Fairmont Hot Springs is Canadian largest and also finest timeshare resort. It is located in British Columbia. The population of the community is about 476, but there are frequent visitors from Calgary. The company is at the center of soak of the pool and also a swimming pool which its waters are from natural hot springs.
Its history began at the 1899's when the explorers discovered the land of smoking waters with soothing waters which lacked Sulphur and also had a distinctive smell.
The first person to settle in the area was George Geary. Later in 1887, he gave his holdings to Sam Brewer, who came to Canada from the United States. Sam Brewer operated a stopping place for stage coaches which were operating through the valley. The name Fairmont Hot Springs was given by Mrs. John Galbraith who was the wife of a ferry operator at Galbraith landing near Fort Steele (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020a).
In 1900's W. Heap Holland, a manufacturer who came from Manchester England landed in the area, and the idea of hot springs piqued his interest hence purchasing the property from Sam Brewer.
He started a ranch and a resort. After his death, the son became the rightful heir of the property. In 1957, Earl and Lloyd Wilder who were brothers from Saskatchewan purchased the Fairmont Hot Springs together with other investors (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020a).
In 1965 Lloyd purchased the shares of his brother Lloyd and became the sole proprietor of the resort. From there, there was a significant transformation and expansion of the area which has become recognized in international markets (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020a).
Fairmount Hot Springs Resort has become a famous destination for many tourists over the years due to the quality of experiences it offers. There are various activities that an individual can engage which include; hikes and walks, River Rafting, skating, biking and walking, swimming, fishing, Discovery Ski Area Bike Park, Snowshoeing and water sports.
Fairmount Hot Springs resort targets leisure holiday as its primary market. Other markets that provide substantial revenue to the resort included leisure events, business events and sports events.
The Youth Market: mostly they have an average income, they have a high energy approach to travel, they are more likely to undertake adventure sports (biking and hiking) and other activities that generate high adrenaline. Mostly they are free spirits who are social and open-minded. They love Experimental and adventurous, and they love high-end hedonistic experiences which are shared with others. British Columbia's scenic beauty is an outstanding gateway and holiday destination for the young generation. Activities such as fishing, skiing, biking and Golfing makes youths to be connected to nature.
Fairmount Hot Springs resort also offers a classic outdoor lifestyle and provide outstanding fun and thrill at the same time. Tourist also provided will the chance to meet people, mix learn lifestyle from the local communities.
The Family Market: Fairmount Hot Springs targets both young families young couple with young children and baby boomers. The family segment has above average income and education. Most are interested in a soothing environment to get more rejuvenated. Family with young children are also seeking a destination that can offer a wild experience to their little ones from delicious food to tourist activities such as skiing. The family market also features ethical consumerism who tend to check the company's practices on whether the company is socially responsible. The individuals in this segment also cherish the ordinary moments.
Business Tourist Market: Fairmount Hot Springs also target business tourists. The resort is a perfect location for Civic Organizations meetings, Business or Sales Meetings. Its conference rooms can accommodate between 6-600 people. This market comprises of high-income earners who tend to spend more money per night compared with the holiday visitors. They are also attracted to actives such as golf and Spa.
Snowshoeing: It is among the best ways an individual can enjoy the winter wonderland in the Columbia Valley. Visitors can enjoy Snowshoeing in at Fairmont Hoodoos, Radium Hot Springs and Nipika Mountain Resort.
Water Sports: Lake Windermere tend to offer tranquil bays for stand up paddleboard, other water sports include jet ski, waterski and wakeboard.
Skating: Lake Windermere Whiteway offers a skating loop which is well maintained from Invermere to Windermere which also features hockey rinks and fire pits along the way.
River Rafting Fairmount Hot Springs: is known by the locals for the Fairmont Float. The river is a self-guided experience which is free and just require one to carry their tubes. It is a good way to spend an afternoon. The river flows at a sedate pace, and it is very safe for the whole family (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020b).
Fishing: the resort is very close to the Montana fishing vacation. Within an hour drive, an individual can fish in three world-famous Trout streams: Beaverhead Rivers, the Big Hole and Rock Creek. Moreover, the Jefferson River, Georgetown Lake, and upper Clark Fork River also provide an outstanding trout fishing (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020b).
Golf: the resort’s Golf Course features a unique 6,741 yard, 18-Hole, par 72 layouts. It offers a great experience for experience Golfers. There three Golf courses: Riverside, and Mountainside are 18-hole courses while Creekside is a family-oriented Golf Course with 9-hole par 3.
Discovery Ski Area Bike Park: is fun and also a challenging course which is designed particularly for experienced mountain bikers as well as park riders. The park is at the backside of the Discovery and drops riders about 1,050 vertical feet. The features that make biking to be fun are bridges, logs, jumps, rides and drops. The park is well maintained to smooth out washboard and jarring ruts. The resort offers approximately 6kms of cross-country ski trails. They are perfect trails for those interested in learning Nordic ski or for individuals seeking for a nice easy glide along with the snow (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020b).
Hikes and walks: there is quite a number of British Columbia's national and provisional parks which have rugged landscapes, waterfalls, hanging glaciers and panoramic mountain summits that can be explored. There are also over 50km of marked trails which are within the resort's property together with extensive mountain playground found in Columbia valley. The hoodoos offer a great landmark for tourist who has visited the resort. Other trails are the Bugaboos, Mount Swansea among others that range from easy to difficult which can be good in both hiking and biking (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020b).\nDiversity of Other Activities, Amenities and Attractions to Hold and Satisfy the Target Market
Fairmont Hot Springs Resort has a massage and Spa. The Natural Springs Spa offers an outstanding full-service day experience. The Spa uses natural hot springs waters to create an amazing spa experience. The Spa offers a variety of unique treatments from scrubs, massages, pedicures, massages, scrubs, soaks and wraps to facials. Moreover, there are various amenities that the resort offers to its visitors in order to create the best Rocky Mountain experiences and memories, which include:
unlimited access to the public pools which the largest Canada’s Natural Mineral Hot Springs Pools
Complimentary parking which is safe and secure for all the visitors
Access to the steam room, sauna, exercise room
the visitors can also access the relaxing resort-guest-only Natural Mineral Hot Springs Pool
diverse resort activities such as mini-golf, gentle yoga as well as kayak river float tours which keep visitors well entertained
there are seasonal Guided local nature hikes and snowshoe nature hikes
In-house Nordic Style hot and cold plunge pools
the resort has unlimited seasonal access to the Riverside Golf Course driving range, and a seasonal unlimited to seasonal access to tennis courts and one is free to use the resort's rackets and balls
The visitors are provided with unlimited free Wi-Fi in every guest room and also ain all the Fairmount hot springs resort’s public areas.
The resort also offers a wide range of lodging alternatives which include rooms with lofts which are perfect for a family with children, kitchenettes and well-appointed suits which have fireplaces and in-room soaker tubs (Fairmont Hot Springs Resort, 2020c).
Modifying Processes That He Resort Has Developed to Influence the Impact of Seasonality
Seasonality is a major characteristic of the tourism industry. It is regarded as a major issue for the industry which can result in great pressure on business across all the aspects (environmental, social and financial). Seasonality can be viewed as when the demand is at its peak at different times of the year (Mitchel et al., 2003). It can be as a result of climate changes or national holidays. Seasonality is associated with various negative impacts such as the industry’s income become very unstable increase in unemployment; people are employed in seasons which might be a big loss to the company due to huge cost of recruitment and training. Mostly the industry overcharges during peak season and lowers the costs during low season to manage the fixed costs which might scare away interested visitors. As a way to reduce the impact of seasonality on skiing, Fairmont Hot Springs Resort has invested in new snowmaking technology.
The investment aims to help the resort to open its operations earlier and also to remain operational later into spring. The snowmaking equipment doubles the Resorts capacity to create high-quality snow. This updated snowmaking technology helps the company to take advantage of the new opportunities. For instance, it has helped the Resort to offer more pre-season training to junior ski as well as snowboard teams. It also harvests large revenues for the company due to a large consumer base. Customers are more interested in the reliability of a destination and also quality services (Fairmont Hot Springs, 2020d).
Fairmont Hot Springs Resort has also completed its extensive natural mineral hot springs pool renovation. This is a major renovation to the pool since it was created. The pool upgrades reflect unique mountain vistas that surround the Resorts' property. It also reduces the seasonality impact as it can attract more visitors throughout the year who are seeking for upgraded mineral hot springs pool.
Fairmount Hot Springs Resort engages employees and the guests in their common goal of protecting and preserving the environment. By having an assertive economic impact, Fairmount Hot Springs Resort has proofed to be responsible towards the surrounding community within which it operates. They offer training and mentoring events for people and also engages actively in celebrating diverse culture such as the Montana Folk Festival. The resort tries to maintain its environment through green policies and recycling its waste. Its properties are also environmental friendly which has helped in attracting environment-conscious consumers.
The resort engages in sustainable practices that help in conserving natural resources and reduce the impact on the environment. In December 2019, the resort presented charitable donations to the Invermere Companion Animal Network (ICAN). The donations were to cover for two animals surgeries. This charitable event happened during Resort’s Holiday Lights and Winter Nights Festival when ICAN held pet photos with Santa (ICAN, 2019).
Fairmont Hot Springs Resort has also joined the leading carbon off-setting program known as Eco-stay. The resort achieved Carbon Neutral Status for 2011, as a result of purchasing sufficient offsets to balance all Resorts’ operational emissions. It is a very important ongoing commitment which aims to develop green and sustainable practices within the resort. The programs help both hotels and resorts assess their carbon footprint, identify and fund strategies for carbon reduction. It also helps in balancing off greenhouse gas emissions through carbon offsetting. For continuity of the program, Fairmont Hot Springs Resort gets $2 per night from the guest’s then use the fund to purchase carbon offsets. $1.50 is for carbon offsets, while the remaining 50¢ is used in making on-site and local eco-improvements (Columbia Valley Pioneer, 2012).
They act as the key pillars of the resort destination. They are the reason why people will decide to visit a destination (Murphy, 2009). Some of the attraction complexes in Fairmount Hot Springs and resort include Golf courses, camping areas, wildling camping, biking, hiking, scenic drive, resorts’ spa, hot springs pools for swimming, historic restorations and outstanding experiences.
This is the communities leaving around the destination sites. They are also key stakeholders of any destination due to the crucial role they play towards the development of tourist sites. Communities leaving in British Columbia provides a wide range of accommodation and services such as entertainment festivals that attract tourist who are interested in knowing other cultures. Also, they provide employment to the resort. Other services they provide include tour guiding and language interpretation that helps the destination to function more efficiently.
Access to the destination site for either domestic and international visitors should be seamless. Canada has the most developed infrastructure globally, which meets the requirements for international trade and high-tech business. Canada's well-developed airports, roads and railways that facilitates free movement of people across the regions. Coming from the north, Fairmount Hot Springs and Resort is easily accessible through Trans Canada and Kootenay Highways to Columbia valley. Form south one can access the resort from Highway 95 and Crowsnest Highway.
As a result of climate change, biosecurity as well as other human-related threats that have a significant impact on the quality and health of natural assets, Fairmount Hot Springs Resort should develop strategies designed to adapt to the climate change such as global warming. Tools such as snow guns can be of benefit in sustaining skiing activities. Second, the company should consider developing dynamic strategies that respond to both short term and long-term scenarios. Third, the resort also needs to consider investing a huge amount on providing various sporting activities and other family-oriented activities such as surfing since many people are seeking authentic experiences with nature. This can be achieved through assessing and understanding the understand target demographics and needs. This will help also help the resort to remain relevant to both the current and future visitor’s needs. Forth, In terms of marketing the company should invest in both social marketing platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. It should also invest in Search engine optimization, which helps in optimizing the engine search, thus gaining more visitors to click the company's website. This is a competitive advantage over the competitors such as Harrison Hot Springs Resort Inc. Diverse marketing strategies also make the business to remain more relevant in the market. Finally, the organization should consider sponsoring national and international sports activities such as golf, football and basketball, which would help in increasing its popularity and reducing the impact of seasonality.
In future I expect Hot springs hot resort to be a five-star resort providing high-end tourist activities through their innovative technologies such as snowmaking technology. I also expect it to expand to other Canadian regions and internationally due to a wide spectrum of activities it can provide other than hot springs swimming pools.
Fairmont Hot Springs and Environmental Issue. (2021, Oct 31). Retrieved from http://envrexperts.com/free-essays/essay-about-fairmont-hot-springs-and-environmental-issue