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The holiday season is upon us and, despite the headwinds of Covid-19, thousands of skiers and snowboarders have been aiming toward the mountains for welcome relief.

The baker's dozen of ski and snowboard resorts in the Lake Tahoe region will start opening for the season in late November, and all will have policies in place to combat the spread of Covid-19.

For this COVID-19 winter, various forms of advanced reservations will be required resorts in the West so management can maintain distancing requirements while guaranteeing spots on the hill during the pandemic.

Most skiers who buy the Ikon Pass for the 2020–21 season won't need advance reservations to hit the slopes, according to Alterra Mountain Company, which operates the pass. 

A flurry of new considerations makes the decision a lot more complicated this year. Here’s everything you need to know.

Epic and Ikon mega season passes may get a lot of attention, as they provide the ability to ski at dozens of popular ski resorts across North America, but they’re not the only passes in town. Two other passes worthy of consideration include the Mountain Collective pass and the Indy Pass. In particular, these passes are good for skiers and snowboarders who wish to sample a wide variety of ski areas.

Most Colorado Front Range skiers and riders typically don't think much about hopping in the car and heading west. However, this season is different and will require a bit more prep before the ride up I-70, U.S. 24 or Highway 119.

Why does a daily lift ticket cost more than $200? Chairlifts, snowmaking, grooming, labor, and affordable housing all add up to drive the cost of a daily lift ticket as explained in this video from Wendover Productions.

The first deadline for savings on season pass prices for the 2020-2021 season is coming, and skiers and snowboarders will have to decide whether the low cost or the uncertainty of COVID-19 virus carries more weight.

Snowbird and Snowbasin Resort on Wednesday unveiled their compensation plans for season passholders whose spring skiing and snowboarding was cut short by COVID-19.

The uncertainty of when, where and for how long the COVID-19 outbreak will last has forced much of the country into flexible mode -- and the two behemoths in the multi-resort season pass business are no different.

After opening up sales for 2020-2021 passes in early March, both Epic Pass and Ikon Pass have evolved over the last month as conditions change.

As the mountain resort industry remains at a standstill amid the expanding coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis in North America, Alterra Mountain Company has made adjustments to maintain financial viability.

I don’t usually get confused in public restrooms, but there I was in the men’s room at the Mangy Moose: totally stumped. It was December, Jackson Hole was beginning to see the storms of this winter’s historic snowfall, and the skiing was superb. Town morale should have been peaking. There in the urinal, however, was a bumper sticker to the contrary that read IKONnot Ski. I was immediately bummed. The attitude it reflects is pervasive: that multi-passes, specifically Ikon and Epic, are bad for skiing and bad for ski towns.

The multi-resort season pass gauntlet has been thrown down: The Ikon Pass goes on sale March 5 with a new four-day boutique "session pass" and additional East resorts coming into the fold.

It’s the time of year to ponder passes.  

Colorado's Arapahoe Basin Ski Area joins the Ikon pass for the 2019-20 season. Now Ikon Pass holders have access to snow at 40 global destinations, including six in Colorado.

Both the Epic Pass and Ikon Pass streamline skiing and riding costs during the winter. Now that summer's here, they switch gears to make warm-weather times in the mountains more affordable, too.

It looks to be a busy summer at resorts owned by Denver-based Alterra Mountain Co. as the firm begins to catch up on much-needed improvements both on and off the mountain.

The season pass landscape has erupted with options. Chief among them for access to worldwide areas are Ikon and Epic passes.

New this season, Sugarbush passholders will receive a limited number of “Ski with Me Tickets” allowing their friends and family to receive a 25 percent discount on window rate tickets. The lowest rates are available through May 8.