Skiing on a Budget
With ever-increasing snowmaking and the Farmer's Almanac prediction of a snowy November, hitting the slopes before Thanksgiving can be a money saver and a season extender. Early season skiing and riding means discounts, as areas entice you to break out your boards ahead of schedule. Get out your ski calendar; here are some deals to pencil in: Donate three nonperishable food items at Sugarloaf on Nov. 17 or 18 and get a $15 lift ticket. Attitash will offer free skiing on Nov.16, provided that is opening day. On Dec. 9, dress up as Santa, play the part by donating a child's toy, and ski free on Sunday River's charitable Santa Sunday. Passes and bargains Family season passes represent considerable savings and allow an investment in time on the slopes with your kids. Growing up, I always anticipated a family pass to our local ski area for Christmas present.
If you plan to do lots of skiing at American Skiing Co. resorts, including Maine's two largest ski areas, purchasing the eEticket by Dec. 3 is your best alternative. You can ski or ride 12 days for $42 a day, even holidays. The mEticket is valid at Sugarloaf, Sunday River, Attitash, Mount Snow, and Killington/Pico. Your mEticket is also good at Canyons in Utah, Heavenly in California and Steamboat in Colorado (until the resort is sold). Shawnee Peak's Sunday season pass provides an outdoor spiritual experience at $199, valid every Sunday this winter except Jan. 20 and Feb. 17. If your boss is tolerant, a fellow skier, or you are your own boss, the "Bold and Beautiful" pass is a deal. This $199 midweek non-holiday pass is good at Cannon (the bold) and Bretton Woods (the beautiful) throughout the season. If you skied only three days last year (you know who you are — the statistically average skier), don't buy a pass with aspirations of saving money on your fourth or fifth visit. Instead look to maximize your dollar, and carve up the slopes with minimum crowds, by going midweek. Camden Snow Bowl has skiing by the hour, and a two-hour midweek ticket at this unique ocean-view ski hill is $10. Lost Valley sells two hours of skiing for $12.
Wednesday is a good day to play hooky with a buddy. "Friends Day" at Lost Valley means two people can ski eight hours for $18. Cannon has "Wild Wednesdays" with skiing and riding, two for $40. Bretton Woods' Wednesdays are $44 for two. At Wildcat, buy two lift tickets for $52, and you could score a new pair of Atomic skis: All Wednesday ticket purchasers are entered in an end-of-the-day drawing. Waterville Valley will follow in the tracks of sister Booth Creek resort, Cranmore, with simplified pricing. Last year Cranmore introduced $29 all day any day lift tickets, which will be back this season. Waterville Valley will debut a $39 adult ticket, $29 for teens, and $19 for juniors, good every day except holidays. Cranmore has a new "After Two, Tomorrow Too" ticket to encourage you to stay in North Conway. If you purchase a $29 lift ticket after 2 p.m., it is valid for the remainder of that day and the entire next day. If weekends are your only opportunity to hit the slopes, you can still find deals. Night skiing at Shawnee Peak from 4 to 10 p.m. on Friday or Saturday is $21. New Hampshire's Black Mountain has a $89 family pack for two adults and two kids, valid any Saturday or Sunday. Taking the family skiing on Sunday instead of the busier Saturday can mean a better price and fewer skiers per acre. Attitash allows kids, ages 6-12, to pay their age on non-holiday Sundays. Shawnee Peak, Lost Valley and Gunstock each sell a Sunday family four-pack of tickets (two adults and two juniors) for under $100. American Skiing Co. will again offer the cross promotion with Mobil. Get a $10 off coupon for Sunday or midweek lift tickets at Sunday River and The Loaf with three fill-ups. Lodging deals Some of the best ski deals include a bed. Not only do you get more for your money by staying overnight, the ski experience becomes a mini-vacation when you can enjoy aprs ski and get first tracks the following morning. These lift and lodging deals are generally midweek and coded "max occ," that's maximum occupancy, which means they pack four of you into a one-bedroom condo — someone gets the pull-out couch or the floor in the living room. Make lots of turns, so you are tired enough to sleep in less than palatial space. Sunday River's lift and lodging packages start at $59 per person, only $10 more than a day ticket. The River's $99 "deal of the century" includes a night's lodging at the Snow Cap Inn any non-holiday Tuesday or Wednesday, two days of skiing, dinner and breakfast. Use your paid sick days and you could be making dough while carving the snow.
Killington, the aptly named Beast of the East, offers a $232 getaway package including five nights of lodging and a five-day lift ticket. Stratton Vermont, which now boasts four six-passenger high-speed quads, sells a three-day midweek lift ticket for $125 that includes two nights' lodging at the Liftline Lodge. Road trips Ski area marketing gurus are frequently cooking up clever promotions to encourage road trips. Jan. 29 is "Roll Back the Clock Day" at Mad River Glen. Visit this classic 53-year-old "skiers only" mountain that day and pay the 1949 price of $3.50. Load three buddies into your car and head to Ragged Mountain in New Hampshire for Carload Wednesdays. You will receive four lift tickets for the price of one ($49). Your group can all ride on the new six-passenger high-speed lift and have money left for the ride home and your own six-pack. Sugarloaf's white world week, Jan. 28 - Feb. 1, is a non-prescription cure for cabin fever and sunlight deprivation with $29 lift tickets. Keep an eye out for Maine appreciation days at the Loaf throughout the season too. Get into the winter mode by viewing Warren Miller's 52nd film release, "Cold Fusion," on Nov.11 at State Theatre, and you will receive a limited lift ticket to Sunday River or Sugarloaf and a $25 coupon to Joe Jones & The B-Side. While you have your datebook out, mark your calendar for April 28 and May 1 for Sunday River's annual free skiing and riding days. It's a long way off — but free is free. The Ski Maine Passbook is still the "Maine" deal for skiing and riding around the state at $11 per day. For $545, you get 48 tickets to 17 Maine ski areas that are fully transferable and valid every day of the season. For those who want to take the winter off to ski and ride, assuming money is no object, there is a special pass. The U.S. Ski Team is offering a limited edition Gold Pass for $5,000 valid at 260 participating ski areas nationwide, including 47 ski areas in New England. In Maine, the Gold Pass is honored at Sugarloaf, Sunday River, Saddleback, Lost Valley and Shawnee Peak. Gold Pass holders receive a gold medal and the tax-deductible contribution supports the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team as it prepares for the 2002 Winter Games. This special pass is popular among large corporations. The Heinz ketchup family has a standing order for pass No. 57. |
Don't let these numbers flatland you
this winter. These are "rack rates" that only the non-educated
consumer need pay. There are plenty of deals to be had. A little
shopping, and some planning, can slide the price for skiing and riding
down to a more palatable level.
These passes are good for the entire
immediate family, no matter how many kids you have. Lost Valley's
family pass is $995. A family season pass at Mt. Abram is $1,500.
Shawnee Peak's is $1,809 and has the added benefit of 50 percent off
lift tickets at several affiliate resorts, including: Jay Peak, Okemo,
Sunapee, Wachusett, and Mont Saint Sauveur in Quebec.
Shawnee Peak charges $30 midweek. Mt.
Abram will repeat two-fer Thursdays (that's two adult tickets for
$35), and the owners promise special prices on Fridays as they did
last season.
Going to Sugarloaf midweek, non-holiday
is a great money saver, and you will feel like one of the locals. For
a fraction of the cost of weekend rates, you can enjoy the slopeside
resort with zero crowds. The price of $59 per person, per night for
lodging and lifts means a Sunday to Friday ski week is $295. As a
bonus, midweek packages are bundled with freebies, including a Perfect
Turn clinic and use of the Sports and Fitness Club. Imagine what five
consecutive days at the Loaf will do for your quadriceps.