Indy Pass Prices Go up August 31. Should You Buy One?
Background
The Indy Ski Pass is a budget alternative to the better-known Epic and Ikon season pass products. Unlike its more expensive counterparts, Indy only offers two days at each partner resort. However, the list of partners is lengthy—63 independent resorts across the East Coast, Midwest, Rockies, and West Coast will return to the pass this coming winter.
For 2021-22, the pass also adds thirteen new areas in the United States and Japan. Theoretically, passholders can ski for 152 days next season if they hit every resort on the pass.
The base Indy Pass offers two days at each partner resort with some notable blackouts for $279, while the Indy+ Pass will offer the same product with no blackout dates for $379. This is a notable price hike from last season, when the base pass started at just $199 and the Indy+ cost $299.
As with last season, kids 12 and under will be eligible for discounted rates. Prices now start at $119 for the base pass and $169 for the Indy+. Full pricing information can be found here.
Passes are on sale here. Prices go up by an undisclosed amount after this Tuesday, August 31.
Our Take
Even at this early-bird rate, Indy’s prices have risen compared to last season. However, the pass continues to add more and better resort options. The addition of Powder Mountain brings what we believe to be a true destination resort to the pass for the first time; while we haven’t reviewed Powder yet, its claimed footprint of over 8,000 acres, even if much of it is serviced by snowcat, is nothing to write off. Moreover, the pass’s new Japan additions now put Indy on the same global stage as Epic and Ikon.
However, the list of blackouts for the base Indy Pass has expanded substantially since last season, when only three resorts maintained holiday blackouts. Now, more than 20 resorts come with blackouts, and four—including the aforementioned Powder—have gone as far as to black out all weekends. This makes the Indy+ Pass a much more valuable upgrade than it was last year. A few notable resorts, such as Jay Peak, do have no blackouts.
The Indy Pass doesn’t make much sense as a season pass due to its two-day limit at each resort, but the product may offer an incredible value for those looking to do multiple weekend trips—or those eyeing a winter road trip across the Northeast, Upper Midwest, or Northern Rockies. However, the new blackout policies on the base pass will make it too impractical for many consumers, and the Indy+ upgrade comes with a price tag encroaching on Mountain Collective territory. In addition, most mountains on the Epic and Ikon Passes will seriously outclass the vast majority of smaller, less-developed hills on the Indy products.
We’ve reviewed one resort on the Indy Pass: Wyoming’s Snow King, near Jackson Hole. Like many other resorts on the pass, it’s historically been a local hill with some surprisingly enjoyable terrain but underdeveloped infrastructure. However, Snow King’s experience is on track to transform next season thanks to a series of major upgrades.
