Opening Days Just Ahead for Many White Mountains Attractions

North Woodstock, N.H. – The sixteen major attractions located throughout New Hampshire’s White Mountains Region are getting ready to open their doors.  In addition to the usual preparations for the upcoming tourism season, many of these family-friendly attractions are introducing new rides, outdoor adventures and improvements for 2013.

“The interest in summer activities has already started, so it’s great to see the attractions starting to open their doors,” said Jayne O’Connor, President of the White Mountains Attractions Association. “There’s a lot of pent-up demand for getting out in the mountains once the weather turns warm.”

Several of the parks are open already, including The Conway Scenic Railroad in North Conway, which is running train rides daily now, and looking forward to two July visits from Thomas the Tank Engine. The Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch is also now open daily, with a mix of wildflowers and winter ice along the walk. In North Woodstock, Lost River Gorge & Boulder Caves opens for the season daily on May 10^th, with an expanded schedule of evening Lantern Tours through the caves starting Memorial Day weekend.

Other new features include a newly opened cave on the tour at Polar Caves Park on Route 25 in Rumney, now open daily; and at the Mount Washington Cog Railway, the crew is building its final environmentally-friendly bio-diesel locomotive. The Cog is open weekends for now and will run a daily schedule starting May 25.  Also on Mount Washington, the Auto Road in Pinkham Notch is open daily for guided tours aboard the Auto Road’s “Stages” (passenger vans).  The tours have been extended this year, giving visitors a full hour to explore the top of the Northeast’s highest peak.

For thrill-seeking water fun, there’s a new slide at Whale’s Tale Water Park in Lincoln, called Poseidon’s Voyage, which will feature a 54 ft. drop from the top and a “super loop” midway. Whale’s Tale opens daily starting June 5.  Santa’s Village in Jefferson will also be adding three new waterslides to its water park area, and renovating some of the public areas.  Glen’s famous Story Land will open weekends May 25-June 9, then daily, with a magic show added to their entertainment line-up.

The opening schedule for other attractions in the White Mountains include the Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway (daily starting May 24); Clark’s Trading Post (weekends May 25-June 16, then daily); Attitash Mountain Resort (weekends May 25-June 9, then daily); Hobo Railroad (weekends May 25-June 9, then daily); Loon Mountain (weekends May 25-June 16, then daily); Six Gun City & Fort Splash (weekends May 25-June 16, then daily); and Wildcat Mountain (weekends May 25-June 9, then daily).

For updated operation dates, visit the WMAA website at www.VisitWhiteMountains.com. The White Mountains Attractions Association was founded in 1958 as a co-operative marketing association for the region. In 1983, it was also designated the State’s official Regional Association for the White Mountains of New Hampshire, able to assist the press and visitors with information about the region.

White Mountains Attractions Show Record Summer/Fall Season

WOODSTOCK, NH — Attractions in New Hampshire’s White Mountain are closing out their 2012 season, with many reporting a record setting year. 

“After several years of visitors and businesses really watching their budgets, the 2012 season saw an increase in consumer confidence, which was further boosted by a summer of near-perfect weather,” said Jayne O’Connor, president of White Mountains Attractions, the marketing association for the region. 

The Mount Washington Cog Railway, which concludes its 143rd year when it closes for the season on Dec. 2, had record ridership, according to Catherine Bedor, one of the owners. 

“The Cog is having a phenomenal season,” she said. “As early as Columbus Day Weekend, we were ahead of 2011′s total ridership numbers. Also, our group business is 25 percent ahead of last year.” 

The Cog’s neighbor in Bretton Woods, the Omni Mount Washington Resort, also saw the number of guests soar, aided by free chairlift rides daily at the ski area. “This was one of our best summers ever,” said Craig Clemmer, of the resort. 
Domestic bus tours were strong throughout the foliage season, with arrivals from as far away as the midwest and Alaska. New regulations that eased duty free restrictions brought an influx of Canadian visitors to the region, especially to the outlet shopping centers in North Conway. Other international visitors also increased, with higher numbers noticed from The Netherlands, Israel, and many Asian countries this year. 

“A record year like this pays dividends in years to come,” O’Connor said. “It gives attraction owners confidence to renovate and expand, which will bring new visitors, provide jobs and allow them to continue being assets in their communities.” 

Several attractions remain open, including The Cog, the Conway Scenic Railroad and the Hobo Railroad in Lincoln. Santa’s Village in Jefferson reopens Nov. 17 for the Christmas holiday. 

“The number of guests for our 60th summer exceeded our expectations and, based on advanced ticket sales online and on reports from our lodging partners with package reservations, we’re anticipating a bustling Christmastime celebration,” said Bruce Hicks of Santa’s Village. ” We’ve already put up thousands of the Christmas lights that really transform the park in the dark, and we’re busy developing a new feature synchronizing some of the lights to music to bring our light show up to the next level during the holiday season.” 
O’Connor said the attractions’ participation in travel shows in Europe have established the region as a destination for European visitors, especially from The United Kingdom, France and Germany. “They enjoy this time of year and they have time to travel here,” she said. “The White Mountains are also the place to go for people who enjoy paying a visit at this quiet time of the year.” 

White Mountains Attractions, founded in 1958, is the marketing association for the region, and its 16 major attractions, including Attitash Mountain Resort, Cannon Mountain, Clark’s Trading Post, the Conway Scenic Railroad, Flume Gorge, the Hobo Railroad, Loon Mountain, Lost River Gorge, Mount Washington Auto Road, the Mt. Washington Cog Railroad, Polar Caves, Santa’s Village, Six Gun City, Story Land, Whale’s Tale Water Park and Wildcat Mountain.

For more information, call 800-346-3687 or visit www.VisitWhiteMountains.com.

Has Spring Sprung…

It’s late March and spring came along a week ago on some unseasonably warm temperatures. Some of our friends marveled at the unusual opportunity these days presented, like wearing ski boots in the morning and flip-flops in the afternoon.

When spring comes along, those of us who live here look and listen for harbingers of the season. We’ve seen a bear, a friend has seen a young moose turned out on her own and still others heard peepers on an early spring night.

The local sugarhouses have been boiling maple syrup and we’ve enjoyed a generous pour on our pancakes.

But New England weather being what it is, the warm weather has cooled and snowflakes are flying here and there. A couple of ski areas implore us not to put the skis away just yet … and we’ll heed that advice, for one more run down the slopes, under a bright blue spring sky.

And with any luck, we’ll kick back on that afternoon, in our flip-flops, and listen for the peepers.

Summer Attractions have FUN in the Winter too!

January is behind us and so is half of February and you know what that means, especially if you have school children… VACATION WEEK!

We’re halfway through winter and now it’s time for some mid-season fun.

Skiers will find some fantastic conditions on the slopes, which have been collecting snow all season, in addition to the blizzards the snowmakers can create with cold temperatures. The sun is higher in the sky and that sky has been blue bird for the past week or so.

If the slopes aren’t calling your name, perhaps some other kind of outdoor fun is, like a Mountain Coaster ride at Attitash (www.Attitash.com) or Cranmore Mountain (www.Cranmore.com) or a Zipline Canopy Tour at Loon Mountain (www.loonmt.com) Bretton Woods (www.BrettonWoods.com) or Alpine Adventures (www.AlpineZipline.com). An adventure the whole family can enjoy is the unforgettable SnowCoach tour to treeline on Mount Washington (www.MtWashingtonAutoRoad.com).

This is the week of fun festivals and children’s activities, including the Winter Family Adventure at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Pinkham Notch Base Camp (www.Outdoors.org); family fun night with fireworks and torchlight parade at Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch (www.CannonMt.com) on Feb. 25 and, if you need further enticement, the 23rd annual Chocolate Festival Feb. 26, where you can cross country ski or snowshoe to inns throughout the Mount Washington Valley (www.MWVSkiTouring.org).

Or perhaps it’s just time to steal away and recharge at one of our cozy inns or grand hotels, for there is nothing more restorative than a mountain view, a fire in the fireplace and the one you love.

So come on up. We’re ready to help you plan your mid-winter getaway at the White Mountains Visitors Center, off exit 32 of Interstate 93 in North Woodstock or by calling 800-346-3687 or click over to our webpage for great ideas at www.VisitWhiteMountains.com