Skiing doesn’t have to break the bank
By Frederick Reimers, Outside
The ticket-window price at major ski resorts this season will be well north of $100, especially during peak times like Christmas and Presidents Day weekend. That’s not to mention the $7 pints of beer, $12 burgers and that $10 can of peanuts you can’t resist grabbing from the minibar at 1am after bar hopping through quaint, snowy streets. But it is possible to cut some costs.
The best deals are always going to be season passes or multi-resort pass deals like the Mountain Collective and the Epic Pass. But if you can’t commit to that much resort riding, you should still buy your day-tickets now.
The Fairmont at Whistler is on the slopes of the ski resort. Photo/LTN file
“Buying your tickets in advance is just as important to cost savings as is skiing at off-peak times,” says Evan Reece, CEO of Liftopia, an online broker of lift tickets similar to airline ticket aggregators like Kayak.com and Skyscanner.com. “The earlier you purchase, the cheaper it will be.”
While you can buy slightly discounted advance tickets on the websites of major resorts like Vail and Jackson Hole, it’s a good idea to check out Liftopia first. They sell tickets for as much as 85 percent off face value for days when demand is projected to be low (think the Tuesday after Presidents Day weekend) at 250 resorts worldwide.
The problem with advanced tickets, however, is weather. Say its 20 below, or there’s freezing rain glazing the chairlifts, and you rightly decide to stay in the hot tub all day instead of skiing. You’ll have to eat the cost of the ticket. Or at least you would have in previous years. This season, however, Liftopia is adding flexibility to their model with two new tiers of pricing that allow purchasers to change their lift ticket to a different day without an additional fee. The “Value Plus” ticket will cost a bit more and allow a single date change. The “Flexible” option allows unlimited changes, though in both cases the buyer is responsible for the difference in cost if there is one.
Yes, Skiing should not have to break the bank! Try cross- country skiing! No lift ticket needed and once you feel confident on your “skinny skiis”, kickin’ around the meadows, you are ready for the back country.
There are lots of places around here that, during a good winter, are steep, deep with lots of untracked fresh powder and you have got the whole place to yourself.
Never go out alone, (like I did in my younger years!) and learn about skiing and taking care of yourself in emergency situations. An avalance beeper is a great help!! As is a fully charged cell phone and always tell a freind or neighbor where your going and when you’ll be home
We live in such a beautiful place!!!!Don’t limit yourself to overpriced ski resorts and cheezy casinos!
I’m not anti Vail or casinos…. but there is much more out there than lift lines, high ticket prices and smoke filled casinos!!!! OLS
Vail seems to be the leader in increasing the daily ski lift ticket. But boy our season passes compared to other areas are a bargain. 1700 in Vermont vs 449 for 3 mountains. And even less at other local mountains. I think the 3 pack at Sierra is less than 65 a day. For people that want to ski more than a couple of times a year this is the way to go. Better Deals can be found on lodging by doing a little internet search, like airbnb.com