As winter sports season comes to a close, Sage Hill students used the midwinter break as a final chance to hit the slopes. The beloved alpine sports of skiing and snowboarding also come to an end until next year. For many students at Sage, the late-February mid-winter break is an opportunity to explore and enjoy an iconic experience–skiing. This year, though, the trips came at a greater cost than ever before.
At two of America’s most famous ski destinations, Vail and Beaver Creek, a single-day adult lift ticket peaked at $356 this season. Mammoth, California’s premier skiing location, hit similar prices at $350 for a single-day pass.
Although skiing has never been a cheap sport, current prices are unprecedented. Including equipment rentals, food, and lodging, a family of four could easily spend over $1,000 in a single day. Junior Zack Hubbard skied over the break using Epic Pass, a multi-resort season pass from Vail Resorts that runs roughly $1,000 per adult annually.
“The pass is worth it for now, but only because I am not the one paying for it,” Hubbard said. “My dad skied as a kid, then there was that period after college where he just couldn’t afford it. That’s probably going to happen to most of us.”
Following the inception of passes, the skiing industry consolidated around two major corporations. Vail Resorts and Alterra Mountain Company now own 50% of total U.S. lift capacity and 31% of all visits.
Hubbard points to industry consolidation as a driving force behind rising ski prices. “[Vail] owns a substantial number of resorts and raises the prices on all of them,” he said. “And then there’s inflation, everything’s gone up.”
The costs extend beyond the lift ticket. Slope-side meals average between $15 to $25. Sophomore Zack Longo said most of his friends skip the lodge entirely.
“The food is overpriced, it’s just not worth it,” he said. “Most people are just bringing Cliff Bars or packing their own lunches. These prices are really outrageous sometimes.”
The rise of passes also contributes to frequent complaints of overcrowding. With millions of skiers holding multi-resort passes, lift lines that stretch for over an hour have become the norm at destinations like Park City, Utah, and Mammoth, California, significantly reducing the value of an already expensive experience.
“Lift lines have definitely become a problem sometimes at Mammoth, especially during the holidays or when the snow is good,” Longo said.
Hubbard said the consolidation of the ski industry has ultimately been bad for casual skiers, even if the pass system benefits more frequent ones. “For your average skier who only goes a few times, it’s probably worse,” he said.
The persistence and growth of the ski industry are dependent on new skiers. The price increases have made the sport less accessible to first-time skiers and families without an established tradition of skiing every winter. For many students at Sage Hill who ski or snowboard, the pass system may offer discounted access, but as crowds grow and costs rise, the sport increasingly risks shifting from a pastime into a luxury.
