website design
Smugglers’ Notch Resort
A family resort and vacation destination in Vermont’s Green Mountains.
Nestled in the heart of Vermont’s Green Mountains, Smuggs is a premier year-round vacation destination known for its family-friendly atmosphere and extensive outdoor activities. In the winter, the ski resort offers over 1,000 acres of varied terrain and award-winning children’s programs. In the warmer months, guests can enjoy hiking, mountain biking, disc golf, zip-lining, and water activities at the resort’s numerous pools and water parks. With something for everyone, Smuggs provides an unforgettable experience for visitors of all ages.
Project Details
- SERVICES USED
- TECHNOLOGIES USED
- WordPress
- Gravity Forms
- Events Calendar Plugin
- KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Modernized & Mobile-Friendly Website with an Improved User Experience
- Gives Users Immediate Access to Current Conditions, Activities, & Events
- Custom User Interface for Site Admins to Edit Content in One Single Location
The Challenge
The overarching goal of the new Smugglers’ Notch Resort website was to establish a web presence that authentically represented the resort’s brand and extensive offerings, while also providing essential information and resources for visitors. Previously upon arriving at the website, users had to navigate four separate sites segmented by season, which added too many extra steps to locating information and it wasn’t always clear which page held the most up-to-date information. The site also needed to best represent the Smuggs experience: beautiful landscapes, family-fun activities, and the ultimate year-round vacation spot. Consolidating these separate sites would be essential in creating a single immersive, reliable, and multi-seasonal user experience.
The Smugglers’ Notch team also wanted to make the website easier to use for administrators, who often had difficulty editing the content on the website. Critical information, like timely events, hours, and lift statuses would all have to be easy to update for site admins as well as easy to find for site users. Other key objectives for this website redesign included adding ways to feature up-to-date mountain conditions, weather, and seasonal activities throughout the site, as well as creating a first-timer’s guide page for first-time visitors and a detailed map of the mountain to highlight lift locations, different terrains, and ski levels.
Our Approach
Our approach to redesigning the Smugglers’ Notch Resort website was to enhance user experience and site management. To accomplish this, our team created a custom WordPress site that adheres to accessibility requirements and consolidates content into a single, cohesive platform. Now, users can easily find and access information, and switch between summer and winter activities without restarting their user journey, ensuring a seamless browsing experience. We also prioritized ease of management for the Smugglers’ Notch team by creating a single source of truth for content. Now, information for items such as lift statuses or activities can be entered once and then dynamically displayed across relevant sections of the site, significantly reducing the need for manual updates.
Furthermore, we laid the groundwork for future expansion, recognizing that this project is part of a larger, ongoing effort to continually extend and enhance the site’s functionality. Our comprehensive project management and quality assurance processes ensured consistency across over 500 pages, including hands-on training sessions for the Smugglers’ Notch team. This training investment allows them to manage and update the site effectively, ensuring it remains current and user-friendly. With both administrative and user experience at the forefront of this project, the final result is an immersive online platform that captures both the excitement and beauty of Smugglers’ Notch across all four seasons.
Homepage Layout & Design
Allows users to immediately and effortlessly access current information about vacation packages, upcoming events, and mountain conditions all in one place.
- Mega Menu
- Activities & Vacation Packages Carousels
- Calendar of Upcoming Events
- Highlighted Seasonal Landing Pages
Seasonal Activities Pages
Presents users with multiple options and paths for consideration when planning their visit, from seasonal activities to lodging.
- Toggle Between Seasons for Different Activities
- Carousel of Seasonal Experiences & Packages
- Featured Activities Section
- Calendar of Upcoming Events
Hear From Smugglers’ Notch Resort
The Smuggs Team
Winter Conditions Report Page
Provides users with up-to-date information on weather, lift statuses, and terrain in a clean, streamlined way that is visually optimized for every device.
- Quicklinks Bar
- Daily Alerts Message Banner
- Weather Integration with Real-Time Data
- Dynamically Updated Trail & Lift Statuses
- Links to Live Mountain Webcams
