Schweitzer Life

From Spokane to Sandpoint, the Inland Northwest continues to experience significant population increases with people moving here from all over for a variety of reasons. Here at Schweitzer, we are also seeing a growing demand for access to year-round outdoor recreation, and as we continue to evolve to meet those demands, the guest experience remains top of mind.

A big thank you to our passholders, guests, and locals as we close out the 2022/23 season.  138 days of skiing and riding marks Schweitzer’s second longest season in over a decade.  

By the time it opens, Cambium will feature five treatment rooms, infrared salt therapy saunas, sound loungers, reflexology stations as well as kombucha and beer on tap.  

Our focus on family fun for all ages has us constantly looking for new and exciting ways to keep everyone entertained while they’re visiting the mountain, no matter the season. If you’re planning a trip to Schweitzer this winter, here are a few ideas for making lasting memories together at the mountain.

It’s been full on winter here in the Schweitzer community as mother nature transitions toward another “La Nina” weather pattern. Here in the Northwest, La Nina’s impact is typically copious amounts of snow. Let’s hope we’re in the sweet spot.

There has been a thread circulating on Instagram about Schweitzer with several inaccuracies that’s created some concerns about our intent to operate this coming winter. I can assure you that we are planning for full operations, 7 days a week, incorporating all front and backside lifts in their typical winter schedule (as weather and conditions allow) from now until April 10, 2022. 

We're getting closer and closer to opening day for our 2021/22 ski season and there are a few new things to look forward to this winter.

As we get ready for the 2021/22 ski season, Schweitzer CEO & President, Tom Chasse shares some thoughts on how the mountain will operate this coming winter. 

Reflecting on last season, we know that one of our biggest challenges was parking. In general, spaces are limited on the mountain and when you compound that situation with Covid, no carpooling, and limited shuttle usage, the situation became even tougher. 

Introducing Schweitzer's Newest Bar & Restaurant - Crow's Bench. Opening for the 2021/22 winter season.

It’s been a little while since I’ve reached out to everyone with an update on how things are going.  All in all, we feel like the winter is going pretty well. Compared to some parts of the country, we are very lucky. A couple of areas that keep popping up in guest surveys and comments are parking and lift lines.

Since the spring of 2019, the Schweitzer team has been busy working on our latest project, the new hotel in the village. Once complete, Schweitzer will have an additional 31-unit boutique hotel offering some of the most comfortable ski-in/ski-out accommodations in the Pacific Northwest. The new hotel will also feature a restaurant and bar with outdoor seating facing the village core. It has been several years since we started crafting plans and looking over renderings, but once we finally broke ground, it felt great to start building this newest chapter in our Schweitzer story.

Due to an overwhelming lack of compliance with our mask policies and social distancing in the rental shop, day lodge, and lift lines during twilight skiing, I have made the decision that Schweitzer will not be offering twilight skiing over the MLK holiday weekend - Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Jan 15 – 17, 2021. 

Here we are in December, with a couple of weeks of operation under our belts. We’re making progress as we adapt to the Governor’s roll back to stage 2 and the Panhandle Health District mask mandate, but we still have work to do.

It was great to see everyone this past weekend! I’m sure it was as exciting for you to be back on the mountain as it was for me. As good as it was to be on my skis again, I wish I could say the opening weekend went off without a hitch, but that was not the case.

As we inch our way towards opening, I thought I would update you on our indoor operating plans. The state of Idaho has reverted to stage 3 of Covid precautions which will have an impact and require a few changes. 

As we get closer to our opening day, we have had many inquiries about Snowsports School programs, day care and lessons. Here’s where we currently stand with regards to those programs ...

Snow in the village this week has created somewhat of an urgency to complete all our on-mountain improvements while we refine our protocol for the coming winter season. We have had many questions about parking, transportation and shuttle services so let’s take a closer look at these now.

As we continue the transition to our winter season, I thought I would reach out to all the Schweitzer community members on the mountain with an update with regards to day tickets. Please feel free to share this message with anyone else who might be impacted by day tickets sales ...

Now that the summer season has come to an end, we are transitioning toward winter. We are working diligently on refining our operating plans with a strong focus on staff and guest safety. While we’re excited to re-open our doors, there is still a significant amount of anxiety and stress associated with the uncertainties this pandemic presents.