Are Epic passes worth it?Īn Epic Pass will save you money - even on a short tripįor the Epic Day Pass, valid at resorts such as Vail, prices start at just $87 per day (compared to $200+ for single-day lift tickets). This pass is also discounted for military personal, college students and nurses to $719. The full Ikon Pass is $999 for an adult pass, $739 for 13- to 22-year-olds, $319 for children 5 to 12 and $149 for children 4 and under. There’s a $80 renewal discount for those who had a 2020–2021 pass Ikon Base Pass. The company’s goal is to sell as many passes as possible, to, as Katz said on Vail’s recent earnings call, “… be aggressive … and really move big numbers of people into the program.” The numbers are already big: Vail sold around 1.4 million Epic Passes for the 2020-21 ski season. As a passholder of any of the three, you get access to resorts all over the world. This season the main multi-resort passes are Epic Pass, Ikon Pass, and Mountain Collective (MC). It’s not too late to buy a multi-pass for this upcoming winter depending on where and how many days you want to ride. But the Epic and Ikon are not the only collective passes out there. You only need to ski four to six days to make those pass prices worth it. Scott Condon is a Staff Writer for the Aspen Times, a sister publication to the Sierra Sun. It now provides access to 59 small, independent resorts in North America, though none in Colorado. The Indy Pass added 15 resorts to its lineup this season. Smaller resorts are trying not to get lost in the shuffle. The Mountain Collective provides two days of skiing each at 23 participating resorts, including Aspen Snowmass. The full Ikon Pass provides unlimited access at 15 resorts and up to seven days each at another 27 destinations. The Epic Pass provides unlimited access to 37 ski resorts and additional days at several other North American and international resorts. Skiers and riders also return more often to resorts that used to be once-in-a-lifetime experience, he said.Ī variety of other passes are offered, though none with the same firepower as the Epic and Ikon. The resorts benefit because the passes encourage people to ski more often and spend more on ski lessons, rentals and dining. The cutthroat competition gives skiers and riders access to the slopes at a good price, Diamond said. 2020,” Chris Diamond wrote that the “mega-passes” are good for the resorts and good for consumers. In a book about ski industry changes, “Ski Inc. Alterra created the Ikon Pass to counter the Epic. Vail was adding to its lineup of resorts and heavily promoting its Epic Pass - a relatively inexpensive product good at multiple resorts.Īlterra was formed by KSL Capital Partners LLC and the Lester Crown family, owners of Aspen Skiing Co. was created in April 2017 to challenge Vail Resorts’ industry domination. The national trend of increased season pass use parallels the ramping up of competition between the two industry heavyweights. In addition to its own passes and the Ikon, Skico also participates in the Mountain Collective ski pass. A $150 upgrade to the Ikon allowed buyers to ski or ride five days at Aspen Snowmass resorts as well as five days at Jackson Hole this winter.ĭata wasn’t immediately available from Aspen Snowmass on use of ski passes versus lift tickets last season. The Ikon Pass also requires reservations for use at some resorts, such as Aspen Snowmass. Without it, you won’t be able to make a reservation,” said the website, which touts itself as the ski travel experts. “If you want to ski the busiest of Vail Resorts’ Mountains during the holidays, you’d better hold an Epic Pass. Many resorts under the Vail umbrella are requiring reservations to hit the slopes this season. However, it is clear that this season the pandemic will promote pass use. Last ski season was cut short by the abrupt closure of most resorts in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic, so it’s unknown how spring break skiing would have affected the pass use versus lift ticket sales. Meanwhile, daily and multi-ticket use dropped from 48.8 percent in 2017-18 to 43.5 percent the following year and the same percent last season.
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