When you think about capital improvements and upgrades heading into the winter season, it’s probably fair to say you usually think about something tangible. A new base lodge (like the new VT Adaptive addition over at Mt. Ellen), new equipment (like the new groomer and excavator we purchased), or even a new bar (like how we expanded the Wunderbar onto the Valley House Cafeteria floor with a brand new bar and seating).
But this year we’re also quite excited about all the technological upgrades that we’ve been hard at work on. We’re happy to say that this winter you’ll get to enjoy a brand new website, brand new Sugarbush App for your phone, and some awesome webcam upgrades – all of which we think will really improve your guest experience.
Webcams
Let’s talk about the webcams first, since we know they were high on everyone’s minds last year when we turned off our lift line feeds. Well good news: all of our lift line webcams are coming back! Don’t worry, you’ll be able to scout out where best to ski ahead of time just like you used to be able to do.
Additionally, we’re loading up several new high definition scenic cams to be placed around the mountain. These cameras will be installed at Lincoln Peak at both Allyn’s Lodge and the top of Heaven’s Gate, as well as at the Glen House over on Mt. Ellen. So when you’re sitting at home wondering how things look up here, these cameras should get the job done.
All of these cams will be viewable through our website, on YouTube, and on our new Sugarbush App (more on that later).
Website
This project logged a lot of hours from a lot of hardworking people, but we’re happy to announce we will soon be launching a brand new website. The new site will help modernize our web presence and also loop us into a much better support system through Alterra Mountain Company.
Aside from providing a significant visual upgrade to the whole website, there are also a number of other benefits that this upgrade will provide you as a guest. You’ll find that information is much more centralized and consolidated. No more digging through three or four different pages to compile everything you need to know about ski school or lift tickets. We’ve cleaned up our navigation and built pages to hold more relevant information while keeping their clarity. Our hours for various restaurants, lifts, lodges, etc., will really benefit from this, as we can now organize and display that information quickly and smoothly around the website in a centralized manner. So no more conflicting hours listings!
Of course if you’re still having trouble finding what you’re looking for, we’ve significantly improved the search functionality of our website. You can now type in whatever it is you’re looking for and get a preview of what webpages may hold that information. Eventually, this search will even extend over to our SugarBlog content as well.
You can also customize your own web experience by “favoriting” different products, events, or activities. Once you had selected something as a “favorite”, you’ll be able to easily view those pages right from the drop down menu at the top of the website.
One of our most frequently visited webpages, the snow report, is also getting a nice overhaul. We know that change can be hard, particularly with a webpage you check as often as many of you likely check the snow report, but we think that once you get used to it you’ll love it. The backend for our snow reporters is going to be much easier to navigate and with that comes the ability to offer you new information. There are a lot of possibilities that we’re still tweaking, but more clarity on what part of a trail was groomed, what shift it was groomed, or whether snowmaking is happening at night or during the day are just a few of the cool new labels we can give things.
Sugarbush App
When our website launches, so too will our new Sugarbush App. Similar to our old app, this one will be an easy resource for various resort information like the snow report or webcams. It will also have online food ordering capabilities for our various restaurants and easy menu viewing. Of course, no ski app is complete without tracking, so you’ll find that feature back as well.
And better yet, things like your profile, ski tracking stats, and online ordering information should transition seamlessly over to the Ikon App, where we also have a presence. Where our Sugarbush App has great value to you while you’re here, the Ikon App is a helpful tool at other resorts and now provides the flexibility to keep all of that data synced between the two.
It’s an exciting time for all of us on the Marketing Team, and we hope you like these new upgrades as much as we do. If you have any questions, concerns, or feedback about of this sweet new tech, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’ll likely be adding new features and continuing to tweak things as we go, and we always want to make sure we’re addressing your needs first.