One of the building blocks of the Whistler Village, the strata-titled condo-hotel, is becoming one of the resort’s biggest headaches.
In a frank presentation addressing growing concerns about pricing and value to visitors, Tourism Whistler President Suzanne Denbak laid out a series of problems for 200 members Saturday. They range from the cost of flights from major American cities to Vancouver, to the number of property managers in one condo-hotel complex.
"Historical success doesn’t guarantee future success," Denbak said. "Arrogance can lead to downfall."
The weekend symposium was held at the end of what Denbak said has been another strong season – "although there have been some unexpected soft spots" – because, "The best and easiest time to change is at the pinnacle of success."
Whistler continues to do well, with skier visits expected to top 2 million for the third consecutive year and overnight visitors to the resort having increased from 1.4 million in 1996 to 2.1 million in 2000. But as consultant Steve Mulvany, another speaker at the symposium, said later, resort towns can become insulated.
"The only perceptions and the only beliefs that matter are our guests’ and tour operators’," Denbak said. And the message is that too many guests are leaving Whistler disappointed. Prices have increased in recent years, but there is also a perception that visitors aren’t getting a corresponding increase in value.
Denbak began by outlining some of Whistler’s traditional competitive advantages: the amount of terrain, vertical drop, number of high speed lifts, and the pedestrian village. But Vail has more skiable acreage than any single ski area in North America and is using that in its marketing, directly targeting one of Whistler’s biggest advantages. Colorado resorts are also trying to make sure ski vacationers know about the rain and clouds Whistler gets.
Denbak added that Whistler’s pedestrian village is no longer unique, with many other resorts building similar villages and increasing their inventory of ski-in/ski-out accommodation.
At the same time, Denbak said, Whistler hasn’t made significant gains in attacking any of its competitive disadvantages, one of the primary ones being access. In many cases the cost of a flight from a major U.S. city, such as New York, Chicago or Dallas, to Vancouver can be twice the price of a flight from that same city to Denver. It’s also a longer flight to Vancouver than to Denver from those cities.
A growing perception of Whistler, Denbak said, is that it is busy and congested at key times, such as the Christmas holidays. She also presented a number of newspaper headlines which suggested Whistler has become pricey.
"The perception among UK tour operators," Denbak said, "is that Whistler is becoming the next Vail – and they don’t mean that in a flattering way." Prices are increasing with no significant increase in value, UK tour operators feel. And it may be more than just a perception.
Denbak presented a seven-night package, including airfare, as an example of how Whistler stacks up against Colorado and Utah resorts. For Australians, Whistler is still a pretty good deal. But for Brits, Whistler is more expensive than many Colorado and Utah resorts. For Americans buying a seven-night package, Whistler is still less expensive than Vail, Aspen and Park City, but that’s primarily because the exchange rate is so high. With exchange rates at 50 per cent, as they are now, Whistler is slightly more than $400 cheaper. But if the exchange rate were to drop to 25 per cent the difference would only be about $60.
The other area of concern is with property management of condo-hotels, which has shifted considerably in the last year with exploitation of the tax "loophole" that allows units to be taxed at the lower residential rate, rather than commercial, if no one company manages more than 85 per cent of the units in a complex.
Denbak said there are 89 hotel and condominium complexes in Whistler, but only 29 have all their units managed by one company. The average number of property management companies per complex is now six – with some properties having as many as 14 management companies.
Some of these "companies" are individuals who own a unit that they offer for rent and look after themselves, but the net result of having multiple property managers in one complex is confusion for the guest. There is confusion over check-in locations, service and access – with some guests directed to a lock-box to find a key to their room.
"Guests experience ‘Whistler’ regardless of who runs the hotel, the ski school, the restaurant etc. All experiences affect the guests’ perception of Whistler," Denbak said.
On top of the property management confusion, there are up to seven different types of housekeeping services available in the same complex.
While the problem is difficult enough for individual guests, it presents a huge obstacle for tour and travel operators who need to deal with several property management companies in order to book blocks of rooms. Tour and travel operators represent nearly 40 per cent of Whistler’s winter business.
"We have the potential to cut ourselves off from 39 per cent of our market," Denbak said.
She added that meeting planners and conference organizers are even more demanding than tour and travel operators. Meeting planners want to deal with no more than two or three complexes and want their conference delegates to all have the same experience.
The danger, if Whistler alienates tour operators and meeting planners, is it just leaves individual vacationers who plan their own trips or do so through a travel agent.
"We need a mix of business to protect us from the vagaries of the market," Denbak said.
She concluded by saying it was "not all doom and gloom, but I believe collectively we have to look at a new business model." The tax loophole has to be addressed and investors have to have realistic revenue expectations.
Denbak also suggested an accommodation rating system for Whistler might be an answer, so guests’ expectations are realistic and people know what they are getting.
"If we work together I’m convinced that we can continue Whistler’s success," she concluded.
