Mt. Washington Valley Sees Snow and Skiers for Martin Luther King Holiday Weekend

Many Businesses Surveyed Showed Improvement Over Previous Year

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NORTH CONWAY, NH – Cold weather didn’t deter visitors to the Mt. Washington Valley for the popular Martin Luther King Holiday Weekend, which has long been one of the busiest times of the season for tourism. This year was no different and Valley businesses reported brisk customer traffic for the season with levels besting 2024. Snowfall on Monday gave snow lovers an added bonus on the last day of the period. The Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce surveyed its members to report on their experiences for this important weekend.

Chris Proulx, Executive Director for the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber, stated, "Recent snowfall here and in the Boston area definitely put people in the mood for recreating in the snow last weekend. The combination of natural snowfall and our ski area’s snowmaking efforts gave visitors a lot to do on and off the slopes.”

Ski Areas Opening New Terrain

While natural snowfall is trending below average for the year, Mt. Washington Valley Ski Areas took advantage of cold weather to make snow aggressively to open more terrain.

Abigail Allen, Communications Manager for Vail Resorts in New Hampshire, commented, “Attitash and Wildcat had a great holiday weekend. We welcomed several inches of snow and opened some natural snowfall terrain at Wildcat, including Upper Wildcat. At Attitash, the skiing and riding is fantastic, and guests are excited to be skiing on our signature terrain, including Wilfred's Gwam, Tightrope, Upper Ptarmigan, and Illusion. Our snowmaking teams continue to make snow at every opportunity, and we look forward to celebrating Attitash's 60th Anniversary this weekend.”

Becca Deschenes, Marketing Director at Cranmore Mountain, was equally positive about their business last weekend, stating, “We had a really good weekend, and the snow on Monday was cherry on the top!”

Nordic ski areas were happy to finally get the snowfall needed to open more trails. Ellen Chandler, Executive Director at Jackson Ski Touring Foundation, shared, “We saw lots of regular guests and there was a good interest in learning to XC ski, too.”

Nate Harvey of Great Glen Trails reported hosting many happy guests, and a lot of ski lessons for the period.

Bustling Scene at Area Hotels

Lodging properties reported strong sales. The White Mountain Hotel stated they were completely booked for the long weekend and customer volume and sales were higher than last year. General Manager Trevor Sullivan said, “MLK weekend was very strong, with both the Hotel & Restaurant being full Saturday and Sunday, while being just shy of capacity Friday.” Looking ahead to February vacation periods, he stated, “Weekends are looking strong this winter with early booking, and President’s Day Weekend is already almost sold out. Midweek bookings are slightly down, but overall we are projecting a good winter season.”

Alex Foti, President of Bretton Woods Vacations, stated, “Business was great! We feared that it would be slower than average, but we had a fantastic last minute pick up which resulted in similar results to last year. We have been fighting the perception of a lack of snow cover, which is actually not the case locally in Bretton Woods, which has been receiving ample snow from a persistent upslope pattern.”

The Berry Cos., owners of Eastern Slope Inn and Attitash Mountain Village, also saw an uptick in business. Their Marketing Director Paul Durfee stated, “Sales were 10% better than the same holiday weekend in 2024. This was attributed to somewhat better ski conditions at the local resorts. We've seen significantly more last-minute bookings than 2024.”

Dining Results

Local restaurants were also pleased with the weekend results although sales compared to last year varied. Bill Frittenburg, General Manager at Black Cap Grille, shared, “Overall a very solid weekend. Business was up over last year. Our guests were very positive and generous.” Barley and Salt sales were similar to last year. Some restaurants reported business was down from the previous year.

Survey Results

33% were sold out for all or part of the period.

55% reported more customers than last year.

55% reported more sales than last year.

100% of businesses said customers were likely to be families.

66% of businesses said customers were likely to be couples.

77% of businesses reported customers drove from Mass;

66% of businesses reported customers drove from RI or CT;

22% of businesses reported customers drove from NY or NJ;

11% of businesses reported customers took a flight to get here.

For more information, please contact the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce at www.VisitMWV.com.

About the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce

The Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce is dedicated to promoting the economic vitality of the region. Through advocacy, marketing, and support, the Chamber works to enhance the quality of life for both residents and businesses in the Mt. Washington Valley.

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