If you’re considering a ski trip this year, Vail Resorts offers discounted prices for ski lifts — but only until Labor Day on Sept. 5.
Calling all ski lovers: This is your official notice to start buying passes for ski resorts. Planning ahead on fall and winter ski trips will save significant dollars for those who invest early.
Vail Resorts offers several options for ski passes, which provide access to the company’s many ski resort options across North America, Switzerland, and Australia.
In addition to the baseline offerings of an Epic Pass, Vail Resorts announced several new features for its visitors. By this winter, the company will complete 18 upgrades at its resorts. The changes will “help guests move up and around the mountain faster and more easily, even on the most popular days,” a press release said.
Vail Resorts also said it’s reinvesting in its employees with higher wages, affordable housing, and other benefits.
Perhaps the most exciting announcement for ski veterans is access to Andermatt-Sedrun, Central Switzerland’s largest ski area. Located about 90 minutes from Zurich, “Andermatt attracts guests from all over the world with its charming, traditional village center, deep powder and challenging steep slopes.”
Basic Benefits
Starting this year, Vail Resorts offers a Buy Now Pay Later option. Visitors can purchase any ski pass through Epic FlexPay, allowing payment through monthly installments with no down payment and zero interest.
Pass holders also receive 20% off winter and summer activities. Passes also include 20% off food, lodging, group ski and ride school lessons, and equipment rentals during the winter.
Many Epic Passes come with “Ski With a Friend” ticket vouchers. That means discounted lift tickets sharable with friends and family. All passes are nonrefundable, except for those who pay for Epic Coverage.
Various Options
Let’s take a closer look at the choices. Vail Resorts has options for a single day of skiing and prolonged stays.
However, you don’t have to choose a predetermined option. Vail Resorts also offers customizable passes, allowing skiers and riders to tailor their access to their individual needs.
Popular options include:
Epic Pass: $859, provides unlimited, unrestricted access to 41 resorts, from local ski areas to bucket list destinations — including Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Crested Butte, Park City, Whistler Blackcomb, Andermatt-Sedrun, Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood, Stowe, Stevens Pass, and more. With other partner resorts like Telluride, the Epic Pass unlocks access to more than 80 resorts.
Epic Local Pass: $639, provides unlimited, unrestricted access to 29 resorts — including Breckenridge and Keystone. You also get holiday-restricted access to Park City, Heavenly, and Stowe, plus 10 days total at Vail, Beaver Creek, and Whistler Blackcomb, and 5 days at Andermatt-Sedrun.
Epic Day Pass allows skiers and riders to build their own pass, choosing from one to 7 days, holidays or not, and resort access. These passes offer savings up to 65% compared to lift ticket prices, with prices starting as low as $45 for an Epic 1-Day Pass. Epic Day Pass Holders with All Resorts Access can use any of their days at Andermatt-Sedrun.
Northeast Value Pass: $525, provides access to 21 resorts across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. They include Stowe, Hunter, Mount Snow, Okemo, and Wildcat, and also new additions Seven Springs, Hidden Valley, and Laurel Mountain in Pennsylvania.
Epic Military Pass: $149, for active and retired military and their dependents. It provides unlimited, unrestricted access to all of Vail Resorts’ owned and operated mountains. That includes Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Park City, and Whistler Blackcomb. Veterans and their dependents can purchase an Epic Military Pass for $480.
