MAY 7, 2009 ISSUE
Were You At Grandfather In April?
Grandfather Mountain’s April Dollar Days Breaks Attendance Record
A record-breaking 16,277 High Country residents visited Grandfather Mountain during April for its biannual Dollar Days promotion. April 2009’s total squashes the previous April Dollar Days attendance record of 12,469 people set in 2006.
Helping boost the grand total were 6,900 people who took advantage of warmer-than-average temperatures on the last weekend of the month to make the trip to Grandfather—3,137 on Saturday, April 25, and 3,763 on Sunday, April 26.
“[Sunday, April 26] was bigger than any day’s record for Memorial Day Weekend or Labor Day Weekend,” said Harris Prevost, vice president of Grandfather Mountain.
Grandfather Mountain Dollar Days’ $1 admission is offered biannually in December and April to residents in the six counties represented by the High Country Host regional travel promotion organization: Mitchell, Avery, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany and Wilkes. The discount is also extended to students of colleges and universities in the High Country and to guests traveling in the same vehicle with those eligible for the discount.
April’s total of 16,277 accounted for 46 percent of the total amount of Grandfather Mountain visitors during the month, said Gate Manager Jim Topelski. Of the 16,277, 2,075 were High Country children and 14,202 were High Country adults.
According to Topelski, 10,669 High Country residents took advantage of Dollar Days in April 2008, accounting for 50 percent of attraction attendees.
During Dollar Days, High Country residents also have the choice of bringing one can of canned food in place of their $1 admission. The canned food is then dispersed among area food banks. During April 2009’s Dollar Days, 216 people donated 438 cans of food, according to Topelski.
December 2008’s Dollar Days promotion attracted 1,534 High Country residents to Grandfather Mountain, just short of the previous record of 1,571 residents set in 2006.
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