Verbier Summer News- Read the summer news to plan your holiday to Verbier!

The Verbier Bike Park and its trails of VTT and Downhill. Photographer: KifCat. Verbier Promotion.

Verbier Summer News: Verbier is starting its summer season with lots of news for making your holiday unforgettable.

The Verbier Infinite Pass or VIP Pass comes with any lodging where you pay the tourist tax at Verbier or Val de Bagnes, and allows you access throughout the resort and surrounding areas. This pass is valid from 4th June till 28th October 2018.


What is new for Summer 2018:

  • Free mountain lifts (pedestrian pass) until the top of Mont-Fort, of 3,330 meters.
  • 50% off bike lift pass for bikers
  • 50% off the pitch and putt golf course and 30% off the course at Les Esserts (par 69)
  • 50% off the aerial walkway
  • 1 free admission to one of the secret concerts at the Verbier Festival
  • Free Indoor swimming pool in Mondzeu.
Verbier is one of the well known destinations for biking, with 7 trails of different difficulty. Photo by Céline Ribordy - Verbier Promotion.
Verbier is one of the well known destinations for biking, with 7 trails of different difficulty. Photo by Céline Ribordy – Verbier Promotion.

What is new in terms of lodging and restaurants.

Vie Montagne: located in the centre of the resort, it has a gourmet restaurant and also a new micro-brewery. The site also offers a magnificent view of the mountains. For groups of up to 20 people.

More information

For more information on summer in Verbier (more actualised to summer 2021), check this post! 

Continue reading “Verbier Summer News- Read the summer news to plan your holiday to Verbier!”

Own your own cat-skiing operation. Silverton Powdercats is for sale for USD 159,000

Silverton Powdercats is out for sale! Photo Silverton Powdercats

Have you ever fancied of owning a cat-skiing operation? Well, the idea is not that difficult if you can get yourself with USD 159,000. Silverton Powdercats, a guiding business that operates in the backcountry of the San Juan Mountains in Southwest Colorado, near Silverton, Telluride and Durango is up for sale for that amount.



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Cat skiing in Silverton opens the terrain to all advanced and expert skiers with backcountry equipment and guides. Own a snowcat operation in Silverton.
Cat skiing in Silverton opens the terrain to all advanced and expert skiers with backcountry equipment and guides.

 Note that Silverton Mountain is NOT for sale, only Silverton Powdercats that is one of the snowcat operations in the area. There are other snowcat operations that are not on sale and will keep on operating as usual.  

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ALTERRA MOUNTAIN COMPANY TO ACQUIRE SOLITUDE MOUNTAIN RESORT IN UTAH

Solitude Mountain Resort - Photo by Solitude Mountain Resort. Alterra Mountain Company to acquire Solitude Mountain Resort in Utah.

Alterra Mountain Company is to acquire Solitude Mountain Resort in Utah.  Alterra Mountain Company announced today that it has entered into an agreement to purchase Solitude Mountain Resort in Utah, which would bring the company’s total to 13 year-round mountain destinations throughout North America, including the world’s largest heli-skiing operation.



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“With its close relationship with Deer Valley Resort, Solitude Mountain Resort is a natural fit for Alterra Mountain Company, and a tremendous addition to our family of destinations. We are especially excited to expand our reach within Utah and offer another ski and snowboard experience in a state known for its exceptional snow and mountain culture,” said Rusty Gregory, Chief Executive Officer, Alterra Mountain Company.

Solitude Mountain Resort is the last mountain to be acquired by Alterra Mountain Company. They will be included within the IKON Pass.
Solitude Mountain Resort is the last mountain to be acquired by Alterra Mountain Company. They will be included within the IKON Pass.

Solitude Mountain Resort is located just 34 miles from the Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) and less than an hour from Deer Valley Resort, in the renowned Big Cottonwood Canyon. The mountain offers skiers and riders 77 runs, three bowls, and a vertical drop of 2,030 feet (619 meters) across 1,200 acres, plus some of the most impressive off-piste terrain in the country. The quaint base village offers ski-in/ski-out accommodations along with year-round activities for guests.

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Ski Portillo is opening on June 23rd with more than five feet of snow.

Skiers Looking Down at Hotel Portillo. Frank Shine 2

Ski Portillo is opening on June 23rd having received 16 inches of fresh snow over the weekend (nearly five feet to the date).

The recent storm that covered Portillo’s iconic ski runs is stirring anticipation and excitement amongst skiers and boarders across North America. An all-inclusive Ski Portillo vacation is something special, nothing to compare to other ski resorts experiences. It is like you are going to a private ski mountain, and is a perfect summer getaway for guests of the Northern Hemisphere to enjoy with family and/or friends.

Ski Portillo. Photo by Adam Clark. Skiing as if you were in your own private ski resort.
Ski Portillo. Photo by Adam Clark. Skiing as if you were in your own private ski resort. Ski Portillo is opening on June 23rd.

Continue reading “Ski Portillo is opening on June 23rd with more than five feet of snow.”

Saas-Fee awesome crowfunding campaign for a season pass of CHF 255 gets a green light for the third year in the row.

Saas-Fee is launching for the third time in the row the MountainCARD, a crowfunding campaign to get a season pass for CHF 255.

If you are planning to go skiing to Switzerland, think ahead and watch this promotion of Saas-Fee. With only CHF 255 you might be lucky of getting a season pass for Saas-Fee if 66,666 other winter fans chip in, thanks to the latest crowfunding campaign, an effort now in its third year.



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The website for the WinterCARD is now up and running at www.make-it-happen-again.ch . The deal is this: if by 31st October 2018 ther are 66,666 winter enthusiasts registering their interest for the pass for Saas-Fee, Saas-Grund, Saas-Almagell and Saas-Balen, then these people will obtain their ski pass for CHF 255.

Saas-Fee is one of the prettiest ski towns in the Valais region. Get advantage of the crowdfunding campaign and get your WinterCARD for CHF 255.
Saas-Fee is one of the prettiest ski towns in the Valais region. Get advantage of the crowdfunding campaign and get your WinterCARD for CHF 255.

You will only be obliged to pay if the goal of the WinterCARD is achieved. You can check how many people have registered checking at www.make-it-happen-again.ch with its live counter. By 31st October, all participants will be contacted via email if they are owners of the WinterCARD 2018-19 that will be valid from 1st November 2018 til 28th April 2019.

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Trentino offers over 8,000 km of biking trails and eight parks for downhill biking

San Martino di Castrozza - Passo Rolle - Tognola - San Martino Bike Arena Fototeca Trentino Sviluppo S.p.A. - FOTO DI Roberto Bragotto. San Martino di Castrozza - Passo Rolle - Tognola - San Martino Bike Arena Fototeca Trentino Sviluppo S.p.A. - FOTO DI Roberto Bragotto. Trentino offers 8,000 kilometres of biking trails and eight downhill bike parks.

Trentino has over 8,000 km of biking trials and eight bike parks for downhill biking. If you are thinking where to have your new biking adventure, don’t look somewhere else; Trentino is the place to be. Keep on reading to see why I state this.

There are thousands of mapped and marked kilometres of tracks for bikers of all levels, including families, experts and even 8 adrenaline active bike parks. From cross-country, endure and downhill, the new craze in Trentino is to explore the mountains on two wheels.

Tonadico - Dolomiti Pale di San Martino - Rifugio Pradidali. Fototeca Trentino Sviluppo S.p.A. - FOTO DI Tommaso Forin. Trentino offers over 8,000 kilometres of biking trails and 8 downhill bike parks.
Tonadico – Dolomiti Pale di San Martino – Rifugio Pradidali. Fototeca Trentino Sviluppo S.p.A. – FOTO DI Tommaso Forin. Trentino offers over 8,000 kilometres of biking trails and 8 downhill bike parks.

All the area is ready to receive the bike aficionados, with rentals and service centers, to e-bikes, recharging stations, downhill routes served by lifts, special dedicated bike accommodations, MTB guides and shuttle buses for transfers or to return to base with an amazing food and wine experience to provide the best bike holiday. The most demanding bikers in the world choose Trentino for its spectacular scenery, bike tracks and the top-notch services.



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There are defined different areas in Trentino where to choose for a cycling holiday.

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Colorado resorts’ downhill ski visits down again in 2017-18

Loveland Ski Area - Powder Alliance. Several new resorts join the Powder Alliance for 2018-19 ski season

As per the Denver Business Journal, visits to Colorado resorts’ downhill ski visits are down again in 2017-18, but thanks to the late snowfalls, the numbers were not as bad as feared.

Vail, the renown resorts that gave name to the company that now manages the Epic Pass.
Vail, the renown resorts that gave name to the company that now manages the Epic Pass. Colorado resorts’ downhill ski visits down again in 2017-18.

Colorado Ski Country resorts have received 7.1 million visits to their 24 member resorts, a 2 % drop from the 2016-17 ski season. This was announced on Thuresday at CSCUSA’s annual meeting.



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Vail Resorts Inc (NYSE:MTN)- the operator of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone are not part of CSCUSA and have not announced the figures for its resorts, but said before that overall resorts in North America fell 1.9 % from the previous season.

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Jungfrau V-bahn railway project gets green light overcoming opposition

Jungfrau v-bahn railway project gets green light.

The controversial Jungfrau V-bahn railway project gets green light overcoming opposition.

The Federal Office of Transport has approved a CHF400 million ($405 million) mountain railway project that will carry tourists faster up to the Jungfraujoch in the Bernese Alps. The project has been modified to appease local opponents who had raised environmental and aesthetic concerns.

At the heart of the controversial plan is a V-shaped cable car route that would allow more tourists to swiftly reach the Eiger Glacier station from where they can take the mountain railways to the Jungfraujoch “Top of Europe” tourist station.

Photomontage of the possible new situation in the ground in Grindelwald. Left the new Männlichenbahn, right the Eiger Express and the parking garage. Both planned new buildings are marketed under the name V project
Photomontage of the possible new situation in the ground in Grindelwald. Left the new Männlichenbahn, right the Eiger Express and the parking garage. Both planned new buildings are marketed under the name V project.

Local authorities and residents of the Bernese Alps feared the “Eiger express” line, which would start from the village of Grindelwald, would disfigure the landscape. Seventeen objections were made but advocates gave up the fight in February accepting in exchange a donation for a good cause.

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Vail Resorts to acquire Crested Butte Mountain Resort, Okemo Mountain Resort, and Mount Sunapee Resort , and also Stevens Pass Resort in a separate transaction.

Crested Butte is one of the last additions to the EPIC Pass. Photo: Crested Butte Mountain Resort.

• Vail Resorts will acquire Triple Peaks, LLC, the parent company of Okemo Mountain Resort in Vermont, Mount Sunapee Resort in New Hampshire, and Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado.
• In a separate transaction, Vail Resorts will acquire Stevens Pass Resort in Washington State.
• Upon closing, Epic Pass and Whistler Blackcomb Edge Card products will now include additional access to all four resorts for the 2018-19 winter season, providing even more variety and options in New England, Colorado, and the Pacific Northwest.
• Vail Resorts plans to invest $35 million in total capital across the four resorts over the next two years.

Crested Butte viewed from town- Photo b JC Leacock - Crested Butte Mountain Resort.
Crested Butte Mountain Resort viewed from town- Photo b JC Leacock – Crested Butte Mountain Resort, now recently purchased by Vail Resorts.

As per a new press release by Vail Resorts, as of today, June 4, 2018,  Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN)  has entered into an agreement to purchase Triple Peaks, LLC, the parent company of Okemo Mountain Resort in Vermont, Mount Sunapee Resort in New Hampshire, and Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado. The Company will purchase Triple Peaks, LLC from the Mueller family for a purchase price of $82 million, subject to certain adjustments. At closing, Triple Peaks will pay $155 million to pay off the leases that all three resorts have with Ski Resort Holdings, LLC, an affiliate of Oz Real Estate, with funds provided by Vail Resorts.

Continue reading “Vail Resorts to acquire Crested Butte Mountain Resort, Okemo Mountain Resort, and Mount Sunapee Resort , and also Stevens Pass Resort in a separate transaction.”

Aspen officials, developers agree on a new lift alignment at base of Ajax- Lift 1 A Aspen Mountain.

Lift 1A- Aspen Mountain

Article submitted on Aspen Times. – The proverbial bullwheel for a new chairlift at the base of Aspen Mountain’s west side, where Lift 1A is now, has been set in motion, now that developers and city planners have the go ahead to bring the alignment down to Dean Street — or close to it.


Aspen City Council on Tuesday gave direction to city staff, Aspen Skiing Co. and the developers of two lodge properties on the Lift 1A side of the mountain to move forward with their plans to reinvigorate the western portal of the ski area.

Lift One Lodge developers Michael and Aaron Brown at the site of the historic Lift One bulwheel structure. Aspen Mountain. Photo: Aspen Times.
Lift One Lodge developers Michael and Aaron Brown at the site of the historic Lift One bulwheel structure. Aspen Mountain. Photo: Aspen Times.

While a “telemix” — a combination of a chairlift and gondola — was recommended to start just in front of the 1940s-era Lift One bullwheel structure, council members said they were OK if the historic resource was moved in order to get the new platform closer to Dean Street, thus giving skiers easier access to the mountain.

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