A crash course in offering a beginner ski and snowboard trip
By David Stant
Parks and recreation departments have the option of offering trips and tours to guests. For the purpose of this article, the focus is on planning a group day trip to a local resort for beginner skiers and snowboarders. A local resort is defined as one close to a park and rec district where the trip should take no longer than a couple of hours. As a general rule, these trips are made in one day.
Group Packages
The first step is to research available packages at nearby resorts. A beginner package will include a lift ticket, lesson, and equipment rental. Recreation professionals will want to talk to the resort's group-sales department (or equivalent) to discuss available options for discounts on group purchases of these packages. Note that a beginner package will offer limited chairlift access; however, this can be a good thing because beginners likely should not use the restricted terrain. Beginner packages may also mitigate the inherent risks in skiing/boarding.