AUTHOR: John LaConte
Park City Mountain announced in January that it would be giving skiers who visited the resort during the Dec. 27 to Jan. 8 ski patrol strike a credit toward a pre-purchased ski pass next season.
The offer, as stated by Vail Resorts, is “a 50% credit per day skied or snowboarded at Park City Mountain between December 27, 2024, and January 8, 2025, to apply toward the purchase of a 2025/2026 pass of equal or greater value to their 2024/25 pass. Season pass per-day credits are calculated based on eight days, and Epic Day Pass per-day credits are calculated based on the number of days purchased.”
And also: “The minimum credit amount these Pass Holders will receive is 25% of the total purchase price of their 2024/25 pass. All credits will be customized for Pass Holders based on the price of their 2024/25 pass, product type, and number of days skied between December 27, 2024, and January 8, 2025.”
The offer was immediately met with hundreds of questions on online forums as to how this will work; through messages with Vail Resorts, I’ve been able to obtain a little more clarity on how the credits will be calculated.
The key language to keep in mind is the above-stated clause, “Season pass per-day credits are calculated based on eight days.” So if you paid $800 for your ski pass, then each day is worth $100, and you’ll receive half of that, $50, for each day skied during the strike. If you bought an $800 Epic Pass and skied five days during the strike, then you will receive $250. But if you paid $800 for your pass and only skied one day, you won’t received $50, according to resort officials, you’ll receive $200 in that case because the minimum refund will be 25% of your $800 ski pass.
If you paid $1000 for your Epic Pass, then each day is worth $125, and you’ll receive half of that, or $62.50, for each day skied during the strike. But if you skied less than 4 days, you’ll still receive $250 or 25%. But if you paid $1000 and skied all 13 days of the strike, you won’t receive $62.50 x 13 or $812.50, you’ll receive $500 because the maximum the company is paying out is half of the value of your original pass purchase price.
The minimum refund the company will issue would be for someone who bought a one-day Epic Day pass for $100; they will receive 25% or $25. But the maximum refund, for someone who bought an unrestricted Epic Pass for $1,100 and skied all 13 days of the strike, will be $550, because the maximum refund is 50% of the original purchase price.
Park City guests will not be penalized for continuing to ski throughout the remainder of this season, according to Vail resorts, so even if the person who paid $1,100 for an Epic Pass and skied every day of the strike continues to ski the rest of the season, they will still receive a $550 credit.
“Our hope is that these customized credits demonstrate our commitment to you as a valued Pass Holder,” said Deirdra Walsh, Park City Mountain COO. “I am confident that our team’s collective passion for Park City Mountain, our guests, and our community is strong, and that we will provide the experience you expect, this season and into the future.”


