This year’s ski season has been a tale of two stories: the lack of snow in the Rockies and a boon in the East. Yet, even the brighter side of this year’s winter wasn’t enough to make up the hit across the Western U.S.

The U.S. saw ski visits for the 2025/2026 winter season fall by 9 million compared to the previous year, according to preliminary data released Tuesday from the National Ski Areas Association.

Last year, the ski season was the second busiest on record with 61.6 million visits. This year, it fell nearly 15% to 52.6 million.

The Eastern U.S. recorded moderate growth due to early and consistent snowfall, according to the the ski trade association based in Lakewood.. But in the West, the NSAA said visitation was comparable to other low snow years.

“Few seasons demonstrate as clearly as this one how dependent our industry remains on regional weather patterns,” said NSAA President and CEO Michael Reitzell in a press release. “Challenging conditions across much of the West —including a slow start, rain events, and record March warmth — significantly impacted visitation throughout the season.”

Many ski resorts in Colorado closed weeks earlier than normal, with some ceasing operations in early April. Copper Mountain celebrated its closing ski day last Sunday and Arapahoe Basin is set to be the last resort open in the state with plans to close this Sunday, thanks to the help of late-April snow and a surprisingly large May snowstorm.

This winter season’s visits ranked 32nd out of 48 seasons the nonprofit trade association representing ski resorts has on record.

It’s comparable to the 2019/2020 season, which saw 51 million visits after the pandemic led to vast shutdowns, and the low-snow year of 2011/2012 with nearly 51 million ski visits.

In March, Broomfield-based Vail Resorts CEO Robert Katz said this has been the “most difficult weather environment in the Rockies we have ever seen” during a call with investors, adding it was worse than 2012.

In Vail’s latest ski season report, the company said visits to its Rockies resorts declined by 25%. Overall, lift revenues were down 5.6% for the season, ski schools down by 12%, dining down 11.7% and shopping and rentals were down by 6.6%.

It’s in line with the regional data from the ski association, which recorded visits to the Rockies fell by more than 24% compared to the previous year.

Historically, the NSAA said snowfall trends have heavily influenced the number of visits to mountain communities that rely on ski tourism. The average snowfall across the U.S. was down to 112 inches this year, compared to the 10-year average of 169 inches.

Yet, even with the low snowfall, the association said operating days declined “modestly” as more investments in snowmaking and resort infrastructure have continued to attract visitors. The association says the industry is poised to have a healthy rebound next year — if more snow comes back.

“We’ve seen time and again that a lower-snow season is often followed by a strong rebound,” Reitzell said. “With continued investment, a stable base of participants, and the passion that drives skiers and snowboarders, we’re already looking ahead to next season.”