Michigan Snowboard/Ski Season Passes – Detroit Area

If you ski or ride in Michigan, I feel sorry for you. But hey, I ride in Michigan, too.  The only thing better than getting out on the slopes is getting a good deal to get out on the slopes, and if you’re planning on riding 20-30 days or more, you should probably consider a season pass especially if you’re doing the bulk of your skiing/riding at a single resort.

If you want to spread that wealth over many resorts, keep your eye out for the “White Gold” card. No official announcement yet but if they make one this year it’s exactly what you’re looking for and rock-bottom pricing.

For the Metro-Detroit area, you’ve got a few options nearby.  I’ll cover the other areas of the state (west side, northern LP, and UP) in upcoming posts.

Pine Knob / Mount Holly

Mount Holly announces that its prices remain unchanged from the 2009-2010 season, so Pine Knob should be more of the same.  That means pre-season pricing of $444 gets you unlimited access to one or the other ($550 during the season).  You can upgrade for $150 and use your pass at both places.

I’ve always thought this was kind of a rip-off.  Since you can only ever use the pass at one resort at a time it’s not like you can use it more. They shouldn’t charge extra to use the pass at both places.

You need 15-20 days to break even at a single, or 20-25 days on the combo pass.  Do the math, it could be worth it if you ride a lot and need to ride both places (but I find the parks at Holly aren’t fun).  Be honest, even if you ride both places you’ll probably ride one of them most of the time. Unless you’re going to put in more than 5 days at the other, you’re better off buying the single pass and paying for daily lift tickets at the other place.

Mount Brighton

Mount Brighton sets up a better park that Pine Knob or Mount Holly and you can get your season pass for $435 early bird, $505 full price.

The downside is that depending on where you’re coming from, you might have to brave the traffic on I-696 Westbound to get there during rush hour. It’s not worth it.  If you live in the area or West of Brighton though, it’s a better option than PK, Holly or Alpine Valley.

Alpine Valley

For $500 you can get a season pass to Alpine Valley, which the last few years has been the bastard child of Southeast Michigan ski areas.  It’s hard to get to (located off of M-59 in White Lake) and they didn’t participate in the Shell Ski Free deals the last few years.  I’ve heard they’ve really amped up the park there, so I’ll have to check it out sometime this winter, but honestly the thought of paying $35 to ride some crappy Michigan park when I could be paying $17 to ride one at Pine Knob, is kinda meh.