Limited passes, capacity and seating time: Wachusett tackles ski season
Photo | Wachusett Mountain Ski Area
Dave Anderson of Westminster and Don Pierce of Fitchburg were the first two skiers for the season on Wachusett’s Polar Express Quad Chair.
Management at Wachusett Mountain Ski Area in Princeton spent months preparing for this year’s ski season, meeting regularly since September to prepare for what was slated to be a winter unlike any other in over a century.
Tasked, perhaps unexpectedly, with providing residents in Central Mass. and beyond with one of limited outdoor winter activities at a time when, thanks to the pandemic, outdoor activities are increasingly en vogue, the resort needed to come up with COVID-safe visitor protocols, as well as be prepared for unexpected regulatory changes.
Incidentally, such a need for flexibility came on Tuesday, the same day Wachusett’s marketing director, Tom Meyers, spoke with WBJ about the resort’s COVID protocols. Earlier in the day, Gov. Charlie Baker announced that, in light of an ongoing surge in coronavirus cases, the state would backtrack to Phase III, step 1, which, among other things, limited capacity in most businesses to 40% and requires restaurants to limit seating time to 90 minutes.
Accordingly, Wachusett said on Wednesday its store capacity would be cut back from 50% capacity to 40%, indoor seating would be limited to 60 minutes, and outdoor seating would be limited to parties of six.
“So far people are being very respectful and patient and understanding,” Meyers said of the mountain’s visitors.
Wachusett, which opened for winter sports on Nov. 20, has implemented a number of protocols widely in place around both the state and the country. Guests are asked to practice social distancing by way of staying six feet away from one another, and masks must be worn at all times, except when dining. Plexiglass barriers are in use in places where staff members regularly interact face-to-face with visitors, and they’ve asked anyone who is symptomatic or not feeling well to stay home.
While the resort expects to employ as many as 1,200 staff members during its peak season, the same number they have on-board in a regular year, it has reduced the number of season tickets available to purchase, in order to limit capacity. All of those passes are already sold out, according to Wachusett’s website. The staffing expectations, Meyers said, are due in part because they need more staff to service customers in smaller groups, like during classes, for example.
“We anticipate our staffing needs to definitely be as big, if not even a little greater,” Meyers said.
It’s not just social distancing procedures that have changed, Meyers said. The ski resort now requires guests to buy passes in advance online, whether for the season or just for one day.
“That’s a real important fact,” Meyers said. “We are not selling tickets at the ticket window.”
This allows staff to not only limit capacity, but also plan for how busy a given day might be.
“It's really important for us to be able to know who's coming and when they're coming,” Meyers said, adding the resort divided the day into four sessions. There’s one for morning, one for afternoon, and one for evening. Beginning on Christmas, a second, later evening session will also be added.
Several weeks into the season, guests have largely cooperated with the new rules, although staff are frequently reminding visitors to keep their masks on and over their faces, Meyers said. Those who refuse to comply would probably not be served, he said, noting to his knowledge, no such situation has yet arisen.
Although the mountain shut down in March this year, in compliance with coronavirus regulations, Meyers said the resort plans to run its typical season, which generally comes to an end during the first or second weeks of April.
In the meantime, he urged visitors to check the website closely, and frequently, before stopping in.
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