RealNZ limits skifields' capacity
Southern Lakes ski areas Cardrona Alpine Resort and Treble Cone are introducing daily capacity limits this season - a win for locals who buy season passes.
While the same number of season passes and Earlybird multi-day passes (purchased pre-winter) will be sold as previous years, in-season single day and multi-day passes will be limited.
Once the daily capacity is reached, there will be no more day passes available. And the skifields, owned by RealNZ, are introducing dynamic pricing for in-season passes, meaning the higher the demand, the higher the price.
The goal for Cardrona is to reduce the number of skiers and snowboarders on the mountain by approximately 1000 on the ski area's busiest days, compared to peak days in 2020-2022.
GM of Cardrona and Treble Cone Experiences, Laura Hedley, says over the last few years increased demand has to very busy days across NZ skifields during peak periods, particularly in July and August.
"Our guests have told us that over the last couple of years, our experience during those peak times hasn’t been where we want it to be," Hedley says.
"We know that people don’t enjoy struggling to get a carpark or standing in long lift queues."
The daily allowance of in-season day passes and multi-day passes reflects the average number of other pass types the resorts expect to ski on any given day.
"There will still be busy days on the mountains – if it’s a bluebird powder day and we have more season pass and Earlybird multi-day pass holders than average, we may have more people on the mountain than what we’re aiming for,” says Hedley.
"But we’re serious about making our on-mountain experience better, and we hope this change can help achieve that for our guests and staff."
Guests who purchase in-season day and multi-day passes will be asked to choose which days and which mountains they will be visiting.
Those who buy their passes early in the pre-winter Unlimited season pass and Earlybird multi-day sales will lock in the greatest flexibility – able to ski and snowboard at both mountains, and not needing to commit to fixed days.
Cardrona and Treble Cone are also introducing a new 5-day “Flexi” pass at a higher per day rate, which can be used on any day of the season, at either mountain.
Pricing for all in-season passes will change depending on demand. Guests are encouraged to buy online and early to secure the best per day pricing.
"We appreciate this is a big shift in approach, and a New Zealand first,” says Hedley. “However, dynamic pricing is widely used overseas to manage numbers on the mountains, and we’ve heard great feedback on the positive impact this approach has on guest experience.”
“As with any big change, we’re expecting a few teething issues. So we’re asking for feedback, patience and support from our mountain communities as we get this right this winter.”
Season passes are on sale now from the Cardrona website. You can find out more about Cardrona and Treble Cone’s pass changes here.
