STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK

Quick! Who said, “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best”?

That would be a lesser known quote from Sun Valley’s most famous author Ernest Hemingway. And it’s one of several inspirational quotes that Visit Sun Valley is bandying about as it markets Sun Valley.

John Muir’s famous quotes, “The mountains are calling and I must go” and “Into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul” are paired with pictures of a sparkling Ketchum situated under Bald Mountain and a skier threading her way through The Burn.

And inspirational speaker Bob Talber’s quote “Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts is best,” is paired with a picture of youngsters riding a chairlift.

“This year’s campaign is more about the whys than the whats, which makes it different from previous years,” said Scott Fortner, Visit Sun Valley’s executive director.

Fortner and his staff offered a look at the year past and a glimpse into the future for local business owners this week at the Community Library.

And one member of the audience responded with a plea for vibrancy.

Ketchum is losing its vibrancy—its Christmas windows are “grim,” she said. Hailey, by contrast, bursts bursting with decorations and holiday lights.

“If you want more people to come here for the holidays, you’ve got to dress up,” she said.

Part of the problem, it was pointed out, is that Main Street Ketchum has more banks, bars and real estate offices than retail windows.

Norma Hale of T’s and Temptations used the exchange to encourage business owners to remain open at night or, at least, organize store strolls similar to Gallery Walks.

“We stay open until 9 and people are constantly saying, ‘Are you really open?’ Decorate your window but unlock the door!” she said.

Sun Valley outperformed other resort destinations in the West during the month of August, in part due to the number of guests staying in Sun Valley the weekend before the total solar eclipse on Aug. 21.

The hotel occupancy during that time bumped to 97 percent, said Katie Barnes, intelligence account and sales manager for DestiMetrics, which identifies booking patterns.

One business owner called the number of tourists underwhelming but noted his receipts were up 20 percent for that time, Fortner noted.

A survey of business owners determined that 52.8 percent did better this summer; 38.9 percent, the same, and 8.3 percent, worse. Retailers said they would like to see more events that would attract visitors during June and September.

“We also need to remind and educate visitors about all the things going on—many are not aware,” Fortner said.

Fortner noted that hotel occupancy rate was 35 percent during winter 2016-17 and 44 percent last summer.

He offered that Visit Sun Valley has to infuse potential visitors with a sense of wonder to lure them away from beach trips during winter.

“We have to really ram home that awe factor,” he said.

Bookings for winter flights coming into Sun Valley are up by 7.5 percent. But lodging reservations are not keeping pace. What’s not known is whether second homeowners are accounting for the airplane reservations or whether those making the reservations plan to book lodging later, Fortner said.

IN OTHER NEWS:

WINTER MARKETING CAMPAIGN

Twenty-two percent of Visit Sun Valley’s winter marketing dollars are going to New York City, 19 percent to Los Angeles, 14 percent to Chicago, 12 percent to San Francisco and 8 percent to Portland.

Forty-nine percent is being put into video content, 19 percent in social media, 6 percent in content partnership and 4 percent in display ads.

OCCUPANCY RATES

DestiMetrics collected data through Oct. 31, 2017, from 10 partners: The Limelight Hotel, Sun Valley Resort, Tamararck Lodge, Best Western Plus Kentwood Lodge, Knob Hill Inn, Alpine Lodging, AmericInn Lodge & Suites, Coldwell Banker Distinctive Properties, Natural Retreats Sun Valley and the Hotel Ketchum, formerly the Bellemont Hotel.

Those properties represent 777 units or 58 percent of the 1,338 units valley wide.

May 2017 saw a 12 percent drop compared with the same month in 2016. June enjoyed a 6 percent increase and July and August each had a 1 percent dip. Occupancy rates during September dropped 16 percent and October, 4 percent.

“Given the challenges of flooding in the valley and snow in the backcountry, overall we did pretty good,” said Fortner. “We had a lull in September but rebounded in October.”

WINTER OCCUPANCY RATES

Hotel occupancy rates are highest in February with 44.6 percent, followed by 41 percent in December, 37 percent in March and 35 percent in January.

The rest of the industry is capitalizing on the shoulder seasons around the holiday getting upticks before Christmas and following New Year’s that Sun Valley is not getting, said Barnes. Sun Valley also lags the rest of the industry in March.

Fortner said such information can be used to do things like encourage airlines to give incentives to book certain times.

COMPARED WITH OTHER WESTERN RESORTS

Lodging in Western resorts including Jackson, Aspen and Mt. Bachelor, were 49 percent full in both  winter and summer, with daily hotel rates averaging $369 in winter and $229 in summer. Sun Valley’s  lodging was 35 percent full in winter and 44 percent in summer, with average daily rates of $203 in winter and $219 in summer.

ENPLANEMENTS UP

Friedman Memorial Airport enjoyed a strong summer and October with a 7.3 percent increase over 2016 enplanements in June, 8.7 percent increase in July, 7.3 percent increase in August, 3.2 percent increase in September and 35 percent increase in October.

MARKETING VIEWS

Visit Sun Valley started its summer marketing campaign earlier—in March—last year. Visits to its websites increased 18 percent over the previous year. Most of the new web viewers came from California, followed by Idaho, New York, Washington, Utah and Illinois.

FALL FOCUS

Visit Sun Valley rolled out a fall video for the first time. It features leaves, leaves and more leaves, with a little mountain biking, jazz and sheep sprinkled in. It was distributed to paid social media and direct digital.

STRONG RETURN RATE

Sixty-nine percent of visitors are returnees.

A summer visitor survey showed that part-time residents stay 30 plus nights. Part-timers who come from the South or Northeast stay longer than those who come from nearby states like California.

Forty-two percent of summer visitors flew to Sun Valley and 58 percent drove.

Asked what comes to mind first when they think of Sun Valley: Beautiful, followed by mountains, fun right outside the door, peaceful, relaxing, scenic, skiing and good climate.

Asked to name their main reason for coming, visitors said enjoying the town and its activities, scenic beauty and recreational activities. Part-timers cited recreational activities, climate and art, music and culture.

Only 1 percent reported they would be unlikely to recommend Sun Valley to others.

FREE MEMBERSHIPS OFFERED

Those with Sun Valley and Ketchum business licenses and those who collect local option taxes in Sun Valley and Ketchum now qualify for free membership in Visit Sun Valley. The move gets more businesses in front of visitors on the Visit Sun Valley website and other places, said Aly Swindell.