What’s New for the 2025-26 Ski Season

A new ski season is quickly approaching, and lots of new upgrades and enhancements are coming to many of your favorite North America ski resorts. This season also brings updates to the major multi-resort ski passes, plus new pass products. Read on for highlights of what’s new at ski resorts across North America for the 2025-26 ski season.

Passes Add Resorts, Perks, And More

First things first, let’s dive into updates to the major ski passes. Below is a snapshot of what’s new with multi-resort passes this season.

Ikon Pass is continuing to expand its international presence, having already added multiple international destinations to its robust roster, including six in Europe and one in Canada. Now, you can ski up to seven total days at the following Italy ski resorts: Courmayeur, Cervino, La Thuile, Monterosa Ski, and Pila. In Austria, explore Ischgl for up to seven days and in Canada, you can now enjoy Le Massif de Charlevoix for up to 7 days. The year also brings snowmaking and sustainability upgrades to four resorts, a selection of new pass holder perks, upgraded lifts, and expanded access to 14 resorts—including Deer Valley, Sun Valley, and Ischgl.

This year’s Epic Pass topped the $1,000 mark for the first time when it went on sale earlier this year. If you’re okay with skipping peak dates and limited access at some resorts, the Epic Local Pass is a good alternative, priced as low as $816, which now also comes with five days of access to Verbier 4 Vallées in Switzerland. Epic also announced the addition of several new Austria ski resorts, adding Sölden, Saalbach, Zell am See-Kaprun, Mayrhofen, Hintertux, and Silvretta Montafon for the 2025-26 ski season.

Indy Pass added more than 40 new destinations this year, including Vermont’s Burke Mountain, Quebec’s Mont Sutton, and several French and Swiss resorts, bringing their roster to more than 270 independent ski areas. Also new is the Learn-to-Turn Pass, which includes three lift tickets, rentals, and lessons at 39 resorts for as low as $189. Pass holders are also eligible for up to 15% off gear and 20% off tune-ups at over 100 ski shops. The 2025-26 Indy Pass is sold out, so if you missed out, you can join the waitlist to purchase next year’s pass.

This year, The Mountain Collective added Whiteface Mountain in New York, which is known for having the largest vertical drop east of the Rocky Mountains. Pass holders can also now share a 25% day ticket discount with family and friends up to eight times per season, while also getting discounts on lodging and heli-skiing. Access to the collective’s new gear store is also included.

New this year is the Snow Triple Play, a pass geared toward casual skiers looking for a taste of the terrain in New England and Eastern Canada. For as low as $180, you can enjoy three days of access to participating resorts — up to two of them can be at the same mountain. Boyne Resorts, North America’s largest family-owned independent mountain resort company, also launched their own season pass product, the Boyne Passport and Boyne Explorer Pass. These new passes, aimed at the Boyne loyalist, offer access to Boyne’s 10 ski destinations across North America.

See what’s new at ski areas across North America for the upcoming ski season below.

The West

Park City’s Deer Valley Resort continues its terrain expansion this season, having installed seven new chairlifts during the off-season. It’ll provide access to over 2,900 new acres of terrain, which Deer Valley says will “more than double” its acreage. At 4.85 miles, one of the new trails, Green Monster, will claim the title of Utah’s longest ski run, surpassing previous title holder Home Run at nearby Park City Mountain. The resort is also slated to open its new East Village base area, which will feature Utah’s first 10-passenger gondola, with cabins arriving every 12 seconds to carry as many as 3,000 people per hour.

Nearby Park City Mountain is slated to open a new parking garage at its Canyons Village base area in mid-December. The resort said two levels of the garage will provide free parking in addition to surface availability in the nearby Cabriolet Lot. Other lots will still require paid reservations for vehicles with less than four occupants, while carpools with four or more people will enjoy free access. A new gondola named Sunrise has also been installed at Park City Mountain.

A number of other Utah ski resorts have also seen upgrades. Sundance is unveiling new terrain this season — 60 acres with 9 trails. The new terrain marks the beginning of a two-year process in which the resort will add 165 total acres. A new high-speed quad lift is also set to open this winter. It’s named the Electric Horseman after the 1979 movie Robert Redford starred in. If you’re unfamiliar, Redford was pivotal in the resort’s history.

Powder Mountain is bringing back pass holder weekends, which provide exclusive access for those with season passes. The pass holder events will happen Saturdays and Sundays in February. We’ll wrap things up in Utah at Brian Head Resort, which has made big investments, spending $1.4 million on snowmaking upgrades and a new children’s zone.

In California, Palisades Tahoe made big improvements to its snowmaking infrastructure, installing eight fully automated fans, three air compressors, and a new pipe and valve system. Two water wells were also rehabilitated, increasing the amount of water available for use. In addition to infrastructure upgrades, Palisades Tahoe is introducing carpool reservations for vehicles with four or more occupants this season. When eligible groups check in with an attendant, they will receive a $20 voucher to use at the resort. Reservations will open each Tuesday at 12 p.m. PST for the following weekend.

We’ll end this section at Arizona Snowbowl, which made improvements to the guest experience, such as improved Wi-Fi access, upgrades to sales systems, and upgrades to its rental fleet. Guests who buy tickets early for some days will get a $10 resort credit each day they ski, which is redeemable at resort restaurants, shops, and the ski school.

The Rockies

Big Sky continues its transformation—it’s set to unveil a glass alpine summit observatory named Kircliff, featuring panoramic views from 11,166 feet. According to the Montana resort, guests will be able to see across three states. Troy Nedved, the COO and president of Big Sky, said “This reimagined summit experience transforms Lone Peak into a year-round, must-visit destination.” 

In Colorado, Ikon Pass holders will be able to enjoy unlimited skiing at Arapahoe Basin beginning this season. Aspen Snowmass has added two new lifts — Elk Camp Quad was upgraded to a high-speed six-pack and Cirque Platter was replaced by a t-bar. Loveland also made a lift upgrade, replacing the 42-year-old Lift 7 with a new fixed-grip quad, allowing more capacity. Similarly, Copper Mountain kicked off a multi-year project focused on upgraded snowmaking. The project, intended to improve reliability and early-season snowmaking abilities, has brought upgrades to infrastructure on eight trails this season at Copper Mountain. Lastly, Steamboat will open an improved dining experience, called The Crooked Antler, which will replace The Cabin inside The Steamboat Grand Hotel. Per Alterra Mountain Company, dining and drink options will revolve around affordable comfort fare.

Pacific Northwest

Washington’s Crystal Mountain replaced its Rainier Express Chairlift with a high-speed quad after 37 years in operation. Locally referred to as “Rex,” the resort said it was the first detachable chairlift in the state, built in 1988. The upgraded lift is slated to open in December. Over at Alpental, near Seattle, Edelweiss chairlift, also known as Chair 2, was upgraded to a new triple chair, allowing more skiers to travel uphill.

In Idaho, Schweitzer is set to open new dining options. Per the resort, summit sunrise breakfasts will feature early lift access to Sky House, a restaurant located atop the resort. The pre-fixe meal comes with a mimosa bar and incredible panoramic views. In the evening, snowcat dinners will offer stunning views of the night sky, dinner at the summit, and a champagne reception. Schweitzer is also slated to offer new family-friendly perks, such as an expanded ski school and Kids Ski Free Week from Dec. 6-12, when children under 17 can ski without charge. At Sun Valley, guests will have access to new gladed areas, which expand upon the 350 acres of terrain that were gladed in previous years. The upgrade will provide new advanced trails down to the River Run Lodge.

The East

New Hampshire’s Loon Mountain installed a new magic carpet lift, dubbed Little Sass. Parent company Boyne Resorts said the new carpet provides a shorter ride for a more inviting first-time experience. Existing Sarsparilla Carpet also got upgrades, namely to its top and bottom terminals that make for a smoother, faster ride. On North Peak, the resort’s highest area, upgraded snowmaking infrastructure is set to boost snow quality.

Killington in Vermont is still in the process of a $38 million, multi-year improvement project, which is designed to refine the visitor experience year-round. The Superstar Express lift was upgraded from a quad design to a new high-speed six pack, while the Skyeship Gondola’s cabins were modernized. Snowmaking upgrades also continued, as 1,000 new low-energy elements were installed to improve efficiency and snowpack.

Maine’s Sugarloaf upgraded snowmaking infrastructure with increased water flow capacity, which Alterra Mountain Company says will help improve snow quality, open terrain faster, and improve early-season terrain reliability. Over at Sunday River, the Jordan Hotel Lobby has been renovated, while the Jordan 8 lift’s chairs have been upgraded with weatherproof bubbles and heated seats. Finally, Pleasant Mountain joined the New England Gold Pass, which also offers access to Sugarloaf, Loon Mountain, and Sunday River.

Canada

Sun Peaks in British Columbia became Canada’s first resort to adopt an innovative snow storage system developed in Finland, which Alterra Mountain says will help keep snow through summer and reuse it early in the next season. It’s expected to move 1.5 million gallons of water to other areas of the mountain. This comes as the resort announced a $5.5 million multi-year project that will upgrade snowmaking systems. And lastly, Lake Louise, a SkiBig3 resort, is getting a new high-speed quad chairlift, which will provide access to new terrain during the spring of 2026. Per the resort, the new lift will take skiers to five new beginner and intermediate trails in an area that’s similar in size to the resort’s Larch area.

Header image: ©Visit Park City