A new chairlift can do more than shorten the ride uphill. Sometimes, it changes where you start your morning, which terrain you can reach, and how you connect your favorite runs.
That is what makes an offseason project worth paying attention to.
A bigger lodge or a newer lift does not automatically transform a ski day. But a chair serving previously guided terrain, a new connection across the mountain, or an additional entrance from a parking lot can change the way you use a resort.
These 10 mountains have projects planned for the 2026–27 season that go beyond a fresh coat of paint. Some are adding terrain. Others are rebuilding important connections or making familiar sections of the mountain easier to access.
The opening targets below reflect announced plans as of September 11, 2026. They remain targets rather than guaranteed opening dates.
1. Powder Mountain, Utah
Powder Mountain’s biggest change is not just another chairlift. It is a different way to access some of the mountain’s most demanding terrain.
The new DMI fixed-grip triple will serve the Wolf Creek Canyon zone, with approximately 2,200 feet of vertical drop. According to Powder Mountain’s expansion announcement, the project provides public access to more than 1,000 acres of advanced terrain, approximately 900 acres of which will be directly lift-served.
The resort describes a mix of steep glades, chutes, and technical lines in an area previously available through guided backcountry tours. DMI is expected to open when conditions allow during the 2026–27 season.
Powder Mountain is also replacing its Sundown fixed-grip quad with Sundown Express, a high-speed quad intended to shorten rides and improve capacity for daytime and night skiing. The new Sundown lodge is a separate project targeting 2027–28.
What changes for skiers: A substantial area of advanced terrain becomes much easier to repeat, while Sundown gets a faster ride on the other end of the ability spectrum.
p.s. Powder has an incredibly cool 3D map feature where you can interactively explore the new terrain, check that out HERE.
2. Sundance Mountain Resort, Utah
Sundance’s back mountain is getting a new centerpiece.
The Electric Horseman Express high-speed quad will provide direct access to the back mountain, with more than 1,850 vertical feet per lap and an approximately six-minute ride. In its latest announcement, Sundance describes more than 100 acres of new terrain for 2026–27, bringing the resort to 605 skiable acres.
As previously covered by Unofficial Networks, the expansion includes Storyteller, a 1.7-mile upper-intermediate groomed ridge run, along with three expert gladed chutes.
The lift is the important connection. Sundance says it will allow guests to ski the back mountain using a single high-speed lift rather than piecing together a less direct route.
What changes for skiers: More terrain is part of the attraction, but making that terrain easier to lap is the bigger day-to-day improvement.
3. Deer Valley Resort, Utah
Deer Valley’s expansion is continuing, with another mountain sector scheduled to join the trail map this winter.
Hail Peak Express will open access to 200 additional skiable acres and seven new runs. Deer Valley’s published plans put the resort at 4,500 skiable acres and 209 runs for the 2026–27 season.
The new high-speed quad will carry skiers from Deer Valley East Village into the Hail Peak terrain. Unofficial Networks recently covered the installation of its lift towers, another visible step toward opening.
This is the next installment of a much larger transformation. Including Hail Peak, the resort lists 11 new lifts added through the expansion since December 2024, a total that includes the East Village gondola.
What changes for skiers: Returning visitors get another reason to explore the East Village side. Anyone whose last visit predates the expansion should spend some time with the new trail map.
4. Sun Valley Resort, Idaho
Sun Valley’s major changes are about moving around Bald Mountain rather than opening a new terrain sector.
The resort is replacing Lookout Express and Christmas for the 2026–27 season.
Lookout Express will go from a detachable quad to a high-speed six-person chair. The new lift will climb 2,673 vertical feet, with an estimated ride time of approximately eight and a half minutes. Christmas will receive a new detachable quad with an estimated four-and-a-half-minute ride.
Christmas is already a high-speed lift. The project is a modernization of an existing route, while Lookout also increases the number of passengers per chair. Sun Valley says the replacements are intended to improve capacity, reliability, and circulation.
What changes for skiers: The terrain remains familiar, but two important routes to the upper mountain will operate with new equipment.
5. Purgatory Resort, Colorado
Purgatory’s Colorado Couloir project combines new skiing with a practical improvement: another place to begin the day.
The fixed-grip triple will run from the Gelande parking area to the upper mountain, eliminating the need to first travel to the village to enter the lift network. The lift will span approximately 4,439 feet and climb 1,625 vertical feet.
The Colorado Couloir construction project includes seven new trails and connectors, plus access to steep glades and technical terrain. Some of that skiing involves improvements to existing glade areas rather than entirely untouched terrain.
In the latest construction update covered by Unofficial Networks, lift towers were installed and work on the upper terminal was complete. Purgatory is targeting a December 2026 opening, conditions permitting.
What changes for skiers: Gelande becomes a direct entrance to the mountain, while advanced skiers gain a more convenient way to reach and repeat challenging front-side terrain.
6. Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia
The familiar T-bar ride toward Blackcomb’s glacier terrain is being replaced by a chairlift.
The new Showcase fixed-grip quad is part of Vail Resorts’ 2026 capital plan. Its purpose is to provide more consistent access to existing Blackcomb Glacier terrain, not to create an entirely new skiing area.
Construction reporting documents new foundations on exposed bedrock and adjacent ground, rather than glacier ice. Whistler Blackcomb is also improving nearby trail connections and access into the glacier zone. The lift is scheduled for the 2026–27 season.
There is another change worth knowing before setting an alarm. In its early-season operating update, Whistler Blackcomb says British Columbia’s move to permanent daylight saving time will shift most early-season lift openings 30 minutes later. The announced resort schedule from opening day through January 15 is 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
What changes for skiers: A chair replaces the surface-lift ride into a signature alpine area, and early-season visitors will need to adjust to a later start.
7. Lee Canyon, Nevada
Lee Canyon’s next expansion is heading west.
The ski area outside Las Vegas plans to open a new fixed-grip quad serving West Bowl for the 2026–27 season. The initial phase includes five trails, with terrain ranging from lower-intermediate to advanced.
Unofficial Networks’ coverage of the West Bowl announcement explains that additional trails and glades could follow in later phases. Those future additions should not be confused with what is scheduled for the first winter.
Lee Canyon’s current season-pass information also confirms a change at the lift entrance: RFID-enabled passes that can stay in a pocket for hands-free access.
What changes for skiers: West Bowl adds another lift-served section to the mountain, giving regular visitors a new direction to explore rather than simply a replacement chair on an existing route.
8. Killington Resort, Vermont
Killington is replacing the Snowdon Triple, but it is not turning the route into another high-speed detachable.
The new Doppelmayr fixed-grip Snowdon Quad is expected to provide a 33% increase in capacity and a slightly faster ride than its predecessor. Killington says it will also have a backup generator capable of running the lift at full speed during a power outage.
The decision to keep it fixed-grip is intentional. In its capital-project announcement, Killington describes maintaining a resilient network of fixed-grip lifts as part of its strategy for operating through different weather conditions.
The project also includes new snowmaking pipelines and approximately 23 low-energy snow guns on Conclusion. Active snowmaking is expected to return to the trail for the first time in nearly a decade.
What changes for skiers: Snowdon gets updated lift service, while improved snowmaking could make Conclusion a more dependable part of the winter trail rotation.
9. Mont SUTTON, Quebec
Mont SUTTON is simplifying its west-side lift network.
The resort is replacing three double chairlifts with a single Skytrac quad designed to carry up to 2,400 people per hour. The new lift will begin near the family zone and include a boarding carpet and RFID access gates.
The surrounding learning area is changing too. Plans include a second beginner conveyor, gentler terrain, and snowmaking improvements intended to increase capacity in that part of the mountain.
In its August 31 construction update, Mont SUTTON said tower installation was underway and reiterated a November 2026 completion target.
What changes for skiers: Instead of navigating several older lifts, guests will have a more straightforward route into the west sector. Beginners and families should also notice the redesigned learning area.
10. Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec
Mont-Sainte-Anne’s biggest lift change comes with a timing caveat: it is scheduled to arrive during the winter, not at the beginning.
The new Évolution Express is a detachable six-person bubble chair targeting commissioning in February 2027. It will replace South Express and La Tortue with a redesigned route intended to improve connections between the mountain’s sectors.
The resort’s latest detailed project update describes a ride of roughly seven and a half minutes, improved connections between the north and south sides through the Gros Vallon sector, and better access to several important trails.
Mont-Sainte-Anne says the existing South Express and La Tortue lifts will remain operational until Évolution Express is fully commissioned and placed into service.
What changes for skiers: Later-season visitors could experience a substantially different route across the mountain. Early-season visitors should not plan around the new chair being available.
The Most Important Upgrade Is Not Always the Biggest
There is no single formula for making a ski resort better.
For one mountain, the priority is reaching steep terrain that previously required a guided outing. For another, it is giving families a simpler learning area or letting skiers start from a different parking lot.
That is why lift counts and construction budgets only tell part of the story.
The more useful question is what a project lets you do differently once your skis are on.
These are 10 mountains where it will be worth taking another look at the trail map this winter.
