Skiing and snowboarding is never cheap, but there are plenty of ways to hit the slopes without breaking the bank — if you know where to hunt for bargains.
Sometimes the deals are unexpected. For example, two ski areas near either end of the Roaring Fork Valley are celebrating 50 years with very different offers. On Dec. 15, Snowmass is celebrating its 50th anniversary with $6.50 lift tickets — the cost of a one-day ticket on opening day in 1967, when it was called Snowmass-at-Aspen to help people locate it (aspensnowmass.com). Down the valley, near Glenwood Springs, $700 buys a full day of skiing or riding at Ski Sunlight, a hot-springs pass and a pair of handcrafted Meier skis (skisunlight.com).
To find more widespread deals, try these ways to save on the slopes:
1.–Shop online. Know when and where you plan to ski? Buy tickets at Liftopia.com. The Colorado page lists deals mostly in the range of 40 to 50 percent off regular price. Buy early, especially if you wish to ski over a holiday.
Mountain Sports Club membership unleashes buy-one-get-one tickets and other savings at resorts nationwide, with resorts added weekly. Basic membership is now free, but premium membership (currently $30, but it’s expected to climb to $60 as more resorts join) will gain you access to more bargains. mountainsportsclub.com
2.–Look in-store. Some local ski shops, including Colorado Ski & Golf, Christy Sports and Crystal Ski Shop, sell discounted lift tickets and season passes. King Soopers sells lift tickets at its customer service desks. Costco offers discounted tickets for its members. Check the gift card display for deals once the season starts.
3.–Fill ‘er up. Colorado skiers can receive a buy-one-get-one free voucher for participating ski resorts with the purchase of 10 gallons or more of gasoline at select Shell stations. skifreedeals.com
4.–Embrace January. Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month is a nationwide program offering beginner packages that include well priced lift tickets, rentals and lessons so newbies can get interested in (or even addicted to) snow sports. skiandsnowboardmonth.org
5.–Kids ski free. Every year, Colorado Ski Country issues a free Fifth Grade Passport. The passport allows every fifth grader in the state to ski free three times at each of 22 participating resorts. There’s another deal available for them the following year: For $105, sixth graders ski free up to four days at each resort. Purchase the Sixth Grade Passport by Nov. 30; the cost rises to $125 through Jan. 31. coloradoski.com
Kids age 6 or 7 ski free at many areas, but Steamboat’s Kids Ski Free program pioneered free lifts, lodging and lessons for kids 12 and younger (one kid per adult) during stays of five days or longer. steamboat.com
Vail Resorts’ participating Epic Pass resorts offer four or five days of free skiing to kindergarten through fifth grade students as part of their Epic School Kids program.–epicpass.com
Crested Butte is offering their no-strings free skiing deal for kids 12 and younger Nov. 23-Dec. 15 and April 1-8. skicb.com
6.–Think small. The Colorado Gems Card, a discount card for use at smaller Colorado ski areas, costs just $25 and is good for either two two-for-one lift tickets or two tickets at 30 percent off at each of 10 participating ski areas: Arapahoe Basin, Echo Mountain, Eldora, Hesperus, Loveland, Monarch Mountain, Powderhorn, Ski Cooper, Ski Granby Ranch and Sunlight. coloradoski.com/gems-card
Wolf Creek, the deep-snow mecca in southwestern Colorado, sells a $48 day ticket on 12 local appreciation days throughout the season. wolfcreekski.com
Ski Cooper, celebrating its 75th anniversary this season, will offer 2FER Tuesdays between Jan. 9 and Feb. 27; $30 Thursdays between Jan. 4 and March 29. It closes out the season with $25 lift tickets April 2-8. skicooper.com
7.–Try online direct. Not all resorts allow you to buy from resellers, but there are other ways to save. If you plan to go just a few days, look for lift-ticket bundles — three- or four-packs — after the cut-off date for regular season passes. Vail Resorts (vail.com) offers tiered pricing that varies according to dates and conditions, for example. On an early- or late-season day when not all lifts and runs are open, prices can be at least 30 percent lower than during the holidays. However, these must be purchased early.
8.–Take a pass. Just like a museum membership, a season pass lets you ski or ride whenever you like. If you use the pass to the maximum (or close to it), you’ll definitely save more than the occasional skier. Pick up an Epic Pass (on sale through Nov. 19 at epicpass.com) or buy a season pass to a mountain: for example, adult passes at Echo Mountain are $249, $399 at Ski Cooper. College students, families, teens, seniors or members of the military might also find individual deals.
9.–Multiply your savings. For skiers who like to hit the road, nothing beats multi-mountain season passes that offer benefits at a number of resorts around the country and beyond.
Vail Resorts’ variations on the theme of Epic Pass are legion. The huge resort company owns ski areas from California to Vermont, but being based in Colorado, its concentration is here. Passes (on sale through Nov. 19) range from the modest 4-Day Epic Pass (four unrestricted days at a choice of 11 areas, adult $459, child $129) to the global Epic Pass. That version provides unrestricted access to 15 North American areas, one in Australia, plus various offers at 30 European resorts (adult $899, child $469). The Epic Local Pass grants unlimited access to Breckenridge and Keystone and 10 holiday-restricted days at Vail and Beaver Creek, as well as some out-of-state privileges.–epicpass.com
The MAX Pass is the monarch of them all, with savings at 44 resorts from Maine to Alaska. themaxpass.com
The Rocky Mountain Super Pass Plus (adult: $639) provides unlimited access to Winter Park, Copper Mountain and Eldora Mountain, as well as limited access to Steamboat and Crested Butte, Mt. Bachelor, Ore., Alyeska, Alaska, and seven days at each of six overseas resorts. skicolorado.com
The Mountain Collective is good for 24 days at destination resorts including Aspen, Snowmass, Telluride, Jackson Hole, Whistler Blackcomb and other international resorts ($489 for adults, just $99 to age 12). mountaincollective.com
The newest is the Power Pass, which is good for unlimited use at Purgatory and Hesperus, plus Pajarito and Sipapu, N.M., and Arizona Snowbowl, plus three days at 15 other areas. The top-of-the-line version is $799 for adults, with cheaper options for kids, teens, two levels of young adults and seniors. thepowerpass.com
10.–Buy the book. The 2017 Greater Denver Area Entertainment Book is chock full of coupons for lift ticket savings at ski areas such as Winter Park, Sunlight Mountain Resort, Ski Granby Ranch and Eldora Mountain Resort. The slope savings are well worth the $35 cover price. (However, search for an ever-present sale or discount code to lower the price of the book before you buy online.) As an added bonus, the Entertainment Book also contains hundreds of two-for-one coupons and discounts at local restaurants and retailers. entertainment.com
11.–Shop the Show. Visit the Colorado Ski & Snowboard Expo Nov. 10-12 at the Colorado Convention Center. This lively and energetic show provides the final preseason opportunity for great deals on lifts, lift and lodging packages and other components of a winter getaway. The $15 admission for all ages includes a $10 GetSkiTickets.com e-gift card and a 1-year subscription to Ski magazine. Fill out the e-survey when when entering the expo to receive both.
