Vail Resorts executives have repeatedly said they want to “differentiate” the guest experience at the mountains they own or operate, including Park City Mountain.
“As we look ahead, we built an integrated network and platform that positions us to deliver a consistent, differentiated guest experience, strengthen loyalty and drive long-term growth,” CEO Rob Katz said at the conclusion of June’s shareholder earnings call. According to Katz, “differentiated” means more premium, luxury offerings.
Monday, the company announced the steps it’s taking to deliver an “Epic Experience,” with echoes of the “Deer Valley Difference" and that resort’s Expanded Excellence initiative.
Katz told The Salt Lake Tribune it was indeed a shot across the ridgeline at Deer Valley Resort, which responded that service isn’t something Deer Valley “does”: “It’s the essence of the business itself.”
In Katz’s eyes, what separates Vail from its main competitor and Deer Valley’s owner Alterra Mountain Company is vertical and horizontal integration.
Vail owns or operates more resorts on its Epic Pass than Alterra does on the Ikon Pass. Vail has rolled out the My Epic Gear rental service at 12 of its mountains, where it runs hotel, dining and shuttle services as well.
Park City billionaire Matthew Prince has called on Vail to go “asset-light” and sell off its mountains. As KPCW first reported, Prince wants to buy Park City Mountain.
Vail has instead cut staff, mostly office jobs, over the last two years.
The company’s Monday news release touts investments in better food and guest services, including resort-specific dishes at places like Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Whistler-Blackcomb.
Vail Mountain and Beaver Creek are getting an “elevated private lesson experience” called Epic Ascent this winter, which the company says will come to more resorts in 2027.
Epic Ascent guests will get their own concierge to coordinate dining, transportation and gear rental during their trip.
Vail’s stock price rose under Katz’s first tenure as CEO, when he introduced the Epic Pass and bought numerous North American resort areas. But since peaking around $370 a share in 2021, it’s fallen to less than half of that.
Katz returned as chief executive in 2025. Alterra is privately owned, not publicly traded.
Vail Resorts’ EpicPromise foundation and Deer Valley Resort are financial supporters of KPCW.
