Alterra Reveals $350 Million In Improvements and New Lifts Coming to Ikon Pass Resorts Next Winter

With the ski season just around the corner, Alterra—the multi-resort company and seller of the Ikon Pass, of course—is detailing which of its properties are getting improvements before the snow starts flying.

For the most part, the $350 million investment is going towards changes that skiers won’t necessarily see, but instead hum along in the background, making the logistical side of resort operations run more smoothly or safely. That includes snowmaking, remote avalanche control systems (RACS), and employee housing.

There are two terrain expansions to make note of first, though.

The sprawling expansion that started as its own ski resort at Deer Valley, Utah, will see a fresh addition this coming winter with the opening of the Hail Peak Express. The previously announced lift, visible from Deer Valley’s new East Village base area, accesses a lower mountain peak and adds seven new runs along with 200 skiable acres.

It comes on the heels of titanic changes to Deer Valley’s boundaries over the past few winters. The resort, which spans 32 lifts and 4,500 acres, is now among the largest on the continent thanks to the initiative dubbed “Expanded Excellence.”

Another project that’s been in the works since at least 2020 at Mont Tremblant, Quebec, now has a planned opening date. Called Timber Summit, the new lift and terrain bring eight new trails and 62 new acres and are slated to open during the 2027-28 season. Mont Tremblant is also opening a dedicated learning area at the base of Versant Soleil next winter.

Three Alterra resorts in California are getting new RACS in a $8.9 million total investment. 

Across Palisades Tahoe, six new Gazex and Gazflex exploders at Palisades, five Wyssen avalanche towers at Alpine, and a new CATEX cable system in The Funnel at Palisades are being installed. 

Together, the neighboring resorts Mammoth Mountain and June Mountain are adding 16 new RACS. 

RACS, as their name implies, are generally stationary installations that mountain operations teams can operate remotely and use to trigger avalanches from afar. They’re designed to make avalanche mitigation more efficient and keep ski patrollers out of harm’s way.

Solitude Mountain Resort, Utah; Deer Valley; and Winter Park Resort, Colorado, are all seeing snowmaking improvements.

The release shared by Alterra also highlighted lodge improvements at some resorts and said that the company has committed to “critical” employee housing renovations at Palisades Tahoe, Mammoth Mountain, Snowshoe, West Virginia; Steamboat, Colorado; and Crystal Mountain, Washington.

Related: A Historic Ski Cabin Fell Into Disrepair. So They Picked It Up and Moved It.