Get your Epic Passes for ski season before the price increases Sept. 1
Editor's Note
Quick summary
Even though summer is still in full swing, now is the perfect time to lock in your Epic Pass and start planning for this winter's ski season — especially before prices rise Sept. 1. Whether you're a beginner skier or a seasoned pro, the best way to get your lift tickets is usually to pay for a ski pass instead of individual mountain lift tickets. And while the lowest prices of the year have passed, grabbing your Epic Pass now still means incredible savings.
An Epic Pass can save you money on skiing even if you are only planning a single trip — or perhaps skiing for as little as one day.
For example, a one-day adult lift ticket at Colorado's Beaver Creek Resort can cost $295 (for the 2025-2026 ski season). The most you'd pay for one standard day on the slopes at Beaver Creek Resort or any other Vail Resorts-owned mountain if you buy a one-day Epic Pass now for next year is $121 (or $142 for a peak date). It's an astounding price difference.
Epic Pass basics
For those looking to save money and ski at resorts on the Epic Pass, purchasing now for this upcoming season is the best way to secure excellent value. Current pricing will increase Sept. 1, and then we'll typically see a small jump again later this fall, with pass sales most likely ending at some point in early December.
Your specific per-day price depends on the pass you purchase and how often you're at the mountains.
If you enjoy Vail Ski Resort and its partner mountains, an Epic Pass is a great option. In fact, my family has purchased the Epic Pass for the past five years, and we will be skiing with the Epic Pass again this year.
Revamped Epic Friend Ticket benefit
For years, the Epic Pass included two different types of discounted lift tickets for friends tagging along for the day. While they provided some savings for those last-minute buddies, they didn't provide a significant value. Fortunately, Epic Pass just announced a newly revamped program to provide an even better discounted companion ticket option.
With the new benefit for the 2025-2026 season, all passholders will receive at least six Epic Friend Tickets, where their companion can ski for 50% off at all 37 of Vail's opened North American resorts. This means if the walk-up price at Vail is $330, the ticket cost with the discount is $165. While you're still probably better off purchasing an Epic Day Pass in advance, for those not looking to lock in a ticket in advance, this is a significant savings.
And best of all, friends can also apply the cost of one redeemed Epic Friend Ticket toward an Epic Pass for the following 2026-2027 season.
Note that for those who purchased their season pass prior to April 14, you'll receive 10 Epic Friend Tickets instead of six.
Epic Pass pricing
There are several types of Epic Passes with different pricing. Here are the most common.
Epic Local Pass
The Epic Local Pass is currently on sale for $799. It provides unlimited, unrestricted access to 29 resorts, including Colorado's Breckenridge Ski Resort, Keystone Resort and Crested Butte Mountain Resort. For unlimited nonholiday access, it includes Park City Mountain Resort in Utah; Heavenly Ski Resort, Northstar California Resort and Kirkwood Mountain Resort in California; and Stowe Mountain Resort in Vermont. It also covers 10 days at Colorado's Vail Ski Resort and Beaver Creek Resort, as well as British Columbia's Whistler Blackcomb.
While this pass carries a "Local" name, that doesn't mean it's limited to purchase by those who live near the mountain; anyone can benefit from tons of skiing throughout the season. "Local" mainly means it has some peak-date restrictions during the busiest holiday times of the year.
Epic Pass
The full Epic Pass, priced at $1,075, unlocks unlimited skiing at Vail, Beaver Creek, Whistler Blackcomb, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Stowe, Keystone, Park City and many other Vail-owned and partner resorts. Plus, you'll also receive seven days at Colorado's Telluride Ski Resort and select resorts throughout the Canadian Rockies.
Regional passes
There are also many mountain-specific or regional pass options, such as the Northeast Value Pass.
For $656, you can ski all of the Northeast mountains (21 in total) throughout the season. This includes popular resorts such as Okemo Mountain Resort and Mount Snow in Vermont, Hunter Mountain Resort in New York, and Mount Sunapee Ski Resort in New Hampshire. While there are a few holiday blackout dates for select mountains and only 10 access days for Stowe, this pass can provide great access to the region.
Special passes
Additionally, there are significant discounts for students, military personnel (active, retired and dependents), seniors and those with permanent disabilities.
Epic Day Pass
However, if you're only looking to take one or two trips to the mountain, you can instead opt for the Epic Day Pass, which gives you a set number of ski days at a select number of resorts.
An Epic Pass will save you money even on a short trip
You may not think getting an Epic Pass is worth it if you only ski or snowboard a day or two each season. However, with so many different pass options, you might find one that works perfectly for your ski habits.
The Epic Day Pass has three tiers based on the mountains included. You can purchase access to 22 resorts (including the smaller Vail resorts), 32 resorts or all 46 mountains.
For a single-day ticket, the adult pass price starts at $58 ($29 for children) for a limited number of ski resorts (those in the Midwest, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania). The cost then jumps to $94 per day for most ski resorts ($48 for kids) or $121 per day ($64 for kids) for the full range of Vail-owned and partner resorts.
The more days you purchase, the less expensive it is per day. For example, a seven-day pass at the 22 resorts on nonpeak dates is just $333 total, or $47.50 per day. Or, you're looking at $101 per day for all-access. Of course, if you're looking to ski during peak holiday dates (there are only 11 of them), the price goes up; it's capped at $142 per day.
This can help you save, considering single-day walk-up passes can start close to $300 per day at resorts such as Vail and Beaver Creek. So, even if you want to ski just one day at Vail during the peak Christmas week, you can purchase an Epic Day Pass in advance and save money.
Note that only four-day, five-day, six-day and seven-day passes with "All Resorts" access include access to Telluride and the six resorts of the Canadian Rockies.
Epic Passes provide exclusive discounts
On top of all that, travelers with the Epic Pass, Epic Local Pass, Epic Day Pass and more can enjoy discounts through the Epic Mountain Rewards program.
It provides the following discounts at Vail Resorts' 37 North American resorts:
- 20% off food and nonalcoholic beverages (up to $150 per day)
- 20% off group ski and snowboard lessons
- 20% off lodging owned and operated by Vail Resorts
- 20% off the Epic Mountain Express private or shared shuttles from Denver International Airport (DEN) and Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) in Colorado
- 20% off gear rentals
- 20% off select on-mountain activities
- One free wax and one 50%-off tune per season at select U.S. locations
Additionally, all 2025-2026 Epic Pass products automatically include Epic Coverage, which provides refunds for personal events such as job loss, injury and illness, as well as for certain resort closures.
Epic Pass vs. Epic Local Pass
While the Epic Pass is the juggernaut, the less expensive Epic Local Pass is the best value for travelers who don't plan to ski over holidays or during peak periods.
This season, the holiday dates that affect the Local Pass are Nov. 28-29, 2025; Dec. 26-31, 2025; Jan. 17, 2026; and Feb. 14-15, 2026. Keep in mind that some of the regional passes have additional restricted dates, including at Vail, Park City, Beaver Creek and Whistler Blackcomb, among others.
Epic Pass
If you're craving access to all of Vail's resorts, with additional access to partner resorts, and don't want to deal with the previously mentioned holiday restrictions, the full Epic Pass will fit your needs.
Passes for the 2025-2026 season currently cost $1,075 for adults (ages 13 and up) and $548 for children (ages 5 to 12). There are no full Epic Pass discounts for teens.
This Epic Pass gets you access to:
- Vail Ski Resort in Colorado
- Beaver Creek Resort in Colorado
- Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado
- Keystone Resort in Colorado
- Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado
- Park City Mountain Resort in Utah
- Heavenly Ski Resort in California
- Northstar California Resort in California
- Kirkwood Mountain Resort in California
- Stevens Pass Ski Resort in Washington
- Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia
- Stowe Mountain Resort in Vermont
- Okemo Mountain Resort in Vermont
- Mount Snow in Vermont
- Mount Sunapee Ski Resort in New Hampshire
- Attitash Mountain Resort in New Hampshire
- Wildcat Mountain in New Hampshire
- Crotched Mountain in New Hampshire
- Hunter Mountain Resort in New York
- Liberty Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania
- Roundtop Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania
- Whitetail Resort in Pennsylvania
- Jack Frost Big Boulder in Pennsylvania
- Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania
- Laurel Mountain Ski Resort in Pennsylvania
- Hidden Valley Resort in Pennsylvania
- Afton Alps in Minnesota
- Mount Brighton in Michigan
- Wilmot Mountain Ski Resort in Wisconsin
- Alpine Valley Ski Area in Ohio
- Boston Mills Brandywine in Ohio
- Mad River Mountain in Ohio
- Hidden Valley Ski Resort in Missouri
- Snow Creek Mountain Resort in Missouri
- Paoli Peaks in Indiana
- Andermatt-Sedrun-Disentis in Switzerland
- Crans-Montana in Switzerland
- Verbier 4 Vallees in Switzerland
- Perisher Ski Resort in Australia
- Falls Creek Alpine Resort in Australia
- Hotham Alpine Resort in Australia
At partner resorts, the full Epic Pass gets you access to seven days at Telluride Ski Resort, seven days at Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, unlimited access to 26 European resorts and five days in Japan.
And for the 2025-2026 season, you'll receive five days of consecutive, unrestricted access to Verbier 4 Vallees.
Epic Local Pass
For the 2025-2026 season, the Epic Local Pass provides unlimited access to:
- Breckenridge Ski Resort
- Keystone Resort
- Crested Butte Mountain Resort
- Stevens Pass Ski Resort
- Okemo Mountain Resort
- Mount Snow
- Mount Sunapee Ski Resort
- Attitash Mountain Resort
- Wildcat Mountain
- Crotched Mountain
- Hunter Mountain Resort
- Afton Alps
- Mount Brighton
- Wilmot Mountain Ski Resort
- Alpine Valley Ski Area
- Boston Mills Brandywine
- Mad River Mountain
- Hidden Valley Ski Resort in Missouri
- Snow Creek Mountain Resort
- Paoli Peaks
- Liberty Mountain Resort
- Roundtop Mountain Resort
- Whitetail Resort
- Jack Frost Big Boulder
- Seven Springs Mountain Resort
- Laurel Mountain Ski Resort
- Hidden Valley Resort in Pennsylvania
You'll also get access (with holiday restrictions) to Park City, Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood and Stowe.
The Epic Local Pass includes 10 total combined days (with previously mentioned holiday restrictions) at Vail, Beaver Creek and Whistler Blackcomb.
Additionally, if you plan to ski outside of North America, you'll receive five days in Japan at Hakuba Valley and Rusutsu Resort, as well as five days in Switzerland at Andermatt-Sedrun-Disentis and Crans-Montana. For this upcoming season, you'll also receive five days of consecutive access to Verbier 4 Vallees, but with some restricted days.
In short, if you can work around a few restrictions, the current Epic Local Pass pricing is a deal at $799 for adults, $416 for children ages 5 to 12 and $646 for teens between 13 and 18. To compare, a seven-day, restricted Epic Day Pass is currently $708 for adults, so you can ski unlimited times throughout winter without paying too much more money.
Regional 'Tot Pass' discounts
If you're looking to purchase the Northeast Value Pass or Ohio Pass and you have a child who is 5 or 6 years old, you can purchase a Tot Pass. This pass is significantly cheaper. It's right around $50 (pricing depends on when you purchase the pass), but you'll need to call Vail or a local resort to purchase it. As we've learned from the past few years, if the representative isn't aware of this particular pass, you should ask to speak to someone else.
Related: The right — and wrong — age for kids to start skiing
What's changed with Epic Pass for the 2025-2026 season?
If you had an Epic Pass last year, you'll notice that this year's options are almost identical; although the lowest tier pricing when pass sales started this past spring did increase by approximately 8%.
The main change is that more pass options — such as the Epic Local Pass — now have access to Switzerland's largest ski resort, Verbier 4 Vallees.
A few lift upgrades and terrain enhancements are also underway, such as at Park City, Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone, Andermatt-Sedrun-Disentis and Perisher.
Bottom line
Using a pass has been the most cost-effective way to ski at major mountains for years. Now, with single-day lift tickets knocking on the door of $300 or more, it's more beneficial than ever to plan ahead and get some kind of Epic Pass to avoid paying those incredibly high rates.
Based on how much my family skied last season, with the Epic Pass in hand, our daily cost was approximately $35 per day ($18 per day for my kids). While most of our skiing was at slightly less expensive mountains in the Northeast, this did include seven days in Beaver Creek and Breckenridge. Buying a pass ended up being a huge savings compared to the day rates at most mountains throughout the U.S. and even the independent resorts not on Epic. And for this upcoming season, we plan to do the same.
On top of those more accessible prices to get you on the lift, you can also potentially use your hotel points to stay near (or even on) the mountain to keep your out-of-pocket ski prices as low as possible. Just make sure you plan ahead.
Related reading:
- TPG's first-timer guide to visiting Vail
- Best credit cards to use on ski trips
- Plan your ski trip using points and miles: How to book flights, hotels, lift tickets and more
- 8 affordable ski resorts in the US and Canada
- We saved every receipt — here's how much it actually costs to go on a budget ski trip