- Ski resorts have already started selling season passes for next year.
- Season passes are a better value than buying daily lift tickets.
- Some passes provide unlimited access, while others have blackout dates.
Utah ski areas enjoyed perhaps the biggest snow days in an otherwise lackluster winter this past week but they’re already looking ahead to next year.
Season passes for 2025-26 started going on sale this week or will shortly go on sale in a few days. With daily lift ticket prices soaring, season passes are a much better value, even if you’re only on the slopes for a few days a year.
For example, a trip to Big Sky in Montana over President’s Day weekend cost me $274 a day for lift tickets. (Fortunately, they were powder days so I felt I like got something for my money.) The total was nearly as much as the cost of a multi-resort season pass that includes Big Sky. The season pass I have doesn’t cover that resort and one that does was no longer available this late in the season.
Anyway, the best thing to do is to plan ahead. Resorts are giving skiers and snowboarders plenty of time to do that with season passes going on sale now. Also, the prices rise incrementally as the new season gets closer. And no matter when you buy, skiing and snowboarding are expensive sports.
Here’s a look at some of the options:
- An unlimited Epic Pass for $1,051 is good at 42 Vail-owned resorts in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Switzerland, including peak days. The $783 Epic Local Pass offers unlimited access to some resorts but has blackout dates around the holidays at others. Park City is the only Utah resort on the Epic pass. Vail Resorts extended credit to current season pass holders who skied or snowboarded during the Park City Mountain ski patrol strike to apply to a 2025-26 pass.
- The Ikon Pass at $1,329 offers access to 61 ski areas in 11 countries, though there’s a limit on the number of days at some resorts. The $909 Ikon Base Pass provides skiing and snowboarding at 14 destinations and includes some blackout dates. The pass covers Solitude and Brighton in Utah, though it limits Brighton to five days.
- The Mountain Collective Pass at $683 is good for two days at 26 resorts — up three from the current season — around the world without blackout dates. It also offers a 50% discount on daily lift tickets for additional days. In Utah, it’s good at Alta, Snowbasin and Snowbird.
All of those passes cover various resorts in the West, including in California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming.
In addition to the multi-resort season passes, individual resorts have also started selling season passes.
Deer Valley, Solitude and Snowbasin sent out press releases this week announcing their 2025-26 pass options, including midweek options. Deer Valley has a pass exclusively for Utah residents and some its season passes are eligible for an Ikon Pass add-on.