Taos ski price hike prompts backlash

In response, resort releases cheaper pass for children

TAOS — Taos Ski Valley’s recent announcement about new season passes at higher prices was met with backlash from locals.

This season’s Unlimited Pass — with no blackout days on weekends or holidays — costs skiers and riders $1,600 compared to an average of around $1,300 for the same pass in years past. This season’s version includes an Ikon Pass, which offers access to 44 total destinations worldwide.

Perhaps the biggest reason for disappointment was the lack of what enthusiasts consider reasonably priced passes for children. Many locals and previous pass-holders had said they were going to have to forgo the season at Taos Ski Valley because of the costs for kids.

After facing pushback, including an outcry on social media, Taos Ski Valley acknowledged it had made an oversight when it came to kids’ passes.

“We blew it,” CEO David Norden said in an interview. “We agree that you’ve got to get these kids out on the mountain.”

The resort responded with the $625 Youth Everyday Pass, which allows young skiers and riders unlimited access. “We hope that people see that as an appropriate approach,” Norden said.

Controversy over price hikes started immediately after Taos Ski Valley announced its new passes.

Rory Yurkovich, a Taos resident and dentist practicing in Peñasco, said even though he could afford a pass, he won’t purchase one this season. “I’m not going to because I just don’t think it’s fair. Out of principle, I don’t want to spend $1,600 on a pass so I can ski two days a week,” he said.

He was concerned in part that the resort was trying to “price out the locals,” Yurkovich added.

“I was their biggest proponent last year,” he said. “I’m not naive that

they had to keep it at that price point.”

But he said the rise seemed unreasonable. “It kind of felt less like it was intended to cover costs and more to intentionally prohibit locals from going to the mountain on weekends.”

Tom Duke, a local teacher, said through the years, he has introduced “at least 100 kids to the sport of skiing — most from low-income families. Now that they are turned on to the sport, they have to come up with that kind of money.”

Duke also noted the midweek passes don’t work for many families who work and have kids in school Monday through Friday. He also worried that Taos Ski Valley might be “using COVID in a cynical way to set a new high pricing standard.”

Norden said as much as ski resort officials understand its prices are high, the decision was made to strategically limit the number of visitors on particularly busy days. Resorts are only allowed to operate at 25 percent of their lift capacity because of COVID-19.

Norden said Taos Ski Valley has no intention of trying to stop locals and pass-holders from skiing on weekends, but the resort is trying to reduce crowding.

“Everybody knows how busy it is on weekends and during holiday periods,” Norden said. “You’ve got crowds in the base areas and lift lines, and that could potentially be a superspreader event.”

Taos Ski Valley hopes to make a fair price for all user groups and is “trying to do it so it’s equitable among all,” Norden said.

“The pricing that you see is trying to move people to the less busy days, and reduce the visitation on those peak days, like weekends and holidays. We do want pass-holders, we do want locals, but it’s kind of unfortunate that we have to reduce our visitation,” he added.

One thing for sure is that this ski season will be different than any other.

“It will be a quieter experience,” Norden said. “The goal is really to keep the crowding and congestion down.”

This story first appeared in The Taos News, a sister publication of the Santa Fe New Mexican.