Falls Creek Rep
15-09-2009, 12:07 PM
Ski industry’s best recognised in the 9th annual
Daily Telegraph Skiwatch Awards
Many resort records were broken, including at Thredbo where the busiest Thursday and busiest Friday ever were recorded on successive days (July 23-24) during the second week of the NSW holidays.
With the Queensland school holidays about to kick in again, the Australian Ski Areas Association expects the industry to top 2 million skier days for the third successive year and only the seventh time in history.
All things considered, it was a good, solid year for the Australian ski industry and the cream rose to the top in terms of resort developments and on-snow businesses.
The Daily Telegraph’s Skiwatch operatives in both NSW and Victoria, including a former top restaurateur, have been out and about and have come up with the following gongs for outstanding achievement, effort and service in 2009.
The Daily Telegraph Skiwatch Awards 2009
Achievement of the year:
Perisher (Snowmaking on Mt Perisher)
While there is now excellent snowmaking at all five of Australia’s major resorts, and also at Selwyn Snowfields and Charlotte Pass, the biggest leap forward this season was made at Perisher, where the automated guns were rolled out onto its signature advanced area of Mt Perisher and supported by extensive rock removal and slope management.
Development of the year:
Falls Creek (St Falls)
Falls Creek’s $65 million four seasons gateway project has given the resort a real sense of arrival. The opening this season of the 5-star Quay West Resort & Spa, plus retail outlets and eateries, added significantly to Falls Creek’s
all-round appeal.
Best innovation:
The Super Pass – Hotham, Falls Creek, Perisher.
The opportunity to ski at three resorts on one early-bird season pass was a progressive and popular step taken by the ski areas now under the one umbrella.
Highly commended: Snow Kat Dinners, Dicky Knees, Falls Creek
Best alpine dining:
Falls Creek
We could make a case for giving this award to four resorts this season but, in the end, Falls Creek was handed the title for the fourth straight year.
The top end of alpine dining in Australia now puts many city eateries to shame. Three of this year’s top-rated restaurants are new for 2009 and, while rating the dining establishments wasn’t easy, our judges felt Falls Creek offered "consistently good food in a beautiful location, no matter what your budget or mood’’.
Best alpine restaurants:
Three beanies – (best overall restaurant experience) Summit Ridge, Falls Creek. *Alpine Restaurant of the Year
Snow website of the year: ski.com.au
Highly commended: snowatch.com.au
Snow magazine of the year: Transfer Snowboard Magazine Highly commended: theSKImag
Snow photo of the year: photos to be recognised this week at www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs (http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs)
*The Daily Telegraph provides a 6-days-a-week snow industry column, Skiwatch, on the weather page of the newspaper plus an online site at
www.dailytelegraph.com.au. (http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au.) News Limited publishes SNOW magazine in The Daily Telegraph and The Herald Sun in the lead-up to each season, with a circulation of almost 1 million copies.
Arthur Stanley (Editor-Skiwatch, SNOW magazine)
Daily Telegraph Skiwatch Awards
Many resort records were broken, including at Thredbo where the busiest Thursday and busiest Friday ever were recorded on successive days (July 23-24) during the second week of the NSW holidays.
With the Queensland school holidays about to kick in again, the Australian Ski Areas Association expects the industry to top 2 million skier days for the third successive year and only the seventh time in history.
All things considered, it was a good, solid year for the Australian ski industry and the cream rose to the top in terms of resort developments and on-snow businesses.
The Daily Telegraph’s Skiwatch operatives in both NSW and Victoria, including a former top restaurateur, have been out and about and have come up with the following gongs for outstanding achievement, effort and service in 2009.
The Daily Telegraph Skiwatch Awards 2009
Achievement of the year:
Perisher (Snowmaking on Mt Perisher)
While there is now excellent snowmaking at all five of Australia’s major resorts, and also at Selwyn Snowfields and Charlotte Pass, the biggest leap forward this season was made at Perisher, where the automated guns were rolled out onto its signature advanced area of Mt Perisher and supported by extensive rock removal and slope management.
Development of the year:
Falls Creek (St Falls)
Falls Creek’s $65 million four seasons gateway project has given the resort a real sense of arrival. The opening this season of the 5-star Quay West Resort & Spa, plus retail outlets and eateries, added significantly to Falls Creek’s
all-round appeal.
Best innovation:
The Super Pass – Hotham, Falls Creek, Perisher.
The opportunity to ski at three resorts on one early-bird season pass was a progressive and popular step taken by the ski areas now under the one umbrella.
Highly commended: Snow Kat Dinners, Dicky Knees, Falls Creek
Best alpine dining:
Falls Creek
We could make a case for giving this award to four resorts this season but, in the end, Falls Creek was handed the title for the fourth straight year.
The top end of alpine dining in Australia now puts many city eateries to shame. Three of this year’s top-rated restaurants are new for 2009 and, while rating the dining establishments wasn’t easy, our judges felt Falls Creek offered "consistently good food in a beautiful location, no matter what your budget or mood’’.
Best alpine restaurants:
Three beanies – (best overall restaurant experience) Summit Ridge, Falls Creek. *Alpine Restaurant of the Year
Snow website of the year: ski.com.au
Highly commended: snowatch.com.au
Snow magazine of the year: Transfer Snowboard Magazine Highly commended: theSKImag
Snow photo of the year: photos to be recognised this week at www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs (http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs)
*The Daily Telegraph provides a 6-days-a-week snow industry column, Skiwatch, on the weather page of the newspaper plus an online site at
www.dailytelegraph.com.au. (http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au.) News Limited publishes SNOW magazine in The Daily Telegraph and The Herald Sun in the lead-up to each season, with a circulation of almost 1 million copies.
Arthur Stanley (Editor-Skiwatch, SNOW magazine)