Skiing on the cheap - 2019-2020

[Whitey]

Ride and Ski Card gets you 50% midweek and Sundays I think.

Unfortunately Jay 1/2 price tix is one of the good deals that left this year. Now it's $10s off a lift ticket any day.

Sweet, I can save $10 on a Saturday now. . .

Sux - I made good use of that 50% lift tix last year at Jay on a 4 day weekend.

 

[Smellytele]

Jay use to have a discount for pass holders of other mountains but don’t see it on their website anymore


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[BenedictGomez]

This too, is a consequence of EPIC & IKON; increasingly there is no reason for anyone to give "deals" anymore.

The artificially high prices of single day tickets at all the now numerous Vail & Alterra mountains has led to significant real price inflation.

 

[crazy]

Specific to Jay Peak, they used to have more of a problem with attracting skiers, but given some successful efforts over the years with marketing, it's now attracts pretty decent crowds for its somewhat remote location. Midwinter weekends and powder days tend to be decently crowded, with long lines for the tram, and healthy but not overwhelming lines for the lifts.

Jay Peak is in the fortunate position of having to decide between just growing the volume of visits, or trying to focus more on attracting a specific type of customer. I believe that they're starting to decide to target the latter over going for sheer volume, which is why we're seeing the discounts start to disappear. You'll notice that more of the discounts are tied to booking a hotel room, which realizes a lot more revenue for them than old half-priced card tickets that they used to have, because, let's face it, many of us who would use the half-priced card tickets would also save money by staying at a motel or cheap AirBnB instead of staying at the somewhat luxurious resort lodging.

While I miss some of the discounts, I also respect their decision. The mountain is potentially in danger of becoming overcrowded given its uphill capacity. A lot of people are hoping that Alterra buys Jay Peak. I partially hope this happens because Alterra has the capital to ensure Jay Peak's continued success, but the resulting crowds will surely overwhelm the place.

 

[BenedictGomez]

Specific to Jay Peak, they used to have more of a problem with attracting skiers, but given some successful efforts over the years with marketing, it's now attracts pretty decent crowds for its somewhat remote location.

It wasn't the marketing that "attracted" the people, it was primarily the several hundred millions dollars in crooked money which built out a massive tourist attraction.

 

[bdfreetuna]

It wasn't the marketing that "attracted" the people, it was primarily the several hundred millions dollars in crooked money which built out a massive tourist attraction.

I think that's partially true, as their in-house marketing campaign sucked for the last 5 years. Lots of expensive 100-page booklets to print and they had mascots of various snow monsters looking like drawn by a child. Advertising dollars not well spent.

That said I think the hard-core powder chaser base of skiers has grown a bit in the last decade, even if new skiers is flat-lined, more people are getting "good" at skiing probably thanks to better gear or perhaps taking things more seriously in certain aspects. With 90mm semi-rocker skis now the average, who wouldn't want to shoot for powder days? Internet is a word-of-mouth multiplier, and Jay Peak has a great reputation for actual skiing even if there are complaints here and there on peripheral matters (or lift operation).

Overall I think skiing in the East has evolved to the point where this mountain way up in Vermont with a lot of tree skiing, a lot of natural snow, and some technical chute skiing with easy access has become a very desirable place for advanced/expert skiers to "attend" as much as possible.

I mix it up a lot but it would be unusual for me to miss a day or two at Jay this season for these reasons.

 

[p_levert]

Perhaps we should avoid veering too deeply off the "skiing on the cheap" topic.

I will say that the Epic/Ikon formula of high day rates and low season pass prices does give plenty of elbow room for the little guys to raise rates. So in the end, maybe the new reality will actually help the small ski areas. Maybe...

 

[bdfreetuna]

Perhaps we should avoid veering too deeply off the "skiing on the cheap" topic.

I just assumed I was in the Jay Peak thread. Short term memory issues.

 

[iKhmaiFoSho]

Dec 8th. Sunapee Commuity Day. $35 lift tickets w/5 non-perishable food items.

 

[sledride]

Stumbled across the Ride and Ski Card for 20 bucks at rush49. Just bought a few for the family.

https://rush49.com/deals/the-ride-a...MI2v2c7MKZ5gIVCYiGCh1MvAHKEAAYASAAEgKnS_D_BwE

 

[skicub]

Is a ride and ski card even worth $20 anymore if you already have a multi pass? I have an IKON, and a bromley day pass which gets me 50% off at Jay/Shawnee/wachusett.

Seems I would only be getting it for the Tenney/Burke deals, and maybe attitash/wildcat. Thoughts?


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[sledride]

I would say no if you have any kind of multipass. When I have a pass I never want to go anywhere where I have to pay anything. If you have no other passes this year, like me, it's a good deal. Gets you cheap tickets at Bolton Valley even on holidays and I'll try to hit some of the tour dates for 2 for 1.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Is a ride and ski card even worth $20 anymore if you already have a multi pass? I have an IKON, and a bromley day pass which gets me 50% off at Jay/Shawnee/wachusett.

Seems I would only be getting it for the Tenney/Burke deals, and maybe attitash/wildcat. Thoughts?


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40% off midweek @ Pico / Killington is better than nothing in a pinch. 50% off Berkshire East is nice. Mount Snow any day tickets $69 I *guess* is better than nothing.

Prices gone up, deals gone down this year

 

[MEtoVTSkier]

A portion of the card's purchase price benefits the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth, NH. It primarily helps their cardholders save money on winter sports and more.

For $19.20 you can grab one for an oddball day here or there, and still feel like you are donating to a worth cause... not like it is going to break anyone's annual ski budget.

 

[BenedictGomez]

That Indy Ski Pass thing is on sale for $174.99 at Costco.

 

[urungus]

That Indy Ski Pass thing is on sale for $174.99 at Costco.

Hmm, is that in store? Don’t see the Indy Pass offered at costco.com

 

[BenedictGomez]

Hmm, is that in store? Don’t see the Indy Pass offered at costco.com

Yes.

 

[Smellytele]

middlebury midweek $20
https://myjumponit.com/index.php?index_type=promo-detail&h=1850522

 

[jaytrem]

That Indy Ski Pass thing is on sale for $174.99 at Costco.

NJ stores? Could be tempting to 20-21 ski season, especially if they add a few more places.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

i dont think you can reasonably count on this being at costco for 2020-2021. i assume they're in costco because their direct sales this year didn't hit their projections.