Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) is folding concierge services into all private ski lessons at Vail Mountain and Beaver Creek this winter, the company said on September 29.
The programme, branded Epic Ascent, turns the private lesson into a trip-planning product. One booking covers up to six participants at the same price, and the company says lesson prices will rise no further than normal inflation. That spreads the cost of a private instructor across a family or group, and hands the operator’s own staff the dining, rental and transport bookings that guests would otherwise arrange separately. Ski destinations further afield, from Chile’s Portillo to North Macedonia’s Popova Sapka, are competing for the same winter-sports travellers.
“Traditionally, a private lesson began when an instructor met a guest on the mountain,” said Bill Rock, President of Vail Resorts’ Mountain Division. “With Epic Ascent, the private lesson experience now begins well before arrival and extends far beyond instruction.”
Each booking includes an instructor who tailors terrain and coaching to the group, a dedicated concierge and skip-the-lift-line access. Guests can also choose when and where the lesson starts. The concierge can arrange rental equipment through a private gear-fitting lounge, or have gear delivered to guests’ lodgings at no extra charge, and can build day itineraries around dining and après-ski.
Epic Ascent runs at the two Colorado resorts for the 2026/27 season, with expansion to more resorts planned for 2027/28.
The company is also extending its connected Ski & Ride School in the My Epic app from four resorts to 14. The feature gives group-lesson guests digital check-in, real-time lesson updates and photos, skill badges and lesson summaries that follow them between resorts. First launched at four Colorado resorts, it will run this winter at Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Park City, Crested Butte, Heavenly, Hunter Mountain, Kirkwood, Mount Snow, Northstar, Okemo, Stevens Pass and Stowe.
Epic Pass prices rise after October 7. Pass holders receive 20% off group lessons, rentals, dining and lodging, while skiers aged 13 to 30 can save 20% on an Epic Pass or Epic Local Pass. An Epic 4-Day Pass starts at $223 for adults and $116 for children.
Vail Resorts is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado. It operates 37 ski resorts across North America, including Vail Mountain, Breckenridge, Park City Mountain and Whistler Blackcomb, along with Andermatt-Sedrun and Crans-Montana in Switzerland and Perisher, Hotham and Falls Creek in Australia, all sold through its Epic Pass. It also runs the RockResorts hotel brand, the Grand Teton Lodge Company and more than 250 retail and rental outlets.