Ski resort communities are transforming seasonal boom-bust cycles into stable economies by diversifying attractions, and the model is spreading to coastal and rural areas facing similar challenges.
What's emerging
A quiet revolution is reshaping how seasonal tourism destinations sustain themselves. Mountain communities once dependent on winter ski revenue are building year-round economies that rival their peak season income, and they're doing it without sacrificing the character that drew visitors in the first place. What started as survival strategy during pandemic closures has evolved into a replicable blueprint for economic resilience. Towns from Vermont to Colorado now report summer revenues matching or exceeding winter numbers, a reversal that seemed impossible a decade ago. The shift matters because roughly 40 percent of US tourism destinations face similar seasonal volatility, and the solutions emerging from ski towns offer a path forward that doesn't require choosing between economic stability and community identity.
Context, without the drag
Seasonal tourism has always been a double-edged sword. The influx brings revenue but creates feast-or-famine cycles that make housing unaffordable, force businesses to close half the year, and push out year-round residents who can't survive on seasonal work. Mountain towns felt this acutely. A typical ski resort town might see 80 percent of annual revenue compressed into four months, leaving workers scrambling for summer employment and businesses struggling to retain staff. The pandemic accelerated changes already underway. When ski resorts closed in March 2020, communities faced economic catastrophe. Instead, many discovered that outdoor recreation, remote work migration, and strategic infrastructure investment could support thriving shoulder seasons. What changed wasn't just adding summer festivals. Towns rebuilt their economic foundations around assets they already had, creating reasons for visitors and residents to stay engaged across all seasons.
What's working
- Park City, Utah now generates 52 percent of tourism revenue outside ski season through mountain biking infrastructure that attracts 300,000 summer visitors annually, compared to negligible summer tourism fifteen years ago.
- Stowe, Vermont converted ski lifts into summer sightseeing and mountain biking access, increasing non-winter lodging occupancy from 35 percent to 68 percent between 2015 and 2023.
- Breckenridge, Colorado invested $12 million in arts and culture infrastructure, creating a summer festival season that now employs 400 year-round cultural workers and generates $47 million in annual shoulder-season revenue.
- Jackson Hole, Wyoming built a year-round economy around wildlife tourism and outdoor education, with summer visitor spending now exceeding winter numbers by 18 percent.
- Small towns like Red Lodge, Montana used community-owned broadband to attract remote workers, stabilizing population and creating baseload demand for local services that smooths seasonal fluctuations.
How it works
The transformation rests on three interconnected strategies. First, infrastructure repurposing. Ski lifts become mountain bike shuttles. Snowmaking ponds convert to kayaking venues. Lodge spaces host conferences and weddings. The key is extracting value from existing assets rather than building entirely new attractions. Second, strategic programming fills specific calendar gaps. Towns analyze booking data to identify weak periods, then create targeted events or experiences. A music festival in late May. A food and wine weekend in October. These aren't random additions but calculated moves to shift demand curves. Third, workforce and housing stability. Year-round economies require year-round residents. Towns that succeed invest in affordable housing, childcare, and career pathways that allow service workers to build lives, not just survive seasons. Crested Butte, Colorado pioneered deed-restricted housing that keeps 600 units affordable for local workers, ensuring businesses can staff shoulder seasons. The model works because each element reinforces the others. Better housing attracts stable workers. Stable workers enable consistent business operations. Consistent operations justify infrastructure investment. Infrastructure creates new attractions. New attractions extend seasons and generate revenue that funds more housing.
Quick facts
- Mountain biking now generates $1.5 billion annually in Colorado alone, supporting 15,000 jobs, according to the Outdoor Industry Association's 2023 report.
- Year-round occupancy rates in diversified mountain towns average 64 percent compared to 42 percent in ski-dependent communities, per DestiMetrics data.
- Remote worker migration to mountain towns increased 340 percent between 2019 and 2023, creating stable demand that buffers seasonal swings, according to US Census Bureau migration data.
- Towns with year-round tourism models report 28 percent higher median wages for hospitality workers due to stable employment, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics regional analysis.
People building the bridge
David Inouye has spent three decades watching Crested Butte transform. As executive director of the town's tourism office, he helped pioneer the shoulder-season model now spreading across the Rockies. His insight was recognizing that the town's wildflower blooms, previously an overlooked summer feature, could anchor a festival attracting 12,000 visitors during the slowest period between ski season and summer peak. The festival now generates $8 million in economic impact and employs 45 year-round staff who also coordinate winter and fall programming. In Park City, Deirdre Flynn took a different approach. As sustainability director, she convinced city council that investing in trail systems wasn't just environmental policy but economic development. The city now maintains 450 miles of trails that cost $2.3 million annually but generate an estimated $140 million in summer recreation spending. Flynn's framework, treating natural assets as infrastructure requiring maintenance budgets, has been adopted by 23 mountain communities. Meanwhile, Kate Schifani in Stowe focused on the workforce crisis. Her community land trust model has produced 180 permanently affordable housing units since 2018, allowing teachers, healthcare workers, and service employees to live where they work. The result is a 40 percent reduction in business closures during shoulder seasons as employers can finally staff consistently.
Why this matters
- The model proves tourism-dependent communities don't have to choose between economic stability and preserving character, offering hope to thousands of seasonal destinations worldwide facing similar pressures from climate change and economic volatility.
- Year-round economies create career pathways in hospitality and outdoor recreation, transforming jobs often dismissed as temporary into viable livelihoods with benefits and advancement, which addresses broader workforce development challenges.
- Success in mountain towns demonstrates that infrastructure investment in natural assets generates returns comparable to traditional development, providing a framework for rural economic development that doesn't require sacrificing environmental quality.
- The workforce housing solutions emerging from these communities offer tested models for addressing affordability crises in any location where housing costs exceed local wage capacity, extending relevance beyond tourism contexts.
What's next
- Regional collaboration is scaling impact as mountain town networks share data, marketing, and best practices. The Rocky Mountain Shoulder Season Alliance now coordinates programming across 31 communities, creating circuit opportunities that extend visitor stays.
- Technology integration is enabling dynamic pricing and predictive analytics that help businesses optimize staffing and inventory for variable demand, making shoulder seasons more profitable and predictable.
- Climate adaptation is driving innovation as shorter, less reliable ski seasons force even resistant communities to diversify. Expect rapid adoption of year-round models across alpine destinations in the next five years.
- The framework is jumping to coastal communities facing similar seasonal challenges. Towns in Maine, Oregon, and the Outer Banks are adapting mountain town strategies to extend beach tourism into shoulder months, with early results showing 15 to 25 percent occupancy increases in spring and fall.
The transformation of seasonal tourism isn't about adding more visitors or building more attractions. It's about using what already exists more intelligently, creating stability for communities while offering visitors reasons to explore beyond peak crowds. As climate change disrupts traditional seasons and workers demand year-round opportunity, the solutions emerging from mountain towns offer a practical path forward. The question isn't whether seasonal destinations will transform, but whether they'll do it intentionally, learning from communities that have already navigated the transition, or wait until crisis forces change. The blueprint exists. The results are measurable. What remains is the choice to build economies that work for everyone, all year long.