Ski Resort Called "Tone Deaf" For Social Post Advertising Online Lift Ticket Discounts

The ski industry has undergone a major change over the last two decades in regards to how lift tickets are purchased. Resorts prefer to sell season passes and mega-passes (Ikon, Epic, etc.), or sell daily lift tickets online and in advance.

This helps to establish revenue, and plan for daily operations based on how many tickets have been sold. A drawback is that daily walk-up lift ticket prices are inflated.

Sugarbush Resort, VT is catching some backlash for a recent Instagram post encouraging skiers to buy their tickets ahead of time. See below (click the arrow to the right to progress through the slides):

The comments are flooded with criticism.

Many believe that Sugarbush is tone deaf for making a meme out of how expensive daily lift tickets cost.

Locals are affected the most by the surge in walk-up lift ticket prices. Specifically, the locals who can't afford a $1,000+ season/mega-pass and are unable to plan ski days in advance. These folks are forced to swallow the walk-up lift ticket prices if they want a day out on the mountain.

Check out The Storm Skiing Journal's recently-compiled list of peak walk-up lift ticket prices for Winter '23-'24 below.

Sugarbush does not have a peak walk-up lift ticket price listed online, but Stuart Winchester from The Storm Skiing Journal & Podcast has noted that it will be "at least $189". 

Click here for The Storm's full list of daily lift ticket prices across the continent.

Nearly $200 for a day of skiing in Vermont is a hard pill to swallow, but again, that's why resorts are pushing mega-passes and pre-purchased lift tickets so heavily.

Regardless, many folks feel that the inflated cost of skiing shouldn't be turned into a joke, at least not by the resorts themselves. The following screenshots are from the comments of Sugarbush's controversial Instagram post:

Safe to say that their attempt to make light of expensive walk-up lift ticket sales isn't going over well with the majority of people who have chosen to comment.

Sugarbush Resort Stats/Info:

Vertical: 2,600 ft.

Skiable Terrain: 4,000+ ac. (including backcountry)

Average Snowfall: 250 in.

Lifts: 16

Trails: 111

Snowmaking: YES

Night Skiing: NO

Mega-Pass: IKON

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