There are roughly 637 ski areas currently operating in North America on any given Sunday in January and of those, 71 of the biggest are owned by 5 different corporations/holding companies that dominate the market. They are KSL/Aspen, Vail Resorts, Powdr Corp, Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, and EPR Properties.
Related: Ranking The Best Multi-Resort Passes In North America
In some ways, Consolidation has had a positive impact on the ski industry, albeit– maybe at the grassroots skier’s expense. Many skier’s whose resorts were bought by Vail over the past two decades have largely seen a decrease in season pass price and increase in pass offerings.
Still, we’re waiting to see what KSL/Aspen has in store for the pass market next year. Stay tuned…
For others, consolidation is having a negative effect on what many refer to as the ‘soul’ of skiing. For many, ski resort consolidation means more development and less emphasis on the ski experience. Either way, there’s still lots of mom and pop ski areas out there even though they might not have the biggest terrain and most lifts.
North American Ski Resort Holdings By The Numbers:
- 5 Resort Groups Own/Lease Approximately 101,500 acres of skiable terrain every year.
- Vail Resorts owns 3 of the 5 biggest resorts in North America (*Whistler Blackcomb, Park City, Vail)
- EPR Properties leads the league in # of mountains with 26 properties from Maryland to British Columbia.
- KSL/Aspen is #2 when it comes to # of mountains with 17 properties.
- Vail Resorts employs roughly 5,900 employees, making it one of Colorado’s largest single employers.
- Vail Resorts currently hosts 32% of the market share of skiers (*12 million skier visits) annually at their resorts.
KSL/Aspen Resorts: 17 properties | 22k skiable acres
- Squaw Valley, CA
- Alpine Meadows, CA
- Mammoth Mountain, CA
- June Mountain, CA
- Bear Mountain, CA
- Snow Summit, CA
- Aspen, CO
- Aspen Highlands, CO
- Aspen Snowmass, CO
- Buttermilk, CO
- Winter Park, CO
- Steamboat, CO
- Deer Valley, UT
- Stratton, VT
- Snowshoe, WV
- Mont Tremblant, QUE
- Blue Mountain, ONT
Vail Resorts: 14 properties | 43k skiable acres
- Vail Mountain, CO
- Beaver Creek, CO
- Keystone, CO
- Breckenridge, CO
- Heavenly, CA
- Northstar, CA (*Operated by Vail Resorts but owned by EPR properties)
- Kirkwood, CA
- Afton Alps, MN
- Mt Brighton, MI
- Park City, UT
- Perisher, AUS
- Stowe, VT
- Wilmot, WI
- Whistler Blackcomb, BC
EPR: 26 Properties | 17k Skiable Acres
- Brighton, UT
- Crested Butte, CO
- Cypress Mountain, BC
- Jiminy Peak, MA
- Mount Snow, VT
- Hunter Mountain, NY
- Loon Mountain, NH
- Mount Sunapee, NH
- Mountain High, CA
- Northstar-at-Tahoe, CA
- Okemo Mountain, VT
- Sierra-at-Tahoe, CA
- Stevens Pass, WA
- Sugarloaf, ME
- Summit-at-Snoqualmie, WA
- Sunday River, ME
- Alpine Valley, OH
- Boston Mills, OH
- Brandywine, OH
- Mad River, OH
- Jack Frost, PA
- Camelback, PA
- Big Boulder, PA
- Gatlinburg, TN
- Wintergreen, VA
- Wisp, MD
Powdr Corp: 8 Properties | 10k Skiable Acres
- Boreal Mountain, CA
- Soda Springs, CA
- Mt. Bachelor, OR
- Copper Mountain, CO
- Eldora, CO
- Lee Canyon, NV
- Killington, VT
- Pico Mountain, VT
Resorts of the Canadian Rockies: 6 Properties, 9.5k Skiable Acres
- Fernie, BC
- Kicking Horse, BC
- Kimberley, BC
- Mont-Sainte-Anne, QUE
- Nakiska, AB
- Stoneham, QUE