Pikes Peak Region Trail Finder

Great ways to save on your next ski trip

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Created on Wednesday, 17 November 2010 07:00

Written by R. Scott Rappold

By R. SCOTT RAPPOLD, THE GAZETTE

The nation is locked in its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Layoffs, persistent unemployment and a record number of foreclosures are signs that a significant economic recovery is a good way off.

But hey, you still gotta ski, right?

Some places you might want to check out along the way.

Don’t let the economic malaise put a damper on your season. With proper planning, a day on the slopes or a weekend in ski country doesn’t have to be an epic yard sale for your budget.
For every $500-a-night slopeside suite, there’s a cheap motel where you’ll get the same amount of sleep. For every $10 on-mountain chili bread bowl, there’s a sandwich shop on the way to Summit County. For every $99 lift ticket at a major resort, there’s one for half that much at a smaller area.

Here at The Gazette, many of us are skiers or snowboarders. And as members of a notoriously underpaid profession, we have a sixth sense for cheap deals. We also polled the community through social media to pull together a guide for skiing on a budget.

This is by no means an exhaustive guide. Did we miss your favorite affordable place to stay or grab a cheap meal at the slopes or on the way there?
Visit us at OutThereColorado.com and tell us about it.

BEFORE YOUR SEASON BEGINS

You have read it here before:  Buy a pass

Skiers and snowboarders from Colorado’s Front Range have easy access to some of the best skiing around, at some of the lowest prices, thanks to competition among the many ski areas vying for locals’ ski dollars. Don’t believe it? Try buying a $450 season pass in Aspen.

If you are planning on going more than a handful of times, a pass makes sense, and you have only a couple more days to pick up popular ones like the Colorado Pass. Unfortunately, many passes cost a lot more than they did a few weeks ago. So let that be a lesson: Buy early.

Buy last year’s gear

Just because skis have been sitting on a shelf, wrapped in plastic since last fall, doesn’t make them any less usable, and you can probably pick them up at half price. Or, if you’re new to the sport or just want skis that will let you brave the rocks with impunity, buy some old rental gear at an even greater discount. Plan ahead for next year and check out a gear swap, or look for used gear online; there’s always someone who’s moving or someone who’s decided skiing isn’t for him and is selling gear.

Wax and tune your own gear

A professional wax and tune can run you $50, or you can spend that much one time and get your own kit. Unless you had a nasty argument with a rock field last season, you’ll also save the time it takes to drop off and pick up your gear. Member of REI? You can get a free hot wax for your skis or board.

THE DAY BEFORE

Rent your gear here

Standing in line at the on-mountain rental shop, sweat stinging your eyes because the heat is blasting and you are wearing your snow gear, can be a lousy way to start the day. So save yourself five or 10 bucks and rent skis the day before at one of many sporting-goods stores in Colorado Springs. You usually have until noon the next day to return them.

Pack a lunch

Make burritos. Or sandwiches. Or wraps. Avoid the exorbitant on-mountain food prices by skiing with a light lunch in your pocket or backpack.

Lift tickets

If you didn’t buy a pass, save $8 or $10 by buying lift tickets at a ski shop. Plus, you can avoid the ticket-window lines. A Colorado GEMS Card, $10 from Colorado Ski Country USA, offers discounts at many ski areas — and some free days, too.

The trade group also offers free passes for 5th-graders and $99 passes for 6th-graders. Visit www.colo radoski.com for details. The deadline to get similar free passes from Vail Resorts has passed.

CHOOSING WHERE TO SKI

Smaller is cheaper

Purchased at the window, a peak-season day at Vail will run you $99. Telluride is $98. And so on. And resorts don’t lower prices for weekdays.

But a smaller mountain like Monarch will cost just $56. Family-style area Ski Cooper is $42. So choose accordingly.

ON THE WAY THERE

Gas up in Teller County

For whatever reason, the price at the pump seems to be a few cents cheaper along U.S. Highway 24 in Teller County, and a lot cheaper than prices in the mountain towns beyond. Don’t get gouged.

Don’t drive Interstate 70

If it’s a weekend, you’ll save gas and the headaches of the worst ski traffic in the nation on I-70. If you’re heading to Summit County, take U.S. Highway 24 to Colorado Highway 9 over Hoosier Pass, which hardly ever closes, even during the worst snowstorms. If heading to Monarch, both U.S. Highway 24 and U.S. Highway 50 through Cañon City seem to be about the same drive.

Watch out for speed traps

The Colorado State Patrol and police in the little towns you pass through know skiers are in a hurry to be first to the powder, and they’re happy to ruin your day with a ticket on the way there. Don’t speed, and especially don’t speed on U.S. Highway 24 between Colorado Springs and Lake George, and in the towns of Fairplay and Alma.

Take the bus

There isn’t regular public transit to the slopes, but radio station KILO 94.3 will once again run its Snow Bus to Monarch Mountain on nine Sundays. For $45, you get a lift ticket, a ride there and back and lunch. Tickets go on sale Nov. 26 at Blind Side Sports, and the first trip is Dec. 5. Visit www .kilo943.com for details.

Eat breakfast

Skiing is exhausting, and you don’t want to be hungry an hour into your day, so have a breakfast feast on the way up. Some of our favorites: the Donut Mill in Woodland Park, with pastries the size of your head and biscuits-and-gravy plates that will stick to your ribs long into your day; Dorothy’s Famous Tamales in Hartsel (the tamales that put Hartsel on the map); Alma Natural Foods, a pit stop before the final push to ski country with great breakfast burritos; Columbine Cafe in Breckenridge, a filling breakfast without resort-town prices; Legends Cafe in the A-frame lodge at Arapahoe Basin offers a decently priced breakfast just feet from the lifts; Camp Four Coffee in Crested Butte offers affordable breakfasts in the base village.

Park for free

Parking is free at smaller areas, but don’t be snookered by the lure of close-in parking at larger resorts. Is your 10 bucks worth not waiting for a five-minute bus ride? Park in satellite lots.

In Breck, they’re at the ice arena south of town and the free lots north of town. At Copper, follow the signs as you pull of the interstate.

At Winter Park, turn off for Mary Jane and walk to the lifts. At Beaver Creek, go west on U.S. Highway 6 and park in the Bear parking lot.

At Vail, you may have to pay to park in the garages. While some claim to know about secret free parking spots, they’re taking that info to the grave.

ON THE MOUNTAIN

Take your own water

You’ll reduce the likelihood of an altitude headache by staying hydrated, and save a few bucks.

Grab lunch

It’s tough to save money if you wait and buy lunch on the mountain, because you’re a captive audience and have to pay whatever price is set. Generally, you’ll find better prices at the base villages than the lodges on the hill, and independent restaurants can be a better value than the cafeterias.

Some of our favorites are Endo’s Adrenaline Cafe at Copper Mountain, Parrot Eyes at Keystone, the Rathskellar at Loveland and the Sidewinder Saloon at Monarch. And don’t miss the warm cookies handed out at the end of the day at Beaver Creek.

Better yet, if you are at a smaller ski area, go back to your car for lunch. Because what’s not to love about grilling brats in a muddy parking lot?

STAYING OVERNIGHT

Watch for e-mails

If you’re a pass-holder, make sure the ski company has your e-mail address, because you’ll get tons of offers for cheap lodging. While many of the deals aren’t great, or are good only for a Tuesday night, watch for last-minute offers that can mean some pretty good discounts.

Stay in a hostel

Hostels conjure images of crowded, dirty bunkhouses full of shiftless Europeans backpackers, but many mountain towns have well-kept hostels where you can get a bed, and even a private room, for a fraction of a hotel price. Try the Fireside Inn Bed and Breakfast in Breckenridge, $31 to $45 for a bunk; the Simple Lodge and Hostel in Salida, $22 for a bunk; the Crested Butte International Lodge and Hostel, $34 to $38 for a bunk; the Back Narrows Inn, in Norwood near Telluride, $45 to $50 for a private room with a shared bathroom.

Find a cheap hotel

Ski towns are known for expensive lodging, but if you’re willing to forego the slopeside jacuzzi, you can find a (comparative) bargain.

Winter Park: Book at least two nights between Nov. 17 and Dec. 25 and get a free lift ticket per night.

Monarch: Monarch Mountain Lodge, just down the road from the ski area, offers room-and-lift ticket deals for as low as $83 a person. If you have a large group, Monarch Cabins sleep 12 people for $360 a night.

Frisco: The Snowshoe Motel in downtown Frisco, the quintessential skiers’ motel, offers rooms in the $60 to $80 range and easy access to all Summit County resorts. The Frisco Lodge is slightly pricier, but comes with a full breakfast.

Wolf Creek: On the west side, the Oak Ridge Lodge in Pagosa Springs offers decent deals that include lift tickets and passes to the famous hot springs. On the east side, South Fork offers plenty of cheap lodging, though night life is nonexistent.

Vail: Forget about it. Stay in Minturn or Leadville.

Aspen: Forget about it. Stay in Basalt.