Head on up to the slopes for some sun and spring skiing during the Winter Park Spring Blast. This three weekend end-of-season party features a new theme each weekend.

March 31st will feature “Party at the Park”, with the finale of the amateur FreeRide Series, live music by local band One Time Experience, and more. April 7th will feature “Family Weekend”, with a free carnival offering face painting, juggling, stilt walkers, and live music. April 14th will feature “Throwback to the 80′s”, where you can break out your old one-piece ski suits and bright apparel. Prizes will be awarded.

During every special weekend you are welcome to hang out on the deck of Derailer Bar and take advantage of their great drink specials and live music, learn bump tips from the Winter Park Ski and Ride School, and check out the end of the season sales and discounts around the base mountain shops.

Get more information on the Winter Park Spring Blast.

USCSA National Championships Choose Vacations Inc to Host Athletes

Winter Park, CO – The United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association will hold the 2007 National Championships in Winter Park, Colorado from March 5-10, 2007. Vacations Inc has been chosen as one of the official lodging companies to accommodate the athletes.

The Unites States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) offers competitive training programs for university students in snowboarding, cross-country and alpine skiing. Over 3,700 students from across the country compete in 200 races annually. The USCSA stresses the importance of academic excellence over competition and offers academic based awards. The program is also based on the fundamentals of teamwork, rather than individual competition. Athletes compete in Conference and Regional championships in order to qualify for Nationals.

Vacations Inc. will provide condos, town homes and private homes for the athletes, coaches, and dignitaries for the duration of the championships. Brian Lence, Vice President of Sales & Rental Management for Vacations Inc. says, “The USCSA was looking for a major lodging provider to work with them for this competition, and we are delighted to have been given this huge opportunity. With the competition being held before Spring Break, and many athletes staying with us for a week or more, it was not only important to offer some great rates, but to be acutely aware of their specific requirements for full kitchen facilities, bedding, clubhouse amenities and ski tuning areas. It has been a pleasure working with the USCSA officials from the moment we were first approached, as well as each and every one of our guests associated with the competition. To have so many young and talented athletes in our midst has been refreshing and energizing, and I hope we have the opportunity of welcoming them back very soon.”

WINTER PARK, COLO…March 1, 2007 – Be prepared. Stay safe. Winter Park Resort’s new avalanche training area, Beacon Basin, is now open, making it easier for backcountry skiers and boarders to learn about using personal avalanche transmitters.
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Dreadful Ski Conditions in Europe Put the Spotlight on Colorado

Winter Park, CO – Record high temperatures across Europe are making the 2006-2007-ski season virtually impossible to enjoy. With mud instead of snow, and rain instead of powder, many Europeans have given up hope of skiing or boarding on their native continent this year. Many are looking for alternate destinations. Ian Porter, former travel writer and ski journalist for the original edition of the skier’s bible Where to Ski gives Europeans hope with his top pick for a ski sojourn in the Sates.

Porter resides as ski manager for AmeriCanski, based in Turnbridge Wells, England. AmeriCanski has been sending powder-hounding clients to North America’s best ski resorts for over ten years. Ian was recently asked to name his favorite North American all-rounder, a resort to which he could send almost any client without any undue concerns. The recommended destination had to have all the general advantages of North American skiing, plus additional points specific to the resort. Ian also thought that a lack of drawbacks was important. Ski resort surveys are often topped by destinations with an impressive array of amenities, but their obvious drawbacks are ignored. Anyone who has stood in a long lift queue getting soaked by rain in “North America’s #1 Rated Resort” will know where he’s coming from.

Ian’s vote goes to Winter Park. “It has uncrowded slopes, fine lift systems, superb accommodation, reliable snow, great ski school and kid’s facilities, and friendly natives. It also has the champagne powder snow that many of its Colorado neighbors also enjoy. However, and most importantly, it gets the largest volume of snow of any Colorado mainstream resort, making it the safest bet for really good snow conditions on early or late holidays, which is when a high proportion of UK skiers visit. It also has the shortest transfers from Denver, which is a real boon after a long flight.”

Vacations Inc has a variety of great value Winter Park lodging. For example, it offers a luxurious 2-bedroom plus loft 3-bathroom Crestview condo for around $200 a night at Easter when the same category of property in less snowy more crowded Vail is well over three times that price. It also has deluxe 3 to 4-bedroom town homes at Sawmill Station, and 1 to 3 bedroom condos at Meadowridge at amazing prices.

Porter continues, “As for the disadvantages of Winter Park – there are very few. Many American resorts are criticized for having mediocre mountain restaurants, but Winter Park has some fine on-slope eateries. True, the town itself isn’t a shoppers’ paradise, but it has nearby factory outlet stores to satisfy retail therapy cravings. People may assume that being so close to Denver must make Winter Park prone to day-tripper overcrowding. Not so. Denver residents seem to prefer to hurtle down the motorway to Copper Mountain, and the relatively small number of beds at Winter Park means that it’s never anywhere near as busy as say Breckenridge, which has a similar size ski area with probably 10 times as many people staying there. Winter Park’s unpretentious laid-back feel would not suit the glitterati of Aspen or Vail, but for anyone else it’s great. And that’s not just me saying so – it’s all our clients we send there too.”

Ian can be contacted via e-mail at ian@awwt.co.uk. For more information on AmeriCan Ski, go to www.awwt.co.uk.

Contact Vacations Inc via e-mail at res@vacationsinc.com or check out the website: http://www.vacationsinc.com

The National Sports Center for the Disabled (NSCD) is hosting the 32nd Wells Fargo Bank Cup on February 23 – 25, 2007. This event has been one of the most successful fundraisers for the NSCD, bringing in more than $250,000 to support therapeutic recreation programs for children and adults with disabilities.

Festivities throughout the weekend include the Frontier Cup Corporate Challenge, The Celebrity Smackdown, the World Disabled Invitational, skier hospitality, Clam Bake, fireworks, 2 day silent auction and live entertainment.

This weekend is also host to the World Disabled Invitational which boasts the largest purse on the disabled racing circuit. This year the World Disabled Invitational will feature athletes who competed in the 2006 Paralympics in Turin, Italy. These athletes represented the United States in bringing home many gold and silver medals. After the races, stay and enjoy some fireworks, ice carving demonstrations, apres ski and autographs from the Denver Broncos and Cheerleaders.

The 1st Annual SKI for NSCD as part of the 32nd Annual Wells Fargo Bank Cup is being held February 23rd – 25th at Winter Park Resort. SKI for NSCD is a pledge event designed to encourage the public to come enjoy Winter Park Resort as well as raise awareness and funds for a good cause. People who register can easily create their own website page to email out to family and friends who can then donate in the person’s name. Thanks to many sponsors, the NSCD is able to offer incentive levels that include ski passes, meals andlodging for the weekend, custom ski boots, gift certificates and a chance to win a 7 day cruise.

SKI for NSCD will culminate with a lunch and awards party for participants during the Wells Fargo Bank Cup. Participants can register on line at http://www.skifornscd.com./

The NSCD is among the largest adapted sports and outdoor therapeutic recreation programs in the world. Each year, through the NSCD, children and adults with disabilities take to the ski slopes, rivers, mountain trails and golf links to learn more about sports — and themselves. For more information about the National Sports Center for the Disabled, call (303) 293-5711 or visit http://www.nscd.org.