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A little research goes a long way when planning a weekend or week long ski or snowboard vacation in the United States. Going on a ski or snowboard vacation can get pretty expensive when you start adding up the cost of lodging, lift tickets, ski rentals, lessons and food. You might even have to add the costs of an airline ticket and rental car to the overall bill. If you don’t do a bit of planning you are going to find yourself a bit short on cash. By following the tips below, you can help lessen the cost of your ski and snowboard trip.

Flickr.com (Photo taken by Hylah Hedgepeth)

Discounted Lift Tickets

Let’s face it, lift tickets can get pretty expensive to purchase at a high-end resort as the average price can be about $70-$80 dollars per day during peak season. You shouldn’t have to pay full price at the ticket window when you can use some of these tips to help keep some cash in your wallet for those new goggles that you’ve been thinking of purchasing.

• Liftopia (www.liftopia.com) – This is an online marketplace that offers lift tickets throughout the United States for up to 60% off. I’ve used this website a few times when going on ski trips with friends and have never had a problem using them.
• Children Discounts – This discount amount varies from each resort but can save you some decent cash. If your child is of a certain age you can sometimes get about 50% off an adult rates. The deal gets a bit sweeter if your child is under the age of six at some resorts as they get to ski or snowboard for free! I recommend you check out the rates on the resort website if you are uncertain whether or not this deal is offered.
• Group Discounts – Happen to be planning a huge trip with your entire family or neighborhood friends? Your best bet will be to check how many people are needed to form a group. This allows you to buy lift tickets in bulk with some savings given back to you. Once again, I recommend that you check out the group rates on the resort website.
• Active Military Service – Many mountains will offer discounts to service members by showing your military identification card at the lift ticket window.
• Local Ski & Snowboard Shops – Ask an employee at a local ski or snowboard shop to see if they happen to sell discounted lift tickets to nearby mountains.
• Ski Patrol & Instructors – Certified to help injured snowboarders after they cleared a transition or to save beginner skiers on the final few runs of the day when the ‘Easiest Way Down’ trail looks like a battlefield? Well you’re in luck! There are great ski lift ticket discounts given to certified Professional Ski and Snowboard Instructors as well as Ski Patrollers. Just bring your PSIA, AASI or NSP card and you should be good. If this doesn’t work you might need a letter from the mountain stating that you are employed as a ski patrol or instructor to help get you the discount.

Avoid Holidays

This is sometimes tough due to the fact that the only time we are able to take off from work to go on a week long winter vacation is during the holidays. The highest demand times are Christmas and the New Year’s Holiday week resulting in increased hotel and condominium rates. The least expensive time to go out and shred up a mountain, if Mother Nature is playing nice, is near the end of November or April. A simple few clicks on a resort’s website should provide the season rates.

Ski and Stay Packages

The toughest decision to make when planning a ski and snowboard vacation is whether to stay on the mountain or in a hotel/condominium nearby. The good news is that both of these options sometimes offer a ski and stay package that can help save you a few dollars. The packages might include free lift tickets, meal vouchers or free rentals.

Rental Equipment

This all comes down to convenience. The ease of renting equipment on the mountain usually comes with a small dollar increase from the average rental prices of nearby rental shops. Do some research to locate the nearby ski and snowboard rental shops to get an idea of if you can save a bit before renting equipment on the mountain. There also might be an option to reserve rentals at the mountain or nearby rental shop that can help save up to 20% sometimes.

Ski for Free

How about not even paying for a lift ticket for a day? If you are planning to venture out to any of the Park City Resorts in Utah (The Canyons, Park City and Deer Valley) there is an awesome deal that not many out of state people might know about. All you need to do is fill out a redemption voucher, bring your same-day airline boarding pass and your out of state identification card to the ticket window. It’s that easy. For more information on the restrictions, blackout days and availability, check out http://www.parkcityinfo.com/quickstart/.