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Frequent Guest Card
Perhaps you don't picture yourself as a
frequent guest to the Kandahar but this is the best deal for even a single visit so read on…..
Buy your Frequent Guest Card for $99
Enjoy one night at the Lodge for that, then take advantage of $30 or $50 off
additional room nights, depending on room type, consecutive nights or not.
Too good to pass up!! Call today!!!
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Thanks for the kind words - they made our day!
From: Richard & Sandra
Message to us: To All the Exceptional Staff at Kandahar
YOU ARE INCREDIBLE!!!
Thanks to ALL OF YOU for helping make our very First Ski Vacation a
complete success!!!
Our stay at the Kandahar is one we'll never forget. The Lodge is
absolutely beautiful, and offered everything we needed for a wonderful
vacation. Our room was gorgeously decorated and so comfortable, we felt
right at home. . . .
Click Here
For the rest of this letter and more
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What's New at Kandahar
Winter 2008
What an amazing winter! It is so fun to be a part of it - to ski and play in it, to marvel at the beauty of it and be thankful for the bounty of it.
We are enjoying the consequences of what the Sales and Marketing Director of the Whitefish Mountain Resort calls our "Perfect Storm" - record breaking snow providing awesome conditions, new lifts and lodges up and running and a weak U.S. dollar paired with a strong Canadian economy bringing the Canadian exchange to the lowest level in a few decades.
Skier visits are up, lodging nights are up and you hear a Canadian accent here and there but we still have availability so check out the specials and packages on this site and plan a trip to experience one of the best years Big Mountain has ever had.
We are celebrating the 60th anniversary of Whitefish Mountain Resort all season long. Please check out the Resort Event Calendar for the upcoming celebrations. www.skiwhitefish.com
Due to some structural/liability concerns the Alpinglow Inn (located on Big Mountain) closed this fall. We took the reservations for as many of their winter guests as we could and have tried to make them comfortable.
The snow has been piling high on Kandahar's roof and a leak developed (it is incredible how much pressure is brought to bear on the layer of moisture under the snow) so snow shovelers have been working for a week to remove the bulk of the snow from the roof. With the multiple pitches to the roof it is a challenging job.
We are keeping our guests busy with activities all week long. The grizzly bear slide show is every Monday at 7:30pm in our Northern Lights Conference Room, the Frabert is awarded every Wednesday at 5:30pm at the Bierstube and every Friday there is a bonfire in the Big Mountain Village with marshmallows and entertainment.
What’s New at Whitefish Mountain Resort for 2007-2008
$20 Million in Upgrades for 60th Anniversary Season includes new lodge, new lifts, new restaurants, and expanded terrain park
WHITEFISH, Mont. -- Whitefish Mountain Resort has announced $20 million in upgrades for its upcoming 60th anniversary winter season, including a new base lodge, new lifts, new restaurants, an expanded terrain park and a new name – Big Mountain Resort is now Whitefish Mountain Resort. A new $10 million road rebuild will also greet mountain guests this winter.
The popular ski and summer destination changed its name this spring to reflect its close relationship with the unique and laid-back ski town of Whitefish, Montana . The change was made as part of a comprehensive effort to focus on the unique, unpretentious guest experience the resort is known for.
Founded in 1947, Whitefish Mountain Resort is one of the ten oldest destination ski resorts in the country and will celebrate its 60th anniversary during the 07-08 season. The company is planning to celebrate extensively in honor of its rich and storied history, and has completed some significant improvement projects over the summer.
At the center of the upgrades is an $11 million, 35,000-square-foot Base Lodge that will house many services and amenities that were previously scattered around the village, such as equipment rentals, the Ski and Snowboard School, the Kids’ Center, a central ticket and information center, seasonal and day-use lockers, and group meeting space. In addition, the new building offers dining, a full-service bar, as well as a viewing lounge with a large stone fireplace.
Two new restaurants will give skiers the best dining choices in the industry. Mackenzie River Pizza Co. will offer Montana ’s best slice of pizza in the Base Lodge and Ed & Mully’s will serve up Memphis-style bar-b-q in the upper village, in the building previously home to Moguls. Ed & Mully’s is named after Ed Schenck and Lloyd “Mully” Muldown, two of the founders of the resort.
Beyond The Base Lodge, skiers and snowboarders will be greeted by substantial upgrades to its lift system. The $7.2 million lift expansion includes replacing Chair 1 with a new high-speed quad chairlift (the Big Mountain Express), which will stretch the 2100 feet to the summit. Chair 2, previously a fixed-grip double chairlift, is being extended, realigned, and replaced with a high-speed quad (the Swift Creek Express) that will load right next to the base of Chair 1. Chair 6, which runs from the new Base Lodge to the upper village, is also being altered to unload in this same lift plaza.
The Fishbowl Terrain Park is also benefiting from some improvements and expansion. Snowmaking capacity in the area is being tripled to allow a more focused effort to open the features, such as the 450-foot superpipe, to open by Christmas. The features in the park have been expanded to fill three distinct runs, catering to beginning, intermediate, and advanced park riders.
Beginners taking ski and snowboard lessons at the resort will no longer have to compete with users of the terrain park as all ski and snowboard school activities have been shifted to the Base Lodge area. New beginner lifts installed last winter will combine with re-graded beginner runs to create an open, comfortable place for guests who are learning how to ski.
Big
Mountain Road
, which is officially Montana State Highway 487, is undergoing a $10 million rebuild. The three most severe switchbacks on the road are being replaced with long, sweeping curves. Other noticeable improvements will include full-width shoulders and guardrails, which will make the road much safer for drivers. The finished project will also boast curbs and gutters, as well as improved storm drains and sewer lines.
Whitefish Mountain Resort was recently ranked #20 in Ski Magazine's Top 50 Resort Guide, the highest ranking any Montana resort has ever received. Winter season is scheduled from Dec. 8. 2007 through April 6, 2008. Retail window lift ticket prices are $56 for adults (ages 19-64), $46 for seniors (ages 65-79) and youths (ages 13-18), and $30 for juniors (ages 7-12). Night ski operations occur on Friday and Saturday nights, mid-December through mid-March for $15.
‘Big Mountain Resort’ Clarifies Its Identity with Change of Name to ‘Whitefish Mountain Resort’ to Better Communicate Its Position Among Ski Resorts
Comprehensive Brand Initiative to Closely Tie the Resort Experience to the Unique Offerings of the Town of Whitefish and surrounding Glacier National Park area
WHITEFISH, Montana – Winter Sports, Inc. President and CEO Fred Jones said today that it is launching a new branding and positioning initiative for Big Mountain Resort. Big Mountain will change the name of the ski and summer resort from Big Mountain Resort to Whitefish Mountain Resort to drive awareness, taking its namesake from the historic railroad town where the resort was founded in 1947.
From this new positioning strategy, the resort is launching a comprehensive set of initiatives that will deliver on and enhance the unique guest experience that the resort has been valued for, by focusing on everything that impacts guests’ experience, from products, services, and employee actions, to facility design and amenities. Within the past year, the company has already invested $20 million dollars into a new Day Lodge, two high speed quad chairlifts, a new beginner-skier area with a Magic Carpet and new beginner chairlift, and other amenities to improve the guest experience.
“On the eve of our 60th anniversary, we have looked back to understand what has made us special and unique to our guests,” said Jones. “We have looked at where we are today from the perspective of our guests’ current and evolving needs, as well as our dynamic competitive landscape and where gaps exist to meeting and improving on guest needs.”
“Our offering is often underestimated and misunderstood and to many more, our name is highly generic. Therefore we are changing our name and graphic identity to Whitefish Mountain Resort and rolling out both substantive programs as well as communications that better set us apart and convey our unique guest experience.
“This initiative is also about a closer integration between the town and the resort, because Whitefish truly represents who we are,” emphasized Jones. As we market the resort and deliver an improved experience, we really are aligning ourselves more closely with Whitefish, which is recognized for the many attributes that makes us special and distinct, such as the friendly and helpful attitudes, unpretentiousness, and a laid-back comfortable environment. This initiative is in part about helping to preserve these qualities by formally integrating them into our culture, behavior, and service.”
The new branding platform is a culmination of nearly a year of research and analysis that included interviews with customers, employees, influencers and community members, visits to and analysis of major competitive resorts, as well as analysis of Big Mountain’s relevant strengths, differentiators and opportunities to improve the customer experience.
Winter Sports, Inc. developed its new branding platform in conjunction with brandadvisors™ of San Francisco. President and founder Charles Rashall served as executive strategic director and Tom Suiter, a part-time Whitefish resident and artist, served as executive creative director. Rashall has positioned, developed, and implemented programs for some of the world’s leading brands including FedEx, NFL, NPR, Jackson Family Wines, Shutterfly, and Cisco. Suiter has directed corporate identity and integrated marketing programs for companies including Apple, GE, Pebble Beach Resort, Hyatt Hotels, United Airlines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, and Japan Airlines.
“We have taken our findings and analysis and focused on what makes Big Mountain and Whitefish special,” continued Jones. “By doing this and establishing a blueprint for our business, we can ensure that in the decades ahead, we can grow in a manner that builds on our rich heritage, retains our values and strengths, and incorporates enhancements and changes that are true to who we are and what makes us relevant and different. This new focus will ultimately help to sustain the resort as a viable and competitive business.”
The name of the ski area has had iterations over time. After the first cabin was built by Whitefish volunteers in 1935 in the headwaters of Hell Roaring Creek, The Hellroaring Ski Club was formed in 1937 when Whitefish skiers organized loosely to sponsor races and social events, but the club changed its name to the Whitefish Lake Ski Club at the urging of townspeople who did not like the Hell Roaring name. In 1941, before t-bars or chairlifts were present, skiers recall climbing up “Haskill Mountain.”
According to writer Jean Arthur, who wrote Hellroaring: 50 Years on The Big Mountain (1996) promoters stumbled upon the name “The Big Mountain” simply because one of the mountain’s earliest skiers, Lloyd “Mully” Muldown, pointed up to the peak he loved to ski and called it “that big mountain.” In the mid-1980s, there was a push to rename the mountain “Legendary,” but the idea didn’t hold.
In many ways, this name change is more a shift in emphasis, as ‘Whitefish’ has been a part of the naming and graphic identity at the resort since the beginning, from the “Whitefish Ski Club” to the “Ski the Fish” promotional line, to the “Fishbowl” terrain park. While the Whitefish name will now be brought to the forefront of the resort’s identity, the Big Mountain name will continue to live in various forms. The new village-to-summit high-speed quad that is currently under construction will be renamed The Big Mountain Express. Resort officials emphasized that they are not changing the name of the mountain. USGS maps will always point to the official name of the 6817-foot peak as Big Mountain. Big Mountain is also a part of many local business names.
The transition will take place over the course of the summer season and will be fully integrated into operations, guest services, and marketing and sales for the upcoming 60th anniversary.
Launching on June 13, the new brand identity was unveiled to the Whitefish community at a grand opening of the new Day Lodge.
Whitefish Mountain Resort opens for summer season June 20 – Sept. 3. It will reopen for its 60th winter season Dec. 8, 2007 – April 6, 2008.
For this season's Winter Calendar - Click Here
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P.O. Box 278 - Whitefish, Montana 59937 | FAX: (406) 862-6095
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