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Nothing’s cheap in Vail

Vail Daily Editorial
Vail CO, Colorado

There soon will be one less reason to visit Vail: a cheap place to stay.

The Roost Lodge, whose nightly room rate is the lowest of any upvalley hotel, is on its way out to make room for a Marriott ” a bigger name that undoubtedy will carry a bigger price tag.

Vail’s an international destination, so top-shelf amenities go without saying. But resort towns stay popular by having elements accessible to those savvy enough to spot the deals. Blue-collar skiers will scrape together the astronomical price of a Vail lift ticket as long as they can find a place to crash.



When a town’s deals disappear altogether, it takes on an otherworldly, elite image that has no connection to reality. Forget Disneyland ” think Dubai. We’re not there yet, despite the frequent grumblings of “playground for the rich.”

But the demise of the Roost is part of a larger trend.

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Local merchants might roll their eyes at wistful longings for days when all anybody needed to visit a ski town was a love of skiing. Whittling down and refining Vail’s clientele until it’s all in the same tax bracket means big profit potential.

And after all, in a free-market economy, it doesn’t make sense to sit on your hands when there are endless amounts of money to be made.

But once every business in town is catering to people for whom money is no object, have fun shelling out $50 on your lunch hour.

” Evan Gibbard for the Editorial Board


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