Age 70 ski free

[jimk]

Anyone else out there enjoying age 70 free skiing? Tell us who, what and where

I started doing it last year. Skied at Massanutten, VA and Monarch, CO. Monarch actually lets you start doing it at age 69. Massanutten charged a $25 processing fee, which included an RFID card. Monarch charged only $5 for an RFID card. Massanutten bumped their senior fee up to $75 this year (2025), so I found another nearby freebie. Canaan Valley, WV charges only the $5 fee for an RFID card and I skied there a couple days ago using the 70 ski free option for the first time.

I do most of my skiing in Utah and have a Snowbird senior season pass (not free) and a base Ikon pass. These age 70 ski free options come in handy for warm up days before I arrive in Utah, where I spend several months each season.

Massanutten, Dec 2023 (the blue ridge in the background is Shenandoah National Park and scenic Skyline Drive runs along the top of the ridge for 105 miles):

Monarch, Jan 2024 (about 12-15" new snow this day):

Canaan Valley, Jan 5, 2025, the elevation of the valley in the background is ~3200', elevation at summit of ski area is about 4200'. The area gets more natural snow and wintry conditions than just about anywhere in the mid-Atlantic. Whitegrass Nordic Center and Timberline Mtn alpine ski area are located one and five miles away, respectively. The fact that there is a nordic/cross country ski area nearby tells you something:

As you might surmise from the photos, I got my best value playing the senior card at Monarch, where I enjoyed two very nice powder days.

 

[Tony Crocker]

There are too many of us. Mt. High raised its free age from 70 to 75 a year ago but grandfathered people who already had a pass. It is also honored by Powder Alliance areas regardless of their own policy. Lost Trail is the only other place I’ve used the Mt. High pass. The grandfathered renewal has to be done in person at the area, which may be a very short day in 2025 the way the SoCal season is starting.

I had a free day at Monarch last year. There are a few places with senior rates at 65 like Baldy and the Southwest Power Pass areas. But free for the Boomer generation is more and more a rarity.

 

[berkshireskier]

One of our neighbors who skis quite often at Alta/Snowbird said you can ski for free at Alta after age 80. Is this true?

 

[jimk]

One of our neighbors who skis quite often at Alta/Snowbird said you can ski for free at Alta after age 80. Is this true?

Yes, that goes for Taos and Mammoth too.
Compiling an accurate list of senior freebies or near freebies is hard. The deals change every year and as Tony C alluded to, ski areas often raise the age and/or cost. Also, sometimes you have to dig really deep on ski area websites to find the senior freebie deal as some seem reticent to readily broadcast it.
Here is a very limited list from a recent and fairly trusted source: https://www.skimag.com/ski-resort-l...here-seniors-ski-free-or-really-really-cheap/

 

[tseeb]

Some deals will probably go away or price will go up before I get to 70. That happens often to those of us born in the exact middle year of the Baby Boom. The Lifetime Senior National Parks Pass went from $10 to $80 not much less than 10 days before I qualified for it. My Mom bought it for me as she had committed to doing and I've gotten a lot of use out of it although I did not have to show it going through Death Valley last month.

 

[jimk]

I went back to Canaan Valley, WV on 10 Jan 2025 for more free skiing. Conditions even better this time. Skied more off the groom, than on. This ski area is never crowded, kind of overshadowed by nearby Timberline Mtn, which is quite a good place to ski. This was probably my last Eastern ski day this winter. I'll be driving towards Utah over MLK weekend, with a four day layover to ski some places in Colorado. The plan is to return east in May. Looks like I'm leaving behind one of the better Mid-Atlantic ski seasons in recent years! Temps are supposed to stay cool/cold next ten days or more around here, great for snowmaking, and the mtns keep getting a little natural snow.

 

[MarzNC]

One of our neighbors who skis quite often at Alta/Snowbird said you can ski for free at Alta after age 80. Is this true?

Yes. Has been for decades. Alf Engen said long ago that skiing for free should happen at 80, not any lower age.

One of the long time Alta Lodge guests skied for free for over a decade. She was still skiing pretty much 1-2 hours every day during her last three week stay at age 93. Her birthday was in early April. One year after age 90, I remember she got a powder storm for her birthday. The guys who were going to get First Chair that morning exchanged spot with her . . . she was going to get third chair. Everyone knew Naomi Wain.

 

[MarzNC]

Timberline in WV starts the senior rate at age 60. No free skiing age as far as I can tell.

Wolf Creek in CO starts the senior rate at age 65. Free skiing for 80 and up.

 

[Tony Crocker]

Apex today was CDN121 adult, CDN100 age 65-69 and CDN71 age 70+, 5% off of those for buying online last night.

 

[EMSC]

CDN121 adult

That's actually more than my room was in Vernon at the practically empty Fairfield (117CAD). Then you factor in the exchange rate and wow do those prices look good for tickets and hotels. I bought 110CAD tickets at SilverStar online the day before (mid-week skiing). When I look at the CC charge it works out to $81/day USD for lift tickets. Crazy good for US travelers at the moment.