Don’t Know Which Ski Pass To Get? We’ll Compare the 3 Most Popular!
Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.
Love to ski? Us, too! Million Mile Secrets team member Keith loves using his Southwest Companion Pass to get 2-for-1 flights to terrific mountain destinations in Colorado and Utah!If you’ve been to ski resorts in recent years, you likely know that daily lift tickets are NOT cheap. Depending how often you plan to hit the slopes this winter, it could make financial sense to buy a pass that gets you access to multiple mountains.
The 3 most popular passes for travelers who ski or snowboard are the Ikon Pass, the Mountain Collective Pass, and the Epic Pass. We’ll compare all 3 to help you decide which is best for you!
1. Ikon Pass
The Ikon Pass gives you access to the 35 of the most iconic mountains in the world. This pass offers you a bit of everything, including opportunity to ski or snowboard in Canada or Japan!
- Ikon Pass ($999): unlimited riding at 14 destinations and up to 7 days at 21 other destinations
- Ikon Base Pass ($699): unlimited at 12 destinations and up to 5 days at 23 other destinations
- Steamboat, Colorado (unlimited access NOT included with Ikon Base Pass)
- Winter Park, Colorado
- Copper Mountain, Colorado
- Eldora, Colorado
- Squaw Valley, California
- Mammoth, California
- June Mountain, California
- Big Bear Mountain Resort, California
- Stratton, Vermont (unlimited access NOT included with Ikon Base Pass)
- Snowshoe, West Virginia
- Crystal Mountain Resort, Washington
- Tremblant, Quebec
- Blue Mountain, Ontario
- Solitude Mountain Resort, Utah
- December 26, 2018 to December 31, 2018
- January 19, 2019 to January 20, 2019
- February 16, 2019 to February 17, 2019
- Thredbo, Australia
- The Summit at Snoqualmie, California
- Canadian Mountain Heli Skiing, Canada
- Cypress Mountain, Canada
- Revelstoke, Canada
- Ski Big, Canada
- Aspen Snowmass, Colorado
- Niseko United, Japan
- Sunday River, Maine
- Sugarloaf, Maine
- Boyne Highlands, Michigan
- Boyne Mountains, Michigan
- Big Sky, Montana
- Loon Mountain, New Hampshire
- Taos, New Mexico
- Alta, Utah
- Brighton, Utah
- Deer Valley, Utah
- Snowbird, Utah
- Solitude, Utah
- Jackson Hole, Wyoming
Daily lift tickets at some of these resorts can exceed $150! So depending how often you ski, the 5 or 7 daily lift tickets alone could make it worth the investment!
2. The Mountain Collective
Have you been dreaming of visiting some of the best ski destination in the world, but might not want to spend an entire month’s paycheck on a lift ticket? The Mountain Collective Pass might be for you. With this pass, you can ski 2 days at 17 unbelievable destinations.
The Mountain Collective Pass is $449 for adults. And for kids 12 and under, the pass is ONLY $99!
Each additional day is 50% off, making a ski trip totally affordable for you and your family. This discount only applies to single day lift tickets.All 2018 to 2019 19 passholders will receive 2 days at each of the destinations below for a total of 34 days.
- Thredbo, Australia
- Mammoth, California
- Squaw Valley, California
- Banff Sunshine, Canada
- Lake Louise, Canada
- Revelstoke, Canada
- Aspen Snowmass, Colorado
- Sun Valley, Idaho
- Niseko United, Japan
- Big Sky, Montana
- Taos, New Mexico
- Coronet Peak and The Remarkables, New Zealand
- Alta, Utah
- Snowbasin, Utah
- Snowbird, Utah
- Sugarbush, Vermont
- Jackson Hole, Wyoming
With this pass, there are no blackout dates.
Each passholder also gets 2 days at Chamonix in France and Valle Nevado in Chile. Note, 50% off daily lift tickets does not apply to affiliate resorts in either of these locations.
3. The Epic Pass
The Epic Pass is definitely worth considering if you like to travel to ski.
The Epic Pass is $929 for adults and $479 for children.
Each passholder will receive unlimited days at the following resorts:
- Perisher, Australia (unlimited 2019 access)
- Heavenly, California
- Kirkwood, California
- Northstar, California
- Whistler Blackcomb, Canada
- Arapahoe Basin, Colorado
- Beaver Creek, Colorado
- Breckenridge, Colorado
- Crested Butte, Colorado
- Keystone, Colorado
- Vail, Colorado
- Mt. Brighton, Michigan
- Afton Alps, Minnesota
- Mount Sunapee, New Hampshire
- Park City, Utah
- Stowe, Vermont
- Okemo, Vermont
- Stevens Pass, Washington
- Wilmot, Wisconsin
With the Epic Pass, you also receive 7 days plus 50% off lift tickets once all 7 days are used at the following resorts:
- Fernie Alpine Resort, Canada
- Kimberly Alpine Resort, Canada
- Stoneham, Canada
- Kicking Horse Mountain Resort, Canada
- Nakiska Ski Area, Canada
- Mont-Sainte Anne, Canada
- Telluride, Colorado
And passholders can ski for 5 days at these Japanese resorts:
- Hakuba Cortina Snow Resort, Japan
- Hakuba Iwatake Snow Field, Japan
- Hakuba Winter Sports Park, Japan
- Hakuba Goryu Snow Resort, Japan
- Hakuba Happo-One Snow Resort
- Hakuba Norikura Onsen Snow Resort, Japan
- Jilgatake Snow Resort, Japan
- Kashimayari Ski Resort, Japan
- Tsugaike Kogen Snow Resort, Japan
Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)
Join the Discussion!