Vail Resorts Chief Executive Officer Rob Katz announced in a statement Saturday afternoon that the corporation will suspend the operations of all of its North American mountain resorts and retail stores beginning Sunday, March 15, through Sunday, March 22 due to concerns surrounding the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19.
Katz added Vail Resorts will use that time period to reassess its approach for the rest of the season.
The Vail Resorts chief executive said the corporation’s lodging and property management operations will remain open to service the guests Vail Resorts has on location or those with existing reservations. That said, Katz said Vail Resorts will not be taking new reservations for this upcoming week.
Katz said Epic Mountain Express, the corporation’s Colorado shuttle service, will also continue operations to support the travel needs of its guests.
“We will be closing our corporate offices and apart from essential personnel, we will be asking other employees to work from home, where possible,” Katz wrote.
“All our scheduled employees, both seasonal and year-round, will be paid during this upcoming eight-day period,” Katz continued, “without needing to use any vacation or sick time.”
“This decision provides a pause for the entire ecosystem of our mountain resort communities,” Katz wrote. “It gives everyone the time to assess the situation, respond to ever-changing developments, and evaluate the approach for the rest of season, if we believe it is advisable or feasible to re-open.”
Katz said Vail Resorts has information on cancellations, refunds and travel credits on its websites.
“Many things like ski school, lift tickets, equipment rentals, and transportation can be fully refunded,” Katz wrote, “and we have new credit policies in place for our owned and operated lodging properties.”
Katz said season pass products and Epic Day Passes are non-refundable and not transferable to another season, however, Vail Resorts will be reviewing those policies and providing any updates on that in the coming weeks.
Katz said Vail Resort will be providing updated information on the remainder of the season by Friday, March 20.