US resorts behemoth Vail buys Whistler Blackcomb

Vail Resorts announced a deal Monday to buy Canada's Whistler Blackcomb ski company for Can$1.4 billion (US$1 billion) as it seeks to hedge against a lack of snow at other lodges.

Vail owns ski hills in seven US states, including its flagship Colorado resort. It also bought Australia's largest mountain resort -- the Perisher ski resort -- last year.

The company has moved aggressively in recent years to geographically diversify in response to increasingly unpredictable weather and snowfall.

Whistler Blackcomb's chief executive Dave Brownlie called this a "unique challenge facing the broader ski industry."

Whistler Blackcomb is North America's largest winter resort, offering more than 200 trails, 8,000 acres of backcountry terrain, more than a dozen alpine bowls and three glaciers about an hour and a half drive north of Vancouver on Canada's Pacific coast.

"The resort receives on average more than 465 inches (1,180 centimeters) of snow annually, and offers one of the longest ski seasons in North America," Brownlie said.

Vale introduced a single pass a few years ago giving skiers access to all of its properties -- which has proven to be very popular, and also helps cushion against bad weather. It will now be extended to Whistler Blackcomb.