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A couple months ago he left Colorado Ski Country, the trade group that represents now 22 of Colorado’s ski hills - basically, all of them except the five Vail Resorts areas.
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Pitcher, who runs Wolf Creek with his wife, Roseanne, has never really been a follower. This season, Pitcher sees an advantage in his aversion to joining the programs that have spread across the resort industry in the last two seasons. that hasn’t signed on to a big, multi-mountain pass. Pitcher’s Wolf Creek is one of the few ski areas in the U.S. He’s seeing fewer Saturdays and Sundays when visitation tops the mid-5,000s and more weekdays when visitation reaches 1,500. That’s something we have been working on for years,” he said.Īnd it’s been working. “We are trying to encourage people to shift their visitation to less dense times. He’s expanded the number of “local appreciation” days when tickets are priced around $56. Purchasers of day tickets - available only online - also will be able to lock in their spot. The midrange pass will be more affordable and the weekday pass - with some blackout dates during spring break - will be cheaper than anything he sold last season. While he hasn’t set pricing just yet, Pitcher estimates that a premium pass will cost around $1,500, up from $780 last year.
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”īuyers of the Wolf Creek premium pass must reserve their ski day 12 hours ahead of time to guarantee a spot. “It’s a year to try to hold on to your existing clientele, in my opinion. “This isn’t the year to increase skier visits,” Pitcher said. Pitcher hopes his capacity limit and reservation system will keep masses of Front Range skiers from traveling to his southern Colorado mountain when they can’t access the big, Interstate 70 hills that will be limiting numbers. Jared Polis shut down skiing at all Colorado resorts on March 14, the thinking was that closing only the big resorts would push skiers into more remote, smaller communities. A midtier pass that has some blackout days and a discount pass that pretty much limits access to weekdays. He’s offering a premium pass without any blackout days. MORE: Want to ski at a Vail Resorts mountain during coronavirus? You’ll need a reservation. Unlike Vail Resorts, which last week announced a reservation system that requires pass holders to book high-season ski days well in advance, Pitcher is adjusting his pricing. Later this month he will release his season passes, carefully designed to help control traffic at Wolf Creek. On very busy days over the Christmas holiday, he can see 5,500 skiers. The parking lot pretty much limits his busiest-ever days to 6,300, a peak he has seen fewer than a dozen times in the 43 years his family has run Wolf Creek. Pitcher last week submitted an operating plan to his local public health department proposing a self-imposed cap of 5,000 skiers a day at the 1,600-acre ski area. “It’s encouraging they were willing to modify their behavior this winter,” Pitcher said.Īnd a majority said they would use a reservation system. VACCINE HOTLINE: Get up-to-date information.The state is now encouraging anyone with symptoms to get tested. TESTING : Here’s where to find a community testing site.The latest from the coronavirus outbreak in Colorado: Read more on the best ways to find discounted lift tickets.How Colorado’s independent Wolf Creek ski area plans to navigate a coronavirus reopening - The Colorado Sun Close Typically, you can also save money by buying ski passes online, rather than paying them at the ticket window on the day you plan on skiing. If the ski resort offers dynamic ski pass prices, it is worth buying a ski pass in advance. Our tip: You can buy cheaper ski passes before the season begins and toward the end of the season, during what’s considered spring skiing. Some ski resorts offer dynamic lift ticket pricing, which means the price changes depending on the time of year and how far in advance you buy the lift ticket. Other factors include age and the number of days you plan on skiing. With the 133 slopes and 10 lifts, ski pass holders have a lot to get excited about for the upcoming ski season.ĭaily Lift Tickets for the 2022-2023 ski season vary depending on whether you buy your lift ticket before the season starts, during the peak season or at the end of the season. Get ready for the 2022-2023 ski season with an estimated start date of 2023 Nov 04 and a tentative end date of 2024 Apr 07.
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