The rise of the mega-passes is probably the most interesting thing (good or bad) to happen to the ski industry in the last decade. And if you ski a lot, they can be incredible bargains. So how do you choose?
If You Have a "Home" Mountain...
Maybe you have a favorite place. Maybe it's near your home. Maybe all your friends ski there. Maybe you own property there. That's simple -- buy the season pass that works there.
If You Like Variety...
Then you probably want the Mountain Collective or the Indy Pass. Mountain Collective is "big names", Indy pass is "little names". Mountain Collective is a few widely separated resorts. Indy Pass is a whole lot of smaller resorts.
Home Mountain with Vacation...
Maybe you ski most of the time at your home mountain, but then like to take a big trip somewhere else every year. Ikon or Epic are probably the way to go. Depending on where you are, you might also ski most of the time at your home mountain, and then take a few day trips with the Epic or Ikon passes.
Remember One Thing....
It's not about how many resorts are on the pass, it's about how much you can use the pass. So don't consider resorts that you won't get to (are you really gonna ski Sugarloaf ME and Taos NM in the same season?), or resorts that you don't care about.
Pass Comparison
I've only listed the main passes, there are lots of flavors: blackout/no blackout, locals, military/nurse/first-responder, saquatch, yeti, student, junior...the list goes on and on.
| State | Ikon ($1179) | Epic ($859) | Mountain Collective ($579) | Indy ($399) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afton Alps | MN | Unlimited | |||
| Alpine Valley | OH | Unlimited | |||
| Alta | UT | 2 days | |||
| Alta/Snowbird | UT | 7 Days | |||
| Andal-Fai della Paganella | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Andermatt | Switzerland | Unlimited | |||
| Arapahoe | CO | 2 days | |||
| Aspen | CO | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Attitash | NH | Unlimited | |||
| Banff | Canada | 2 days | |||
| Beaver Creek | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Big Bear | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Big Boulder | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Big Sky | Montana | 2 days | |||
| Blue Mountain | ON | Unlimited | |||
| Boston Mills | OH | Unlimited | |||
| Brandywine | OH | Unlimited | |||
| Breckenridge | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Bride les Bains | France | 7 days | |||
| Bruson | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Chamonix | France | 2 days | |||
| Copper | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Coronet & The Remarkables | New Zealand | 2 days | |||
| Courchevel | France | 7 days | |||
| Crested Butte | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Crotched Mountain | NH | Unlimited | |||
| Cypress Mountain | BC | 7 Days | |||
| Dolomiti Superski | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Eldora | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Falls Creek | Australia | Unlimited | |||
| Fernie | Canada | 7 Days | |||
| Folgarida-Lavarone | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Folgarida-Marileva | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Grand Targhee | ID? | 2 days | |||
| Heavenly | CA/NV | Unlimited | |||
| Hidden Valley | MO | Unlimited | |||
| Hidden Valley | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Highlands | MI | 7 Days | |||
| Hotham | Australia | Unlimited | |||
| Hunter Mountain | NY | Unlimited | |||
| Jack Frost | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Jackson Hole | WY | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| June Mountain | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Kicking Horse | Canada | 7 Days | |||
| Killington | VT | 7 Days | |||
| Kimberly | Canada | 7 Days | |||
| Kirkwood | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Kitzbuhel | Austria | 7 Days | |||
| La Tzoumaz | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Laurel Mountain | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Le Massif de Charlevoix | 2 days | ||||
| Lech | Austria | 3 days (*) | |||
| Les Menuires | France | 7 days | |||
| Liberty | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Mad River | OH | Unlimited | |||
| Madonna di Campiglio | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Mammoth | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Marmot Basin | 2 days | ||||
| Meribel | France | 7 days | |||
| Mont Bondone | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Mont-Sainte Anne | Canada | 7 Days | |||
| Mount Snow | VT | Unlimited | |||
| Mount Sunapee | NH | Unlimited | |||
| Mt. Brighton | MI | Unlimited | |||
| Mt. Buller | Australia | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Nakiska | Canda | 7 Days | |||
| Nendaz | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Niseko | Japan | 2 days | |||
| Northstar | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Okemo | VT | Unlimited | |||
| Orelle | France | 7 days | |||
| Palisades Tahoe | CA | Unlimited | |||
| Panoram | Canda | 2 days | |||
| Paoli Peaks | IN | Unlimited | |||
| Park City | UT | Unlimited | |||
| Pejo | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Perisher | Australia | Unlimited | |||
| Pico | VT | 7 Days | |||
| Pinzolo | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Ponte de Legno-Tonale | Italy | 7 Days | |||
| Revelstoke | BC | 7 Days | |||
| Revelstoke | Canda | 2 days | |||
| Roundtop | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Saint Martin de Belleville | France | 7 days | |||
| Schweitzer | ID | 7 Days | |||
| Seven Springs | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Snow Creek | MO | Unlimited | |||
| Snowbasin | UT | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Snowbasin | UT | 2 days | |||
| Snowshoe | WV | Unlimited | |||
| Solitude | UT | Unlimited | |||
| St. Anton | Austria | 3 days (*) | |||
| St. Christoph | Austria | 3 days (*) | |||
| Steamboat | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Stevens Pass | WA | Unlimited | |||
| Stoneham | Canada | 7 Days | |||
| Stowe | VT | Unlimited | |||
| Stratton | VT | Unlimited | |||
| Stuben | Austria | 3 days (*) | |||
| Sugarbush | VT | Unlimited | |||
| Sugarloaf | ME | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Summit at Snoqualmie | WA | 7 Days | |||
| Sun Peaks | 2 days | ||||
| Sun Valley | ID | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Taos | NM | 7 Days | 2 days | ||
| Telluride | CO | 7 Days | |||
| Thredbo | Australia | 2 days | |||
| Thyon | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Tremblant | QC | Unlimited | |||
| Vail | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Val Thorens | France | 7 days | |||
| Valle Nevado | Chile | 7 Days | |||
| Valle Nevado | Chile | 2 days | |||
| Verbier | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Veysonnaz | Switzerland | 5 days (*) | |||
| Whistler Blackcomb | BC | Unlimited | |||
| Whitetail | PA | Unlimited | |||
| Wildcat | NH | Unlimited | |||
| Wilmot | WI | Unlimited | |||
| Winter Park | CO | Unlimited | |||
| Zurs | Austria | 3 days (*) |
Items with a (*) have additional conditions, such as the purchase of lodging. See the individual websites for more information.