Should You Purchase One Of These National Ski Passes?
If you like to travel during the winter and are a hardcore skier, one of these passes is probably perfect for your next winter.
With the ski season coming to a close, it's never too early to start making plans for the 2022-2023 ski season. One type of ski pass has been gaining popularity over the past few years, and that is a national ski pass. Certain ski passes can give you access to ski resorts not only in the United States but in other countries as well. The question is, are they worth it?
The Points Guy published a nice article, breaking down each national pass, from the Ikon Pass, Indy Pass, Mountain Collective, and Epic. For the sake of this article though, we are going to discuss the Indy Pass, the Ikon Pass, and the Mountain Collective pass you can buy. The Epic Pass is only for international ski resorts, so unless you are traveling around the world for skiing, don't buy it.
So which pass is worth the money to not only Montana skiers or snowboarders but locals? The Ikon Pass has been the most popular national ski pass of the past few years because of the number of resorts you can check out. There is only one Montana ski resort on the list, and that is Big Sky Resort. Do you get unlimited access? No. You do get seven days of access, which comes out to be cheaper than a usual day pass at Big Sky Resort.
Mountain Collective's pass is an interesting choice of a national ski pass. The price of the pass is just over $500, which is incredibly affordable. The only thing is the Mountian Collective pass, you only get two days at each of their resorts. Big Sky Resort is the only Montana resort on the Mountain Collective pass. The upside is after the two days, you get 50% off day passes with no blackout dates. That's a steal.
The final pass we are going to discuss is the Indy Pass. This ski pass is focused on working with independent ski resorts. The best part of the Indy Pass is that the most expensive one is under $400, and you get two day passes at 82 different ski areas. The Indy Pass has access to three Montana ski areas. You can get two full days at Red Lodge, Lost Trail, and Black Tail.
Which national ski pass is worth the money? Maybe. How much money do you want to spend, and how much do you ski during the winter? If you are a local, you could go for either the Mountian Collective or Ikon Pass, but maybe getting a regular-season pass is a better use of money.
For more details, check out The Points Guy.