Rose Laudicina/The Aspen Times
The Mountain Collective will be back next season despite being overshadowed in the ski pass war by the Ikon and Epic.
The Mountain Collective resorts announced Thursday the pass will be sold at a starting price of $449. It offers two days of skiing at each of 16 resorts, for a possible total of 32 days on the slopes. Aspen Skiing Co.’s four ski areas are part of the collective pass. Buyers have two days of access to Aspen Snowmass slopes.
The Mountain Collective pass lost Sun Valley and Snow Basin for next season. They joined Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass starting next season.
The Epic Pass and Ikon Pass are duking it out for skiers and riders across North America. Alterra Mountain Co., a new ski industry giant, offered the Ikon Pass for the first time this season in a challenge to Vail. That pass offers up to seven days combined on the slopes of Aspen Skiing Co.’s ski areas.
Alterra is partially owned by the Crown family, owners of Aspen Skiing Co.
Vail Resorts sells about 750,000 Epic Passes annually. Officials with Alterra aimed to sell 250,000 Ikon Passes this season, but as a private company it didn’t announce actual sales. Ikon users have accounted for about 9 percent of Aspen Skiing Co.’s skier days so far this season, according to Katie Ertl, Skico senior vice president, mountain operations.
The Mountain Collective offers the advantage of a cheaper pass than the Ikon or Epic while providing access to a diverse lineup of resorts.
The lineup for 2019-20 features Aspen Snowmass, Alta, Banff Sunshine, Big Sky, Jackson Hole, Lake Louise, Mammoth Mountain, Revelstoke, Snowbird, Sugarbush, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows and Taos, as well as Niseko United in Japan, Thredbo in Australia, Coronet Peak/The Remarkables in New Zealand and Valle Nevado in Chile.
Skiers and riders who purchase the Mountain Collective this spring receive a bonus day at a destination of their choice and two additional days at Chamonix Mount Blanc, France.
A Mountain Collective pass for kids is offered for $99 when one adult pass is purchased.
Mountain Collective buyers also get 50 percent off additional days at each resort. There are no blackout days.
Passes are available online at www.MountainCollective.com.