Published March 12, 2013 07:58PM
Epic and Mountain Collective Passes Add to their Rosters
Eldora joins Vail’s Epic pass while Mountain Collective adds Mammoth, Snowbird, and Whistler Blackcomb.
Big boy Vail Resorts adds Boulder, Colorado’s local hill, Eldora Mountain Resort, to its 2013-14 season Epic Pass buffet. A mere 20 or so miles from Boulder and about an hour drive from Denver, Eldora is a classic feeder mountain: it’s packed with young kids learning how to ski and is a quick drive from multiple metro areas, allowing skiers to avoid the often jammed Colorado I-70 ski corridor. As bumper stickers in Eldora’s parking lot say, “Friends don’t let friends drive I-70.”
Photo: Paul Morrison/Whistler Blackcomb
With 53 trails, 11 lifts, and a dedicated learning area, Eldora remains a hometown hill with a small-town culture. The resort also offers an extensive network of Nordic trails, which are kept busy with workout refugees from Boulder, which often is ranked as one of the fittest cities in the nation.
Vail’s new Epic Pass includes unlimited access to nine resorts: Arapahoe Basin, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Eldora, Keystone, and Vail in Colorado and Heavenly, Kirkwood, and Northstar near Lake Tahoe.
The pass is $689 for adults and $359 for kids ages five to twelve. A $49 down payment made by April 14 gets you the pre-season price on the Epic Pass, along with six discounted one-day buddy passes.
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Multi-resort access is all the rage now, with the Mountain Collective pass welcoming Mammoth, Snowbird, and Whistler Blackcomb to its portfolio. The 2013-14 pass includes two days of skiing each to Alta or Snowbird, Aspen/Snowmass, Jackson Hole, Squaw Valley or Alpine Meadows, and Whistler Blackcomb. Pass holders also receive 50 percent off all additional day-passes to each of the mountains and up to 25 percent off lodging at Collective resorts.
The number of Mountain Collective passes is limited. If you purchase now the price is $349 for adults and $229 for kids 12 and under. Prices for both the Mountain Collective and Epic Pass will increase as next season approaches.