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Holiday Valley (ski resort)

Holiday Valley is a family oriented vacation spot and ski resort in Ellicottville, New York. Established in 1957 by Dick Congdon, John Fisher and Bill Northrup, the facility opened with four runs and one t-bar lift. Currently the resort contains 56 slopes and 13 lifts.

Since it’s opening Holiday Valley has experienced steady growth and has become the main tourist attraction in Cattaraugus County, NY. In 1995 the Inn at Holiday Valley opened, turning the slope into a self-contained ski resort.

Geography
The resort is located in Ellicottville, a remote town in eastern New York approximately 52 miles south of Buffalo.

Origin
In 1956 the three founders Dick Congdon, John Fisher and Bill Northrup sold stock a parking lot in Ellicottville for $100 per share to open a ski area. The first four runs called Yodeler, Champagne, Holiday Run and Edelweiss were cut in 1957 but due to mild weather early that winter their opening was delayed until January 7, 1958. Since then Holiday Valley has added 52 runs including two terrain parks, 12 lifts, and a snow tubing hill. The names of these runs and lifts can be found in the Full List of Ski Runs and Lifts section.

Since opening in 1958 the resort has also expanded its offerings in order to attract various crowds and bring in tourism during seasons other than winter. These are discussed in the Non Winter Events and Attractions section.

Skiing Mountain
The ski mountain is the flagship attraction at Holliday Valley. With its tallest peak is 750 ft, it is the only Eastern ski resort without a vertical drop of 1,500 ft. Today the entire mountain holds 56 slopes and 13 ski lifts. Despite its relatively small size, the resort has experienced consistent growth since opening in 1958 and has erected two hotels on its property directed towards the skiing attractions. These hotels include the Inn at Holiday Valley and the Tamarack Club which opened in 2009 and holds both condominiums and hotel rooms.

Due to the fluctuating climate in the area during the winter in the early and late season, the resort relies heavily on the ability to make snow. When trying to open the slopes in December the snowmaking takes each chance it gets to make snow while the temperature is cold enough. In 2011 it is using a completely automated snowmaking system for the first time. This system automatically controls the amount and temperature of water it sprays, which snow machines on the mountains are running, and when they turn on and shut off. The system can also adjust these variables based on the outside temperature. According to the snowmaking team, the software in this new system allows them to turn the snow machines on with their cell phones [2].

Recognition
In the past decade the resort has received positive recognition within the ski community. According to Buffalo Business First “Holiday Valley has been in [Ski Magazine’s] Top Ten poll for Eastern resorts for the past six years” prior to 2009 [3]. According to the same report by Buffalo Business First the resort ranked third in the east, surpassing “Whiteface Mountain and Killington as one of the top eastern North American winter destinations” [3].

Non-Winter Events and Attractions

 * Double Black Diamond Golf Course- The first nine holes of the Double Black Diamond Golf Course at Holiday Valley were added to the area in 1962. In 1987 the second nine holes opened making it a full 18 hole course. The course opens for the spring, summer and fall seasons around the end of April and closes for the winter at the end of October; these dates vary with each year due to uncertain weather patterns in the area during changing seasons.


 * Sky High Adventure Park- Completed in 2011, this is Holiday Valley’s most recently added attraction for the skiing off season. It includes a high ropes course and a coaster ride which glides one to two passenger cars on a 2,490 ft descent down the mountain.


 * Summer Festival- The surrounding town of Ellicottville holds an annual Summer Festival of the Arts which is partially sponsored by the Holiday Valley resort. This festival hosts various concerts and art displays in the first weekend of July.


 * Fall Festival- The Holiday Valley resort and local Tamarack Club host a festival each year in the first weekend of October. This event features a 5k foot race, a mountain bike race, chair lift rides, shopping, food, and other activities in celebration of the changing leaves and the coming winter season.

Full List of Ski Runs and Lifts

 * Downhill Ski Runs-


 * Bear Cub
 * Beginner's Boardwalk
 * Candy Cane
 * Cat Walk
 * Day's End
 * Explorer
 * Fiddler's Elbow
 * Frost Line
 * Holiday Run
 * Laurel
 * Punch Bowl
 * Raccoon Run
 * School Haus
 * Slippery Streets
 * Snowbird
 * Snowledge
 * Spruce Line
 * Sugar Plum
 * Tannenbaum
 * Woodpecker
 * Ballet
 * Bob Sled
 * Cathedral
 * CCC Trail
 * Cindy's Run
 * Crystal
 * Firelane
 * Independence
 * Last Chance
 * Mardi Gras
 * Moon Beam
 * Morning Star
 * Reindeer
 * Stewardess Cut
 * Sunrise
 * Woodstock
 * Champagne
 * Chute
 * Cross Cut
 * Devil's Glen
 * Eagle
 * Edelweiss
 * Falcon
 * Firecracker
 * Gobbler Glade
 * Happy Glade
 * Hoot Owl
 * Maple Leaf
 * Pipeline
 * Raven
 * Shadows
 * Swiss Twist
 * Yodeler
 * The Wall


 * Terrain Parks-


 * Foxfire
 * Snoozer


 * Lifts-


 * Boardwalk
 * Chute Quad Chair
 * Cindy’s Quad Chair
 * Creekside Beginner’s Quad Chair
 * Eagle Quad Chair
 * Mardi Gras Xpress Quad
 * Morning Star Express Quad Chair
 * Ski School Tow
 * SnowPine Quad Chair
 * Spruce Lake Quad
 * Sunrise Quad Chair
 * Tannenbaum Express Quad
 * Yodeler Quad Chair