SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., July 14, 2026—Vail Resorts believes the company’s future growth will come by offering an improved guest experience rather than acquiring more ski areas. As such, it plans to invest in changes to equipment rental, private lessons, and dining at its destination resorts, as well as more digital functionality in its mobile app—an effort dubbed as “Epic Experience.” 

“For years, Vail Resorts focused on building the Epic Pass model and expanding its resort network,” said Vail Resorts CEO Katz. “That strategy helped establish the company’s position today, but the Pass and acquisitions were not the end goal. The next chapter of growth for Vail Resorts is about delivering a guest experience that undeniably leads the ski industry and is best in class in the travel sector. Epic Experience is about using the strength of our integrated model and leveraging our scale and technology to make every part of the mountain journey more seamless, personalized and memorable.”

More details were promised as the winter season draws closer. Most of the changes will only roll out at some of the company’s major destination resorts, and some are geared toward higher-end guests.

For example, the company will upgrade all private lessons this winter at Colorado’s Vail Mountain and Beaver Creek to “an elevated private lesson experience offering concierge services, white-glove gear rental and enhanced customer support.” As part of the “Epic Ascent” product, a dedicated concierge will coordinate trip details beyond the lesson, including dining reservations and transportation coordination. The offering will expand across more Vail Resorts mountain destinations in the 2027-28 season.

Components of the My Epic Gear subscription-based rental program will be offered at 12 participating resorts—presumably those that offer My Epic Gear already—starting in 2026-27. Guests who book high-performance demo rentals at these resorts will be able to select their preferred ski, snowboard, boot, and binding models online ahead of their arrival without paying the My Epic Gear membership fee.

Vail Resorts also plans to invest in higher-quality ingredients for and refine the presentation of ski area standards like burgers, chili, pizza, fries, hot dogs, chicken fingers, and mac and cheese across 15 unspecified destination resorts. The company promised that these improvements “will not come with higher prices, beyond normal inflation.” 

Further investments in digital technology are at the heart of many of these changes, including guest engagement, another tenet in the plans to improve the guest experience. Vail Resorts said its “ambition is to make every interaction and communication feel easier, more personal and more supportive—so guests feel confident, cared for and inspired to return.” Specifically, guests will now be able to purchase season passes and lift tickets, and share Epic Friend Tickets with friends and family, via the My Epic app. The introduction of Apple Pay and Google Pay are also planned guest engagement enhancements.

Other technology changes include expanding direct-to-lesson digital check-in for group lessons from four to 14 resorts. For dining, the company is looking to add new technology and processes to reduce wait times and increase seating capacity.