Skiing is not a cheap sport. This requires a lot of equipment and, depending on where you live, travel. For families, the cost per child is often before they can determine if skiing — or snowboarding — is an activity the kids really want.
In efforts to nurture the next generation of downhillers, ski areas are increasingly offering discount passes to families with children, generally in third through sixth grade — just the right age, say resort, to try a physically demanding sport — and sometimes tweens and teenagers.
“It’s hard to spend a few thousand dollars to see if you like something,” says Adrienne Saia Isaac, the marketing and communications director for National Ski Areas Association, representing resorts across the country. “It’s a low-risk way to see if your kids and family want to participate.”
Colorado Ski Country USA, a trade group representing 21 resorts in the state, has begun offering it Children’s Ski Passport nearly 30 years ago among families with children in third through sixth grades, wherever they lived. Costing $65, the pass gives holders four days at each of Colorado’s 20 ski areas. This year, it introduced something new Gems Teen Pass for ages 12 to 17, offers two days each at 11 ski areas for $199.
“For us, some years, it’s the difference between skiing and not skiing,” said Joshua Berman, an elementary school teacher and author in Longmont, Colo., who bought the Kids’ Ski Passport in the past for his three children. Even though it’s only used a few times per season, he added, “we’ve gotten to the point where they like it.”
In their mandate to spread skiers across resorts, children’s discount passes — offered by state ski associations from Vermont to Utah — tend to attract families to their home states, although they are usually available to out-of-state skiers and can be a great way to get a taste of different resorts.
Where are the deals?
Utah has a long-standing program that offers discounted passes for students that are also available to out-of-state residents. The Ski Utah Student Passport currently offers fourth, fifth and sixth grade access to three days each at 15 resorts for $89.
In New York, the SKI NY Free for Kids Passport Program for third and fourth grade entitles holders to two complimentary days with the purchase of an adult ticket at more than 25 participating resorts, including Gore mountain and Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondacks and Windham Mountain Club in the Catskills. It costs $41 to apply for the pass.
The Ski Vermont Fifth Grade Passport$30, entitles pass holders to three days each at 20 participating Alpine ski resorts and one day each at 24 cross-country ski areas.
The Michigan Snowsports Industries Association offers it Cold is cold passport for fourth and fifth grades for $30, which entitles pass holders to three lift tickets or trail passes at 29 ski areas in Michigan. Some participating resorts offer discounted equipment rentals and ski lessons.
With the Colorado Kids’ Ski Passport, Christy Sports shops offer two free days of ski gear rental for children, including skis, boots and poles.
“That’s another big part of it for us,” Mr. Berman said. “As kids grow, it’s hard to get hold of gear that fits.”
If there’s a ski resort you’re interested in, it’s worth checking its website for family deals. For example, Sierra-at-Tahoe, south of Lake Tahoe, in California, offers daily lift tickets from $60 to $65 for children ages 5 to 12, compared to standard adult rates from $145. Even teenagers and young adults, ages 13 to 22, get a break, with one-day tickets starting at $130.
Plan ahead for the best buys
If they plan ahead, residents of Colorado, Utah, Washington state and Canada can qualify for a few days of free skiing at ski areas owned by Vail Resorts. Registration opened in the spring and closed this year in mid-October, so it’s too late to get passes this season, but here’s what to look out for next year.
For kindergartners through fifth graders living in Colorado, the Epic SchoolKids The Colorado Pack covers four days of free skiing each of the Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Crested Butte. A similar pass in Utah offers five days at Park City among youth in Utah. The Whistler Blackcomb Pack is available to children in kindergarten through fifth grade in Washington and Canada, offering five free days in Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia.
Another opportunity to consider for next season: Through this Epic Pass, which offers access to more than 80 Vail resorts and affiliates worldwide, the company has many discounts based on age. This year it stopped selling the 2023/2024 pass on December 3; for those who plan ahead, a pass for kids 5 to 12 went on sale for $494 in November, a savings of nearly $600 over the adult pass.
As with Vail Resorts, ski areas and associations use discounts to encourage planning ahead.
“You can make a family ski trip affordable, but you can’t do it by walking through the window,” says Sarah Beatty, the director of communications for Colorado Ski Country USA.
Its Gems Parent Pass — a companion to its children’s passes that allows parents of junior pass holders to claim two days each at 11 ski areas for $299 — sold out Thanksgiving weekend (the group declined to say how many passes were sold). But it still offers Diamante Discount Card ($48), which entitles parents to a variety of deals at 11 resorts, including two-for-one pricing on a day of skiing, or 30 percent off a day’s lift ticket.
Prices may increase as the season approaches, so buy early. For example, the Ski Utah Student Passport was $69 all fall until December 1, when it went up to $89.
Note that many passes and ski areas have blackout dates on popular school holidays, including Christmas-to-New Year’s Day week and Martin Luther King Jr. and Presidents’ Day weekend.
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