing gondola is retired, Telluride and Deer Valley will operate the only remaining four place gondolas in North American skiing.
