New This Winter: Epic Friend Tickets

Featured Image: Gabe Rovick

Fact of life: Skiing is better with friends. I don’t care who says there are no friends on a pow day. Vail Resort seems to catch the drift and for this upcoming winter, they’re rolling out a brand new perk that delivers called Epic Friend Tickets.

Epic Pass holders will now score half priced day passes for their friends at any of Vail's 37 North American Resorts, 10 passes if you bought your pass before April 14, 2025 and six if you purchased after. No blackout dates, no B.S. It’s not just the big dogs like Vail and Whistler Blackcomb that get the love this time, it’s also the locals’ hills like Crested Butte, CO and Mount Sunapee, NH. 

Rally the crew, you'll be glad you did

Vail sweetened the pot even more, allowing your homies who use an Epic Friend Ticket to apply the balance of that discounted day pass toward a 2026/2027 Epic Pass. Think double dipping with cheaper turns now and a cheaper pass later!

Epic Friend Tickets fully replace Buddy Tickets, whose pricing was much more unpredictable. The Friend Tickets make the math simple: 50% off anywhere, anytime for anyone who has a friend with an Epic Pass. That kind of consistency makes it that much easier to rally the crew for that ski trip you’ve been planning for years.

Sending it on one of the many cliffs around Vail Mountain

If you buy the full Epic Pass today, it’ll cost you $1,075 for adults ($548 for kids ages 5-12), while the Epic Local clocks in at $799 ($416 for kids and $646 for teens ages 13-18). The Epic Military Pass is one of the biggest steals in the game at $190 for active and retired military as well as their dependents, or $614 for Veterans and their dependents. All Epic Passes now include the brand new Epic Friend Tickets, plus the usual perks of 20% off food, rentals, lodging and lessons at Epic Resorts. 

Yeah, skiing’s expensive. As a college student I’ll be the first to admit it. But, this update is a game changer for your friends who have been dying to get a taste but can’t justify the hefty price tag. Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz laid it out there: “If you don’t have an Epic Pass, the next best thing is knowing someone who does.”

So, if you’ve been putting off locking in your season pass like me, it’s time to secure your stoke, snag some half priced tickets for the crew, and maybe, just maybe, convert a friend into a season pass holder themselves next year.