Aspen Skiing Co. announces pass prices for 2014-15 winter
The Aspen Times
2014-15 aspen ski pass prices
Premier chamber $1,229 up $30
Premier non-chamber $1,699 up $50
Double Flex chamber $1,079 up $30
Double Flex non-chamber $1,369 up $40
Flex chamber $799 up $20
Flex non-chamber $929 up $30
Classic four-day $239 up $20
Classic seven-day $374 up $25
All prices for earliest deadlines
Aspen Skiing Co. customers will pay between $30 and $50 more than last season for major ski passes for the 2014-15 season.
Skico unveiled its new pass prices Thursday. Sales will start Monday. The super early deadline — where the prices are lowest — goes through Sept. 12.
The price of an unrestricted Premier Pass increased $50 to $1,699 for buyers who don’t work for a business that belongs to a local chamber of commerce. The chamber rate for a Premier Pass is $1,229 — an increase of $30 from last season.
The Double Flex Pass, good for two days of skiing or snowboarding per week, increased $40 in price to $1,369 for non-chamber members. The Double Flex Pass increased $30 to $1,079 for chamber members.
The Flex Pass, good for one day of skiing or riding per week, increased $30 to $929 for non-chamber buyers. The Flex went up $20 to $799 for chamber members.
All those passes, the backbone of what Skico offers, increased either 2.5 or 3 percent. That’s consistent with the company’s pricing strategy of recent seasons. Skico says minor increases are necessary to keep pace with increased business expenses and to offset capital improvements.
The highest price hikes, on a percentage basis, are for the four- and seven-day Classic Passes. The four-day Classic Pass increased $20 to $239 while the seven-day Classic Pass went up $25 to $374. The deadline for the best prices for the Classic Passes is Oct. 12.
Skico’s announcement on its prices emphasized that the Premier Pass is “loaded with more than $1,000 in added benefits.” The benefits include four vouchers for 50 percent off lift tickets good for any time during the season; two vouchers for 20 percent off ski school private lessons; and various discounts at Skico’s on-mountain restaurants.
Buyers of Premier Passes also can get 50 percent off lift tickets at Skico’s partner resorts in a program called Mountain Collective. The discounts are available at Alta and Snowbird, Jackson Hole, Mammoth, Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows and Whistler-Blackcomb.
The Premier Pass prices are lower or the same as they were seven years ago in the 2007-08 winter, Skico Senior Vice President, Mountain Division David Perry said in the prepared statement.
Aspen’s swelling ranks of senior citizens have a few passes specially tailored to them. The Premier Senior Pass for customers ages 65 to 69 is $1,229 if purchased by the early deadline. The Premier Silver Pass, for those ages 70 and up, is $449.
The Escape Silver Pass for people 70 and older is $239 with a pay-as-you-go daily validation fee of $25.
Skico also released the operating dates for its four ski areas for 2014-15. Aspen Mountain will open Nov. 27 and close April 19. Snowmass will open Nov. 27 and close April 12. Aspen Highlands will open Dec. 13 and close April 12. Buttermilk will open Dec. 13 and close April 5.
A direct mail piece was sent to all 2013-14 passholders. Information is also available at http://www.aspensnowmass.com/seasonpass.
