Vail rolls out "epic" ski pass
Rocky Mountain News
Published March 18, 2008 at 8:15 a.m.
Updated March 18, 2008 at 9:42 a.m.
Vail Resorts Inc. said it will offer an "Epic" pass that allows unlimited skiing at all five of its resorts for an initial price of $579.
The Broomfield-based resort operator said the pass will be available for that price until Nov. 15, without restrictions on holidays or any other time during the 2008-2009 season. The pass will cost $279 for children.
"No one will be able to out-ski this pass," Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz said in announcing the new program.
Last season, Vail's most comparable pass — the Colorado Pass Plus — cost $519 and offered unlimited skiing at Breckenridge and Keystone but offered only six days of unrestricted skiing and four days of restricted skiing at Vail and Beaver Creek.
A daily lift ticket purchased at the ticket window at either Vail or Beaver Creek this season costs $92.
Vail Resorts operates Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone in Colorado and Heavenly in California.
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March 18, 2008
9:32 a.m.
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bjones73 writes:
Wow! What do you know. Vail is once again making skiing more expensive and caters to the wealthy!! Shocker!!!
March 18, 2008
9:43 a.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
how is unlimited skiing at vail for $579 making skiing more expensive than the old deal of 10 days for simply 60$ less?
at $90 a pop at the ticket office, this sounds like a great deal to me....
March 18, 2008
9:50 a.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
and considering you will still be able to pay for the 10-day limited pass, they have done nothing here but offer a better deal.
if you want cheaper skiiing, go to eldora or monarch.
March 18, 2008
9:52 a.m.
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vixen6 writes:
bahahahah who actually has $579 to splurge like that all at once.
looks like i won't ever get a chance to board at vail....
ha
March 18, 2008
10:16 a.m.
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ProudandRespectful writes:
As someone that keeps a home in both both Vail and in Cherry Creek, I think this is an amazing deal. Thanks, Vail.
March 18, 2008
10:36 a.m.
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RipRider writes:
Considering that a season pass to ONE resort in Utah is $1400+, Vail Resorts and Intrawest make Colorado skiing pretty affordable for locals. However, this accessibility also lends to the 1-70 traffic problems!
March 18, 2008
11:03 a.m.
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offpiste writes:
I agree with bjones. I wouldn't pay "FAIL" a dime to stand in liftlines with a bunch of gapers all day. Fail Associates and Intrapest for that matter are the Starbucks of the ski industry. Cookie cutter resorts that cater to the wealthy folks that like to have their behinds wiped. They take excellent ski terrain and tranquility and turn it into a mall on the day after Thanksgiving. Not my idea of skiing.
Peace
March 18, 2008
11:35 a.m.
Suggest removal
MeAgainstMachine writes:
This is a waste of money. I have the All Colorado Pass and have racked up well over 10 days at Beaver Creek without a single problem. I really believe that they don't track the usage of each pass at Vail and BC. I've only been to Vail twice and I'm not going back until the rich and wealthy hotties from Texas invade for spring break...then I'm gonna get back at Texas for all the a holes with TX plates that litter the medians and shoulders of I-70 when I'm just trying to get up and shred some gnar!
March 18, 2008
11:37 a.m.
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MeAgainstMachine writes:
*All Colorado Plus Pass* Just so I don't get crucified for rushing my last post and mistaking the actual full name.
March 18, 2008
12:53 p.m.
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Contempt_for_Texas writes:
Hey MuffDiver why don't you go back to So Cal. And please don't bring you "bro's" out here. The last thing we need is more Texans and So Cal ers here.
With $30 parking and a $15 burrito I don't think I will be heading to Vail next year.
March 18, 2008
1:42 p.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
awesome. all you haters stay away and leave us to the good snow and huge terrain.
and keep telling yourself that its a 'cookie cutter' mountain.
March 18, 2008
2:06 p.m.
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pwern writes:
Now if we can just get them to ban all the snowboarding scum, Vail might be a decent destination again.
March 18, 2008
3:07 p.m.
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Illegallydead writes:
I too have the normal Colorado Pass. I LOVE Vail for it's terrain, although the town is much like has been described earlier. 150 free parking spots in the whole town, and 1500+ pay spots. So much for loving the locals. But then, me and my buddies who do not pay for the $15 sandwiches and $25 parking are not who they are catering to. Honestly, I don't go to Vail often enough to justify that much for a pass (the gas prices next season should help drive down that number too)
Oh, and pwern, I too am a skier, but you cannot lump all boarders together and call them "scum". While I agree that some (ahem... PARK) boarders are kinda punks, I have numerous boarding buddies who quietly enjoy the BC with me... All the better though, the more kids who get into Freestyle and Park, the more of them that will mob the frontside. Leave the bowls to me ;)
March 18, 2008
4:15 p.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
"Now if we can just get them to ban all the snowboarding scum, Vail might be a decent destination again."
hey, um, the early 1990s called -- they want their ignorance back. And I'd be glad to show you how wrong you are, but i HIGHLY doubt you could even keep up.
March 18, 2008
4:26 p.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
and for ever park rat snowboarder, there is a park rat skiier counterpart.
your problem isn't with specific types snow sports, but with specific types of people
March 18, 2008
5:04 p.m.
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bjones73 writes:
$579 to go with the $25 parking, the $10 hot dog, long lift lines and lovely I-70 traffic to and from.
People don't realize the ski resorts are cashing in on quantity here. That is - getting skiers to their slopes in as large a numbers as possible.
They don't care that you have to wait in a lift line for 30-40 minutes or that you have to sit in 4 hour bumper to bumper traffic. All they care about is their corporate earnings.
Advertising a pass for $600, which may seem like a bargain to some, is like a car salesman getting you in the front door of the dealership with a good TV commercial.
Add up all the other money you spend on scarce parking, concessions, shopping, ridiculous lodging prices, etc. and then calculate the "great deal" you're getting on a pass.
Once a dry year rolls around, attendance drops, and Vail has to report their "quarterly earnings" where they don't meet their corporate double digit growth goals, we'll see who's left holding the bag.
The fact is these resorts cater to the wealthy. They don't care about treating their mountain as a recreation area. Skiing isn't what it used to be. It's about making money and the corporate giant that is Vail isn't there to lose money. Just like a casino makes up for the cheap buffets by getting you to gamble, Vail Resorts gets you in other ways.
March 18, 2008
6:33 p.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
^ well, that may be true for people like you...
but i ride during the week, park at a friends house, bring a snack with me on the mountain and consider $600 for a season pass to be a great deal. ESPECIALLY considering what my friends in other states and canada pay for their passes.
yeah, not everyone is in the same boat as me.. but that doesn't mean you have to break the bank every time you go skiing... and if it DOES mean that to you, then you should really get a season pass to eldora or loveland valley.
i mean, who doesn't realize that vail is a big business looking to increase profits??? you'd have to be a fool to not realize this.
but let the out of state families and local idiots who want to spend $200 on lunch when they could have easily brought a sandwitch keep paying their way... it makes my season pass cheap as all getout.
let them continue to 'cater to the wealthy' all they want.. if you know what you are doing, you don't have to buy into the hype. (and you can leave the 13-inch powder fridays to those of us who don't complain about how a company does what it is supposed to be doing -- making money)
March 19, 2008
8:29 a.m.
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NotYours writes:
Just like any other product or service, the free market dictates demand for a full spectrum of product offerings: high end, mid-range, and low-end.
Colorado has ski areas that fit all three of those positions.
If you don't like Vail Resorts, Colorado has 20+ other non-Vail Resorts ski-areas to choose from. There's a ski-area product offering for every like/dislike and every budget -- so quit whining about what OTHER people are doing, and try doing what YOU like.
March 19, 2008
10:39 a.m.
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offpiste writes:
Look, I understand the "free market", I just feel that the "free market" is dictated to us and is not actually what we consumers want. What I don't understand is who it is that decides what we want. I skied Vail before it was the corporate giant and enjoyed many days a season on the mountain. I even poached the back bowls before they were open to the public, but much has changed since then. In the 1970's someone decided for us that Sun Valley and Aspen should be the model for every area and lift served skiing has never been since or ever will be about skiing again. There have been skiing clubs in Colorado since the late 1800's, the first rope tow in Colorado was installed on Berthoud Pass in 1937, the first double chair in the entire nation was installed at Loveland in 1947. Colorado has a long history of skiing, but for nearly 100 years it was about the skiing. Bullwheels turned for 50 years before someone we don't know decided that it was about money and not about skiing. It just saddens me that something as rooted in my soul as skiing, can be so superficial to so many.
Peace
March 19, 2008
6:38 p.m.
Suggest removal
mstar71 writes:
Why do you all have to hate on the TXans all the time? We pump a lot of money into the CO economy. With all the profits the oil companies down here are making, why wouldn't we want to spend it? CO is a great place w/ better weather honestly. Our family sold a our condo in Beaver last year and made a 200% profit in just 3 years, and now we have upgraded to a 3 bed in Vail that's SI-SO. A deal like this is a "thanks" to the loyal patrons that ski Vail heavily, and with the skiing so good, our family and friends don't mind paying up for the highest quality that Vail offers.