SilverStar Mountain Resort has seen plenty of snow of late, but will be sticking to its December opening date to ensure its COVID-19 protocols are airtight.
On Monday Big White Ski Resort announced it will open three days earlier than expected following a large snowfall last weekend and 63 centimetres over the past week. The mountain near Kelowna will now open for season pass holders on Nov. 19 and for ticket visitors on Nov. 23.
SilverStar has had about as much snow as Big White in the past week. On Tuesday media relations manager Chantelle Deacon said the resort has recorded 60 centimetres of fresh snow over the past seven days, including a 40-centimetre dump last Friday.
That said, the resort doesn’t plan on following Big White’s move to open early, and will be holding to its planned opening date of Dec. 4.
“We don’t anticipate opening early, although we do have quite a bit of snow,” Deacon said. “We wanted to make sure all of our health and safety protocols are absolutely perfect and we have everything ready to go.”
The resort is also waiting for many of its staff members to arrive on the mountain before it welcomes skiers and snowboarders to the slopes, Deacon said.
SilverStar’s Nordic season begins Nov. 28, with the ski season starting the weekend of Dec. 4 for season pass holders only. It’s a later start to the winter season than usual, but the resort has said the plan is to help people on the slopes stay physically distanced with more lifts running on opening day.
SilverStar has added sweeping health and safety measures ahead of its winter season, which can be viewed on the resort’s website.
Earlier this month the resort unveiled a new parking reservation system designed to prevent transmission of COVID-19. Bookings open at 9 a.m. Nov. 18. All guests can reserve a total of 12 days at any given time, which they can do by reserving parking for five “advanced days” and seven “week-of days” when the season kicks off.
READ MORE: Big White Ski Resort set to open early
READ MORE: Parking reservations set to open at SilverStar