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Skiing on the Cheap - 2015-16 Edition

dlague

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There's three things I think you're either not factoring in or not factoring in enough.

1) The market for discount items is savvier than most and aware of other deals. For instance, from my perspective this went from a "must have" item to "I can and will do better than this" and don't want it.

2) You really need to expand your geography quite a bit to realize the 6 trip value you speak of, and I'm guessing a small minority got 6 punches on this card (I know I didn't). Frankly, 5 is probably a more realistic number folks will hit, and in years past, I'm going to speculate 4 punches might have been a truer average, which is $42.50 a ticket. Yuck.

3) For a bunch of people, are there even 6 places on this card they 100% want to hit? There's 6 places I suppose I could hit, but only about 4 I 100% want to hit.

True, for example if it you did not get the card would you ski S6, Middlebury, or Titus? Adding to that Gore, Owls Head and Whiteface are a stretch from NH like Cannon and Buke as well as Owls head might be to someone from NY. More or less being realistic we might go to 4 maybe 5 from the card making it not worth it.
 

deadheadskier

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Never been to Snowbowl. Hear it's great on a powder day.

I enjoyed Suicide Six a lot too. Bet it also would be a cool hideout on a Powder Day. I'm not always looking for the mega-resort experience
 

dlague

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Never been to Snowbowl. Hear it's great on a powder day.

I enjoyed Suicide Six a lot too. Bet it also would be a cool hideout on a Powder Day. I'm not always looking for the mega-resort experience

I agree with that too, but since we have a season pass at Cannon it does not fit in well any longer. S6 lodge is a mad house - lots of racing and they could careless about anyone's stuff. We skied it using the Fox 44 card but never made it to Middlebury. We did realize that year that we had many two fers and used it late in the season so the savings were not all that great. While the card while it was still cheaper, it made me re-evaluate it last year.
 

xwhaler

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Suicide 6

Speaking of S6, a quick persue of their website shows some pretty cool midweek specials

Monday - $15 Monday’s Are Back!
We’re continuing our Monday lift ticket special! Every Monday, non-peak periods, lift tickets are only $15.00!
This special is not available December 28, 2015; January 18, 2016 or February 15, 2016.
Tuesday - Burger, Beer & a Lift Ticket Special
Hungry? Thirsty? Or do you just want to get out and take some runs? Every Tuesday, non-peak periods, $35 get you a delicious burger and a beer in our Out-of-Bounds restaurant and a lift ticket! Just want the lift ticket? It’s only $30!!

Must be 21 or older for Burger/Beer/Ticket special. This special is not available December 29, 2015 or February 16, 2016.
Thursday - Throwback Thursday
We hear it all the time…..”I learned to ski at Suicide 6”! On non-peak Thursdays, give us a historical or piece of memorabilia of your time on our slopes (or even in the Lodge!) for our new 80th anniversary collage and receive $5 off the price of your lift ticket!

This special is not available on December 31, 2015 or February 18, 2016
Friday - Frugal Friday
Come ski or ride with us on non-peak Fridays! Our Frugal Friday lift tickets are just $30 for Adults or $25 for Children & Seniors. Tots 5 and under are always $10!

This special is not available on January 1, 2016 or February 19, 2016.
 

yeggous

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I agree with that too, but since we have a season pass at Cannon it does not fit in well any longer. S6 lodge is a mad house - lots of racing and they could careless about anyone's stuff. We skied it using the Fox 44 card but never made it to Middlebury. We did realize that year that we had many two fers and used it late in the season so the savings were not all that great. While the card while it was still cheaper, it made me re-evaluate it last year.

I don't see how this card can compete. Yes $30 and no Jay makes a big difference in the per ticket cost. Those mountains are mostly either too small or too far. Cannon and Burke are the only two I would definitely use. Bolton and MRG maybe, but probably not. The rest are either too small or too far away.
 

VTKilarney

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The mountains are very spread out. So even if you can't get quite as good a deal at a closer mountain, you still have to figure in the gas and aggravation of extra travel. I'd gladly pay a little more to ski on a Saturday if it meant saving an extra hour or two each way of driving.
 

deadheadskier

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Basing out of Stowe worked for me. Burke, Smuggs, MRG, Bolton and Jay all within 90 minutes or less. I found it quite easy to pair up 2-3 mountains per trip.
 

dlague

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Basing out of Stowe worked for me. Burke, Smuggs, MRG, Bolton and Jay all within 90 minutes or less. I found it quite easy to pair up 2-3 mountains per trip.

There you got Burke, Smuggs, MRG, Bolton would be my choices and Jay is gone - so not worth it! As it stands I will ski Burke and Bolton on the cheap!
 

BenedictGomez

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Has anyone gotten their Vermont Ski 3 / Ski 5 passes yet?


Nor I.

There you got Burke, Smuggs, MRG, Bolton would be my choices and Jay is gone - so not worth it! As it stands I will ski Burke and Bolton on the cheap!

The fact that after 8.5 full days they still have 150 units left shows they clearly miscalculated, given the fact this thing used to sell out in 24 hours. As I said in the beginning, I bet they still sell them all though, it just might take until sometimes in December.

They need to move it from the "good deals" page to the "okay deals" page. Purpose = defeated.
 

deadheadskier

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As long as "they" sell it out, I'm sure how quickly it happens doesn't matter to them.

Would be interesting to hear from them why Jay opted out (other than they don't need the cheap business) and what drove up the price. I imagine the mountains had a lot to do with it.
 

chuckstah

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IIRC last few years they sold only 300. This year 420! It is still a good deal if you can use 5 or more on weekends. Last year was $145 after shipping. This year $170 with no shipping. Still sucks that there's no Jay though, as that was always a definite for me.
 

BenedictGomez

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Would be interesting to hear from them why Jay opted out

Jay seems to be growing increasingly highfalutin, with their empire built on "free" money. My sense is Jay has significantly cut back on numerous deals the last few years, and I'm guessing doesn't want to be viewed as a place that offers numerous discounted offers.

There's a contact email on their webpage if you (or anyone else) wants to email them and ask why Jay Peak isn't involved in the offering this year.
 

thetrailboss

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Jay seems to be growing increasingly highfalutin, with their empire built on "free" money. My sense is Jay has significantly cut back on numerous deals the last few years, and I'm guessing doesn't want to be viewed as a place that offers numerous discounted offers.

There's a contact email on their webpage if you (or anyone else) wants to email them and ask why Jay Peak isn't involved in the offering this year.

You nailed it. They don't want to devalue their product. And they don't think they have to discount anymore because they've got the volume that they want.


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yeggous

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You nailed it. They don't want to devalue their product. And they don't think they have to discount anymore because they've got the volume that they want.


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They've jacked their rates for our club trip this year. They wanted an extra $100 for the water park.


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VTKilarney

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It's hard to blame Jay. It's a LOT busier in the winter now. They need to pay those investors back so it's reasonable to reduce discounting.
 
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