Epic passes, Vail Resort’s multi-location ski and ride pass, will go up in price again this Sunday. But the deadline may not mean much to locals. Those who frequent the company’s Stowe Mountain, Okemo or Mount Snow resorts likely know enough to have bought some version of the Epic pass months ago, before the first major cost bump in early September.
But the press for an advance commitment goes beyond the corporation that owns those three resorts. Across the state, on most mountains, winter sports enthusiasts must plan ahead or pay much more.
In fact, skiing and riding has become cheaper than it was a decade ago for those able to plan and purchase their lift passes in advance. For the rest of us, there are very few places left where you can go for a day for less than $90. A VTDigger analysis found that some slopes have doubled their walk-up prices since 2013, putting a spontaneous day trip out of reach for many Vermonters.
“What the ski companies have done is say, ‘We want you to buy season passes,’” said Kim Brown, the author of the column Ski Bum Corner in the Stowe Reporter and skier of Vermont’s slopes since 1952.
“If you are a regular skier, you like to ski a lot, then probably the cost of skiing is very reasonable,” he said of season pass purchases. However, “day tickets are just outside the realm of affordability for most people,” he added.
Like the Epic, the Ikon pass — which provides entry to Stratton Mountain, Killington and Sugarbush — also gives skiers and riders access to multiple ski locations throughout the country. For both, tickets bought early can be significantly cheaper than purchasing a season pass at a single resort. But they increase in price over time and sales stop altogether by early December.
VTDigger compared prices for season and day passes listed in mid-November 2023 at 12 ski resorts in Vermont for the coming season to the prices listed on their websites from the 2013-2014 season, accessed through the Wayback Machine internet archive.
Over the past 10 years, pass options have also expanded, with multiple-day passes, off-peak season, or all-access season passes available at almost all resorts.
Given that variety, we compared the passes in 2023 that most resemble what was available in 2013. For day passes, we compared walk-up weekend rates. For season passes, we looked at passes that offered the most access during the most days.
The results confirm Brown’s beliefs; the cost of season passes have decreased over time, while day pass prices have gone up. At Jay Peak, for example, day tickets have increased by 47% since 2013, while the cost of season passes decreased by 22%, with inflation figured in.
The priciest peak period day ticket this season is at Stowe Mountain Resort. Its $219 walk-up lift ticket makes it the most expensive peak period lift ticket of any resort in the East, according to a list by the Storm Skiing Journal.
While it may seem that in 2013 even season passes were a lot cheaper, adjusted for modern-day inflation there are many resorts where prices have decreased compared to 10 years ago.
For example, the most expensive Ikon season pass is $1309, which includes many resorts, and access to the slopes during the holidays. Ten years ago, a season pass was $40 more. Adjusted for inflation, that season pass in 2013 would cost around $1800 today.
As the incentive to buy season passes grows, skiers might be bound to one area, or at least only to the big resorts, instead of being able to explore the rest of the state’s slopes.
But even occasional skiers, just like ski veterans, have to plan ahead as a way to circumvent expensive prices and, at some resorts, to score a lift ticket at all.
“Lift tickets will be limited every day, across every resort, during the 2023/24 season to preserve the guest experience for Pass Holders,” Courtney DiFiore, a communication manager of Vail Resorts, said in an email. “If tickets are sold out online, guests will not be able to purchase them at ticket windows.” According to DiFiore, the amount of lift tickets available will be visible on resorts’ websites starting this week.
“We also offer the Epic Day Pass, which is an intentional strategy to move occasional skiers and riders from lift tickets to passes,” DiFiore said. The Epic Day Pass is a way to purchase between one and seven one-day lift tickets through early December for a significantly reduced price.
Sugarbush, which opens this Saturday, advertised against window tickets and encouraged people to buy their tickets online in an Instagram post, which has since been met with a lot of criticism.
“There is usually a lot of attention paid to pricing at the larger areas, but (it is) important to remember that there are a number of smaller, more community-focused areas that offer lower ticket and season pass rates,” said Molly Mahar, president of the Vermont Ski Areas Association, also called Ski Vermont, wrote in an email.
At Cochran’s Ski Area in Richmond, prices have decreased since 2013. Day tickets sell this year at $19 and season passes are $195, whereas 10 years ago season tickets were $259 and day tickets $20. Like the Northeast Slopes, rentals are not available this season. According to their website, they are the first non-profit ski area in the United States.
Ski Vermont data suggests that the number of skier visits at Vermont’s mountains has decreased over the past 10 years, from 4.7 million in 2013 to 4.1 million last year. However, according to marketing manager Travis Bobley, the comparison may not be a fair one as their tracking data has become more accurate over time. Now, they are able to track the amount of people on the mountains, whereas previously, they tracked the number of tickets bought, even the ones that were never used.
Cheaper season passes are also attractive for tourists, raising the question of whether locals are even buying Epic or Ikon passes, or whether they are mainly used by visitors traveling from outside of Vermont. According to an estimation by Ski Vermont, the latter make up 80% of skier visits across the state.
“My guess is that the number (of tourists) has increased due to the new multi-mountain season pass options,” Mahar said.
According to Brown, the ski columnist, that has led to many locals looking to ski elsewhere.
“I am seeing more Vermonters shifting out of the Epic pass because they don’t want to deal with the crowds,” he said.
Correction: The daily lift ticket and season pass figures in the graphics of a previous version of this story were not consistent in the type of ticket being compared.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Season passes take over across Vermont slopes.