Each year, like most everything else, lift ticket prices seem to jump.
Aspen and Vail in Colorado are inching closer to $90 a day, Deer Valley’s prices increased a couple bucks this year to $79 and Park City Mountain Resort will also be near the $80 mark. The Canyons’ single day prices have not yet been disclosed.
There are multiple factors that go into setting lift ticket and season pass prices. Erin Grady, communications manager for Deer Valley, said the resort is adding $9 million in improvements, which contributes to the $2 rise.
“We look at what’s going on, it’s the increased cost of operations and improvements for the coming season,” Grady said.
Grady said the resort doesn’t take into account the other resorts, but independently sets prices based on the needs of Deer Valley.
The Canyons, however, does look at what the other resorts are doing.
“I would say, like any other business that does pricing, we look at the competitive set and what else is out there,” said Todd Burnette, vice president of marketing for The Canyons.
The Canyons, Burnette said, sets prices for two different demographics,
“One for the local skiers; we make pricing decisions there based on how we fit with the Utah product and we also look at products that are aimed at destination skiers: the three-resort Silver Passes that we do with other resorts,” Burnette said.
Apart from setting the Silver Pass price, Burnette said The Canyons makes its decisions based on various “business conditions” that help decide what will be charged.
All the resorts in Utah are currently offering preseason discounts on season passes and have deals for local skiers.
“We’ve really prided ourselves on having a lot of options for local skiers that aren’t very expensive,” Burnette said. “It’s always been a part of The Canyons’ legacy to have good pricing for locals.”
The other resorts also help locals hit to the slopes without digging too far into their wallets. Aside from the cash, many of the resorts are gearing programs for families.
“Park City Mountain Resort is committed to providing families with the best possible experience this winter season, whether the kids take part in our exclusive Kids Signature 5 program or the parents utilize our new Vacation Planner to plan all of their travel fun,” said Geoff Buchheister, director of financial management for Park City Mountain Resort, through e-mail.
While pre-season discount prices are obviously good for the local ski-bum, the resorts benefit as well when more people buy early. The number of sold passes helps the resorts have an idea of future business.
“To plan the business for the season, we look at the number of skier days and we have a pretty good idea of how many people will be on the mountain for a given day,” Burnette said.
The pre-season sales help the resorts with everything from determining the amount of food they order, to rentals and hiring a staff. By The Canyons’ discounted passes Nov. 12 deadline, Burnette said they have a pretty good idea of how busy the season may be.
“Certainly it’s a good reason for us (to sell pre-season passes.) We have a lot of options for people, but we also like to know what that’s going on. Like any well run business, you want to see what’s on the books for next season.”
Of the season pass holders, an “overwhelming majority” of them buy discounted products, he said.
“About 75 percent,” Burnette estimated. “We certainly still sell a lot of passes at regular price, however.”
It seems buying discounted passes is a win-win situation for both the resorts and the skiers.
At the same time, however, the resorts are pretty firm on the deadlines for discounted passes. Each Utah resort has different deadlines but if buyers purchase before Labor Day, they should be safe.
“Now is the best time to be thinking about buying gear and season passes as most of them are discounted up to Labor Day,” said Jessica Kunzer, director of communications for Ski Utah.
If skiers miss the deadlines, however, there are still options throughout the ski season for locals, even though prices are constantly rising.
“The really high prices get a lot of headlines, but really, there are a lot of people that can save money off the day price,” said Burnette. “In the middle of the season, you can buy our lift tickets pretty heavily discounted. There are deals out there to be had for sure.”
People who pay the high-level lift ticket price are paying for the “convenience factor” of driving up and paying right at the resort, he said. Discounted tickets can be found at local stores in Park City and Salt Lake.
“You can save substantial amount of money if you look,” Burnette said.
For information on Park City and other Utah resort discounted prices, go to www.skiutah.com/locals.