The Orca Ski Series
Verified prices, blackout dates, day limits, deadlines and perks — and an honest look at when a pass doesn't pay.
Facts checked as of Oct 25, 2026 (PT)
Vail Resorts
Unlimited, no-blackout skiing at Vail Resorts' own mountains (Vail, Breckenridge, Park City, Whistler Blackcomb and 30+ more), plus capped days at partners such as Telluride, Les 3 Vallées and Verbier.
$1,169 · Epic Pass, Adult 31+
Alterra Mountain Company
Unlimited at 18 destinations including Palisades Tahoe, Mammoth, Steamboat and Solitude, plus 7 days each at 50+ more such as Aspen Snowmass, Jackson Hole, Deer Valley, Big Sky, Zermatt and Niseko.
$1,529 · Ikon Pass, Adult 23+
The Mountain Collective
2 days at each of 27 destinations with no blackout dates, plus 50% off every extra day — the trip-sampler pass.
$729 · Mountain Collective Pass, Adult 19+
Indy Pass (independent resorts)
2 days at each of 300+ independent, smaller resorts on four continents. Great value for road-trippers — but none of the resorts in our rankings are on it, and the 2026/27 pass is sold out.
$419 · Indy Base Pass, Adult
Vail Resorts
Unlimited, no-blackout skiing at Vail Resorts' own mountains (Vail, Breckenridge, Park City, Whistler Blackcomb and 30+ more), plus capped days at partners such as Telluride, Les 3 Vallées and Verbier.Official site
Unlimited at every Vail Resorts mountain, including peak dates; partner days as listed
| Adult 31+ | $1,169 |
|---|---|
| Young adult 18–30 | $929 |
| Teen 13–17 | $929 |
| Child 5–12 | $599 |
Unlimited at most resorts; peak dates restricted at Park City, Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood, Stowe; 10 days total at Vail, Beaver Creek and Whistler Blackcomb (no peak dates)
| Adult 31+ | $869 |
|---|---|
| Young adult 18–30 | $689 |
| Teen 13–17 | $689 |
| Child 5–12 | $455 |
1–7 days; choose all resorts, 32 resorts or 22 resorts; peak dates are an add-on. Only 4–7-day all-resort versions include Telluride and the Resorts of the Canadian Rockies
Price depends on days, resort tier and peak-date add-on; build it on epicpass.com
Unlimited at Vail Resorts-owned mountains; partner resorts not included
| Active/retired military & dependents (launch price, to May 25) | $215 |
|---|---|
| Veterans & dependents (launch price, to May 25) | $620 |
Current price not verifiable on epicpass.com (page not readable to us). A ski-shop article reports $230 active/retired and $659 veterans in October 2026; treat as unconfirmed.
Adaptive skiers
| Adult (launch price, to May 25) | $543 |
|---|---|
| Child (launch price, to May 25) | $279 |
Current price unknown.
Epic Pass: none — every day including peak dates. Epic Local: restricted Nov 27–28, Dec 26–31, 2026, Jan 16 and Feb 13–14, 2027 at Vail, Beaver Creek, Whistler Blackcomb, Park City, Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood, Stowe and Verbier 4 Vallées (Verbier also Feb 6–20, 2027).Source
No pass-holder reservations listed by Epic. Telluride and all partner resorts need the physical pass card (no mobile pass).
Child 5–12 prices above. A Child 4 & Under pass exists (named in the Epic Coverage terms); its price is unknown.
No separate college pass is listed. Ages 13–30 get the new 20% Teen/Young Adult price (age verified).
None
Alterra Mountain Company
Unlimited at 18 destinations including Palisades Tahoe, Mammoth, Steamboat and Solitude, plus 7 days each at 50+ more such as Aspen Snowmass, Jackson Hole, Deer Valley, Big Sky, Zermatt and Niseko.Official site
No blackout dates; unlimited at 18 destinations, 7 days at the rest, 2 days at 11 Bonus Mountains
| Adult 23+ | $1,529 |
|---|---|
| Young adult 13–22 | $1,129 |
| Child 5–12 | $499 |
| Age 4 & under | $199 |
| Military, college or nurse | $1,099 |
Adult price from ikonpass.com; other age and discount prices from Big Bear Mountain Resort's official Ikon page (an Alterra resort).
Blackout dates; unlimited at 15 destinations, up to 5 days at most others; no Alta, Jackson Hole, Deer Valley, Sun Valley or Snowbasin; Aspen Snowmass = Snowmass only
| Adult 23+ | $1,099 |
|---|---|
| Young adult 13–22 | $799 |
| Child 5–12 | $399 |
| Age 4 & under | $149 |
| Military, college or nurse | $789 |
2, 3 or 4 days total at select destinations; blackout dates; no Europe or Japan except Niseko
| Adult 23+ (2/3/4 days) | $369 / $499 / $599 |
|---|---|
| Young adult 13–22 | $289 / $419 / $479 |
| Child 5–12 | $229 / $289 / $349 |
| Military, college or nurse | $289 / $419 / $479 |
One buyer aged 23–28 buys five Ikon Base Passes
| Per pass (5 required) | $880 |
|---|
Codes must be redeemed by Dec 31, 2026.
Ikon Pass: none. Ikon Base and Session: Dec 26–30, 2026, Jan 16–17 and Feb 13–14, 2027. Bonus Mountains follow the same blackout dates. Southern Hemisphere blackouts for restricted tiers are listed separately on the access page.Source
Lift reservations required in 2026/27 at Jackson Hole, Deer Valley and Loon Mountain.
Child 5–12 and 4 & under prices above. With an adult Ikon Base Pass, each child pass is $50 off. The Ikon Pass child saving is advertised, but the amount isn't shown on the page (unknown).
College students, nurses and active/retired North American military (plus adult military dependents) get the discount prices above, verified by SheerID; discounts can't be combined.
For comparison
The Mountain Collective
2 days at each of 27 destinations with no blackout dates, plus 50% off every extra day — the trip-sampler pass.Official site
2 days at each of 27 destinations, 50% off additional days, no blackouts (some resorts need reservations)
| Adult 19+ | $729 |
|---|---|
| Teen | $594 |
| Kids | $304 |
Teen and kids age bands aren't shown on the home page (unknown).
None.Source
Some resorts require advance reservations, including Jackson Hole.
Teen $594 and kids $304 (age bands unknown).
No college or military price listed (unknown).
Indy Pass (independent resorts)
2 days at each of 300+ independent, smaller resorts on four continents. Great value for road-trippers — but none of the resorts in our rankings are on it, and the 2026/27 pass is sold out.Official site
2 days or nights at each of 300+ resorts; blackout dates
| Adult | $419 |
|---|---|
| Kids | $269 |
Same access, no blackout dates
| Adult | $469 |
|---|---|
| Kids | $299 |
For holders of an unlimited season pass at an Indy partner
| Adult | $339 |
|---|---|
| Kids | $219 |
Base passes have blackout dates set by each resort; the 2026/27 list is still being compiled. Indy+ has none.Source
A handful of resorts require reservations (e.g. Cannon Mountain, Magic Mountain, Smugglers' Notch).
Kids prices above (age band not shown; unknown).
No college or military price listed (unknown).
None of our 20 ranked resorts are on the Indy Pass resort list.
Days you'd need to ski to beat buying peak-date window tickets (2026-27 peak walk-up prices, TownLift Sep 4, 2026). Off-peak and advance tickets are cheaper, so in practice you need more days than shown.Source
| Pass | Price | Resort | Peak window | Days to break even | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Epic Pass | $1,169 | Vail | $374 | 4 | Unlimited at Vail, no blackouts. |
| Epic Pass | $1,169 | Park City | $369 | 4 | Unlimited at Park City. |
| Epic Pass | $1,169 | Breckenridge | $332 | 4 | Unlimited at Breckenridge. |
| Epic Local | $869 | Vail | $374 | 3 | 10 days total at Vail/Beaver Creek/Whistler, no peak dates. |
| Epic Local | $869 | Park City | $369 | 3 | Unlimited, but not on peak dates. |
| Epic Local | $869 | Breckenridge | $332 | 3 | Unlimited, peak dates included. |
| Ikon Pass | $1,529 | Deer Valley | $349 | 5 | 7-day cap; reservations required. |
| Ikon Pass | $1,529 | Snowbird | $239 | 7 | 7 days combined with Alta — exactly the cap. |
| Ikon Base | $1,099 | Snowbird | $239 | 5 | 5-day cap at Snowbird; blackouts apply. Deer Valley not included. |
| Mountain Collective | $729 | Snowbird | $239 | — | Only 2 days at any one resort ($478 at Snowbird's peak rate), so it pays off only if you take 2-day trips to at least two of its resorts. |
| If… | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You'll ski 4+ days mostly at Vail, Breckenridge, Park City or Whistler, including holidays | Epic Pass | Unlimited at all of them with no blackout dates. |
| Same mountains, but you can avoid peak dates | Epic Local | $300 less; Breckenridge stays unlimited, Park City unlimited off-peak, 10 days total at Vail/Beaver Creek/Whistler. |
| You'll ski Jackson Hole, Deer Valley, Big Sky, Aspen Snowmass or Alta/Snowbird, or several regions | Ikon Pass | 7 days at each, no blackouts; the only pass among the four with Deer Valley. |
| Mostly Palisades, Mammoth, Winter Park or Copper and you can skip holiday blackouts | Ikon Base | Unlimited at Palisades and Mammoth for $430 less than the Ikon Pass (no Jackson Hole, Deer Valley or Alta). |
| Three or more short trips to different big-name destinations | Mountain Collective | 2 days each at 27 destinations, 50% off extra days, no blackouts. |
| Lots of small, uncrowded local hills | Indy Pass | Cheapest per day — but sold out for 2026/27 (waitlist). |
| Europe only, or 1–2 days | No pass | Buy tickets direct — see below. |
No season pass breaks even in two days at these prices (Epic needs 4 days at Vail at peak rates). Buy lift tickets in advance, or an Epic Day Pass or Ikon Session Pass for just those days.
Alpine walk-up day tickets are listed at about €75–85 (Tignes–Val d'Isère €75, Les 3 Vallées €84.20, Ski Arlberg €85 per skiresort.info; season not stated). Seven days at Les 3 Vallées is about €589 — far below the $1,169 Epic Pass. A US pass pays off in Europe only as a bonus on top of US skiing.
Our #1 world resort is on no pass — not Epic, Ikon, Mountain Collective or Indy.
Only 3 consecutive days, and only with a stay at participating Arlberg lodging.
Only 2 days per resort: two peak days at Snowbird are $478 at the window, less than the $729 pass. It pays off when you sample several of its 27 resorts.
| Resort | Pass access |
|---|---|
| Big Sky | |
| Vail | |
| Park City | |
| Palisades Tahoe | |
| Snowmass | |
| Breckenridge | |
| Jackson Hole | |
| Deer Valley | |
| Mammoth | |
| Snowbird | |
| Tignes–Val d'Isère | Not on Epic, Ikon, Mountain Collective or Indy. Buy lift tickets direct (listed adult day ticket €75 per skiresort.info). |
| Verbier 4 Vallées | |
| Les 3 Vallées | |
| Zermatt–Cervinia | |
| Ski Arlberg | |
| Ischgl–Samnaun | |
| Whistler Blackcomb | |
| Val Gardena | |
| KitzSki | |
| Revelstoke | |
| Chamonix | |
| Niseko United |
Prices in USD from the official pass sites, checked Oct 25, 2026 (PT). Pass rules change; confirm on the pass site before you buy.