In September, Vail Resorts chief executive Rob Katz said the company needed to “shift more focus to marketing our lift ticket business” and promised “decisive steps” to make that happen.
On Tuesday, the company revealed its new strategy to address lift ticket sales, announcing a discount program averaging more than 30% off on lift tickets purchased four weeks or more in advance.
“Up until this season, there were two ways to save on lift access at our mountain resorts,” Katz said in a news release announcing the new plan. “You could either purchase an Epic Pass or Epic Day Pass (during) pre-season for a huge value, or save a smaller amount on lift tickets by purchasing online at least seven days in advance. Our goal is to fill that gap.”
The new deal will be available at 12 of the company’s 42 resorts including all five Colorado destinations: Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Crested Butte.
Skiers and riders will be able to save more than $100 off the ticket window price, depending on the day, as long as they purchase four weeks in advance. In addition, up to $175 of the lift ticket cost can be applied to the purchase of an Epic Pass for next season.
For example, an off-peak ticket purchased a month in advance would now cost $199, as compared to $259 a week in advance and $307 at the ticket window.
According to the release, nearly 75% of the company’s ski visitation has been coming from skiers and riders who have Epic season passes. Most of the remainder has come from purchasing lift tickets online. Less than 2% has come from ticket window sales, which have been sold at premium prices for years.
“While we will always give the best deal to our pass holders,” Katz said, “with this new discount our hope is to make the sport more accessible for guests who aren’t thinking about skiing and snowboarding until winter arrives.”