How to Save on a Telluride Ski Trip
Telluride sits at the end of a box canyon in the San Juan Mountains, and getting there takes some effort. People who make the trip tend to assume the hard part is over once they arrive. In my experience the money is decided long before that, usually on the day someone sits down to book.
I've sent more than 25,000 guests to Telluride over the years, and the ones who pay the least almost always do the same few things.
Pick the right week
This winter the mountain is scheduled to open November 26 and close April 4. Telluride sets its lift ticket rates by the calendar, and the gap from one stretch to the next is wide. Early season, from opening day through December 17, is the cheapest time of the year to ski: a 2-day adult ticket starts at $293, against $488 for the same ticket in regular season. That's value season, which at most resorts runs from Thanksgiving until Christmas week. An early trip is a small bet on the snow.
The sweet spot is January. From January 4 to 15 and again from January 19 to February 12, Telluride is in regular season: availability is good, rates are reasonable and the lift lines are short. The expensive stretches are the holidays (December 26 to January 3, Martin Luther King weekend and Presidents' Day week) and peak season, March 6 to 21, when spring break fills the canyon.
Never buy at the window
A walk-up adult day in regular season costs $285 at the ticket window. Bought online, the same day is $257. Book through us and you save 15% off the window rate automatically, and the code TELSAVE5 takes off another 5% at checkout, for 20% in all during Early, Regular and Peak seasons. Holiday dates save 10%.
Two rules are worth knowing. Lift tickets have to be bought at least four days before your first ski day, and the rate is set by that first day, so the earlier you lock it in, the better. A multi-day ticket is good for that many days within a nine-day window, so you can take a rest day, or a snowmobile day, and still use every day you paid for.
Do the math on an Epic Day Pass
Telluride has been an Epic partner resort since the 2018/19 season, and for a trip of four days or more this is often the best buy in the canyon. An Epic 4, 5, 6 or 7-Day Pass with All Resort Access includes Telluride, and this season a 4-day adult pass costs less than a 2-day regular season Telluride ticket. Days you don't use here work at other Epic resorts, and TELSAVE5 applies to these passes too.
The Epic Day Pass is the smart choice for seniors in particular. Telluride no longer has a senior rate, so skiers 65 and over pay adult rates, while skiers 80 and older ski free. Kids 5 and under ski free too, and children 6 to 12 get child rates.
Leave the car behind
Telluride is one of the few ski towns where you truly don't need one. The gondola between the historic town and Mountain Village is free, and the Galloping Goose bus loops through town every ten minutes during the day. Stay anywhere near either one and you can walk to dinner, ride up to the lifts and never look for a parking spot.
Book it all together
The biggest saving is the simplest: put the whole trip in one place. We bundle lift tickets with lodging, Equipment Rentals, Ski & Snowboard School and airport shuttles, and every package comes with our Low Price Promise. We're Telluride's largest booking partner, we know which weeks are quiet and which condos sit a short walk from the gondola, and we'll do the planning for you.
John Steed is the managing partner of Ski Trip Advisors and has been planning ski vacations in the West for over 30 years.
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