Ski passes 2014/2015: The Big Price Check

In more than 40 of the compared resorts there were no changes in price at all. It was noticeable that mostly Swiss ski resorts like Crans Montana, Aletsch Arena or Engelberg Titlis didn´t feel the need to make their ski pass more expensive. Last year Arosa-Lenzerheide raised their price due to the new ski resort connection which made it one of the resorts that had the biggest difference in price. This year there´s no increase at all. The French resort Serre Chevalier and the US-resort Vail also stick to their previous year charges.

The prices for the day ski pass increased by 2.58 % in an average of the considered ski resorts. Above all the French ski resorts changed the price often for less than an euro. The Austrian Großglockner Resort Kals Matrei raised their price by just 50 cents- the day pass price is now exactly 43 euro. More than 100 ski resorts, including SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental, Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang or the Italian ski resort Val Gardena - Gröden now each take one additional euro compared to last year.

50 ski resorts added 2 euros or more to their 2013/2014 prices. The Italian Schwemmalm Ultental made it to the top list by boosting an increase of 4 euros which makes a difference of 13.33 %. The Canadian Red Mountain Resort enhanced the charges by 9.72 % and 7 CAD. 3 euro and therefore 9.68 % difference to last year´s charges were noted in the German ski resort Brauneck Lenggries. Schwemmalm has a new fun sport attraction: the bag jump. Freeskiers and snowboarders can dare the jump into a free fall and feel the thrill. Red Mountain Resort invested in a new 4 seats chairlift last season. This year the ski resort decided for more upgrades like an extension of the cat skiing area around Mt. Kirkup. Brauneck Lenggries invested in a 6 seats high-speed chairlift, the Milchhäusleexpress, with cover and heated seats to have a guaranteed fast-paced access into the resort.

By taking a closer look at what country had the least increase it is really obvious that Switzerland wins this race. The Swiss ski resorts added an average of 1.40 % and 1,79 CHF on last season´s prices. However, it has to be noted that the Swiss resorts have the highest ski pass costs of all the ski resorts in the Alps anyway. Additionally, the Swiss franc is a strong currency. France on the other side raised their prices by 2.24 % or 0,79 euro and is therefore improved their position this year because last year they increased their prices by 5,39 %. The compared ski resorts in Austria record an increase of 2.59 % and 1,03 euro (average increase 2013/2014: 3,12%) in 2014/2015. The data in Italy are pretty much the same like last year: While they added 3.04 % in the year before, this year´s increase lies at 3.01 % and 1,19 euro. Number one in the Alps is Germany. The ten German ski resorts in the field of price comparison lifted their prices by averaging 4.12 % or 1,30 euro.

Ski resorts in Canada and USA joined the price comparison by Skiresorts-Test.com this year for the first time. The US ski resorts raised their prices by an average of 3.57 % or 2,64 euro. Canada made it in our worldwide ranking to first place because of raising their charges by 4.24 % or 3,30 CAD. In general the price level in North America is higher than in Europe.

We have recorded the price for a day ski pass in recent years. Hence, it is possible to compare the prices of more than 100 resorts from the 2012/2013 season and some even from the past years. The results for the long-term comparison have been revealed. These show that the prices for a day-long ski pass have increased between the 2007/2008 and 2014/2015 season by as much as 2.96 % on average per season. Therefore, the increase of 2.58 % in the current season is slightly under the median.

Especially notable are three Suisse ski resorts: Bürchen, Elm and Anzere are one of the very few ski resorts that still have the same prices for a day ski pass as they had in the 2012/2013 season. Crans Montana comes off well, too, with an average increase of only 0.54 % since 2011/2012. Likewise notable are Adelboden Lenk (0.82 % increase) or Zermatt (1.61 %), all of them being located in Switzerland. Looking at the resorts in Austria, Bergbahnen See skiing area is in the lead with an increase of only 0.68 % since 2012/2013, Hochzeiger Pitztal is just behind with 1.32 %. Moreover, the Italian resort Valchiavenna scores well with an average increase of just 1.88 % since 2011/2012.

On average, the price for one kilometer of trail is at 0.80 euro for this season, which is only slightly higher than last year's 0.78 euro for a kilometer. Still, you will get the most kilometers of pistes for your money in the big skiing areas, where a couple of resorts are often combined to one. For example, a single kilometer of piste is only eight cents in Portes du Soleil on the French-Swiss border, ten in Les 3 Vallées and 15 cents at Ski Arlberg.

Altogether, the price comparison of the 2014/2015 season shows a rather pleasing development: In spite of new investments in the infrastructure of ski lifts and snow machines there was only a slight increase in the ticket price sector. Remarkably, the average increase in ticket prices for the resorts of 2014/2015 is lower than in the year before.