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North Conway, NH – December 2, 2025 — Mt. Washington Valley businesses enjoyed a brisk holiday vacation period from Christmas to New Year’s weekend, driven by excellent early-season snowfall, good ski conditions and many options for dining and shopping. The period also included the first New Year’s Night Out event, which featured a scavenger hunt, shopping deals, activities and fireworks in Schouler Park.

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Based on local business survey responses, the Mount Washington Valley saw a strong Christmas Week vacation period, with 70% of respondents rating overall business 8–10 on a 10-point scale. Respondents most often cited winter conditions and the seasonal atmosphere, along with the Valley’s mix of dining, shopping, and recreation, as drivers of demand. Visitors frequently praised food and beverage experiences, friendly service, and the overall winter getaway feel.

Common opportunities cited included traffic/crowding and limited public amenities such as restrooms and trash disposal. Looking ahead, businesses report measured confidence for the rest of winter (average expectation 7.0/10), with most anticipating steady demand if snow conditions remain favorable.

Split Story for Lodging

Lodging results were mixed, with several reporting strong bookings.

Paul Durfee, Marketing Director for Berry Companies, owners of Eastern Slope Inn and Attitash Mountain Village, stated, “Our resorts saw modest increases in room nights and decent increases in revenue during the holiday period, despite competing with more hotels than ever before during a vacation period. We were up 7% in revenue compared to same period last year.”

Sera Holt, GM of the Fairfield Inn at Cranmore, was similarly positive, “The weather cooperated and the mountain had great ski conditions.  We’re located right next to Cranmore. It was the right combination for vacation.”

Alex Foti, president of Bretton Woods Vacations, reported a blockbuster week, sharing  “It was an outstanding holiday season all around! Visitor traffic was robust—surpassing last year’s levels—and we were thrilled to be completely sold out, with all 125 of our homes fully booked for the New Year holiday.”

Not everyone had a strong period, however. Some lodging businesses reported reduced room nights, lower rates and more competition from other hotels or more Air BnBs.

Shopping and Dining Up

North Conway is known for its tax-free shopping outlets and shoppers turned out in droves for the period.  Due to icy weather on the Monday after Christmas, visitors took advantage of indoor activities like shopping and dining.

Laura Lemieux, Marketing Director at Settlers Green, stated, “Business was up about 5% over the holiday break over last year. Specifically, we saw the most people the days leading in and out of New Year's Eve. This year, we had an event for the first time on New Year's Eve, which also generated interest and traffic.”

Black Cap Grille, at their Settlers Crossing location, reported, “We had very solid volume most days. 12/30-1/1 had the highest volume. New Year’s Eve was the busiest New Year's we’ve had. Icy conditions earlier in the week improved lunch visitors for us.

Early Snow Helped Ski Areas

Nate Harvey from Great Glen Trails stated, “Crowds were happy even through the cold weather. Steady business from 12/24-12/31.” Becca Deschenes, Marketing Director at Cranmore Mountain reported a very strong week and that they’re on pace for a record period.  Chris McNevich at King Pine added they had “phenomenal early season conditions” for the period.

Chamber Perspective

Chris Proulx, Executive Director of the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce, shared, “New Year's Eve in North Conway Village was simply amazing! The ‘Prize Poster’ scavenger hunt was a huge success with 1,797 entries. People commented that it added an element of fun and excitement to the day, and it helped them discover businesses they had never even been in before. We had participants from 236 unique towns. Seventy-five percent came from MA and NH, but we had participants from as far away as FL, CA and the UK.  Attendance at the North Conway Village fireworks was way up over last year. “

Proulx continued, “Good early-season snowfall and press generated by North Conway's ranking as #1 Ski Town by USA Today's 10Best have certainly stoked excitement for visiting Mt Washington Valley.”

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