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Sun Valley has secured federal approval to replace the Lookout Express and Christmas chairlifts on Bald Mountain, with construction beginning April 2026. The Lookout Express quad will become a six-pack, while Christmas remains a quad. Both upgrades aim to increase uphill capacity and reduce ride times on the Idaho resort's primary mountain.

The introduction of Vail's Epic Pass in 2008 and Alterra's Ikon Pass in 2018 fundamentally transformed North American skiing from a day-ticket model to a season-pass dominated industry. While offering extraordinary value for frequent skiers, these passes have simultaneously made skiing more accessible for some while driving day ticket prices to record highs and creating significant challenges for mountain communities.

This season brings 246 new ski lift installations across North America and Europe - the biggest infrastructure boom in years. From the 65 North American upgrades and 181 European installations, we've picked the 35 coolest projects worth planning trips around. From Deer Valley's unprecedented seven-lift expansion to Switzerland's world-first Tri-Line gondola technology, here are the game-changing upgrades that'll transform your mountain experience.

Angel Fire Resort in New Mexico is set to expand its offerings with two new chairlifts and several summer attractions, enhancing the experience for skiers and visitors year-round.
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Four connected areas, 70 lifts and a World Championship course, yet Saalbach Hinterglemm still runs like a family holiday. Two days on snow and a Worlds Super-G later, here is who it suits, what the Ski ALPIN CARD covers and why Epic Pass holders should pay attention. Big on blues, light on steeps.

Sölden's World Cup opener has been two giant slaloms on the Rettenbach glacier for as long as most fans can remember. From 2027/28 it could be four. Director Jack Falkner wants to add two Super-Gs, backed by a nod from Vincent Kriechmayr, and turn the opening into a full week where the ski world gathers in the Ötztal. FIS and the ÖSV are yet to sign off. This year, it's still just the two GS races on 24 and 25 October.

Hokkaido's lift season now has dates. Sapporo Kokusai opens first on 20 November, Niseko United, Kiroro, Rusutsu and Furano follow on 28 November, and Kamui closes the list on 12 December. Everything hinges on snow, and with a strong El Niño in play, the JMA gives Hokkaido's Japan Sea side a 40% chance of below-normal snowfall. Honshu's Japan Sea coast looks shakier.

Switzerland logged 25.7 million ski days last winter, only 2.3% off the record, in a season that ranked sixth-warmest since records began. Revenue hit CHF 895.8 million, second only to 2024/25. Zermatt led on visits and takings, foreign guests hit a ten-year high, and 12 resorts never opened at all. Snowmaking, late storms and high altitude carried the numbers. Anything sitting at 1,000-1,200 m had a far rougher time.

Aspen Snowmass turns 80 this December, and it's marking the milestone with $3.75 lift tickets on the anniversary itself - the original 1946 price. A discounted long weekend, $19.46 dining specials, lodging deals up to 46 percent off, and a season of anniversary programming round out the celebration across all four mountains.

Doppelmayr closed its 2025/26 business year with revenue up 9.1 percent to 1.3 billion euros, driven by projects including the Big Sky Explorer Gondola, Deer Valley's Mayflower East Village Gondola, and the first TRI-Line installation at Hoch-Ybrig. Headcount grew too, with the ropeway manufacturer now employing almost 4,000 people worldwide.

Hintertux Glacier is retiring its 40-year-old gondola to the Tuxer Fernerhaus. The replacement carries 10 people per cabin instead of four, with seat heating and nearly 40 percent more hourly capacity. Doppelmayr's new line opens at the end of October 2026, right as the glacier's high-altitude terrain becomes accessible again for the new season.

The International Ski and Snowboard Federation is looking at a major shake-up to its title events calendar. From 2032, World Championships could run not just in odd-numbered years but in every non-Olympic winter too, effectively putting a global title event on the calendar almost every season. The FIS Council has approved the concept following a feasibility study, though an accelerated rollout as early as 2028 is also under consideration.