Ready for ski season? Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass adds top slopes in Europe

Vail Resort’s Epic Pass just got a whole lot better -- especially if skiing or snowboarding in the Alps is on your bucket list. Starting this winter season, skiers and snowboarders will be able to use their passes in France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland.

The 2016-17 Epic Pass costs $829 for adults and $429 for kids 12 and under.

It already offers unrestricted access to 13 ski areas, including Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood resorts in the Lake Tahoe area; and resorts in Colorado (Vail and Beaver Creek among them), Utah and Australia.

It’s the only multi-resort pass to offer access to European resorts, according to a Vail Resorts statement.

In France, the pass will be good at the country’s largest ski areas: Les 3 Vallees, Paradiski and Tignes-Val d’Isere. The trio offers access to five glaciers, 391 ski lifts and more than 800 miles of marked runs for all ability levels within a 30-mile radius.

The three ski areas combine high-altitude skiing — which means quality snow from November to May — with stunning views of Mont Blanc and a 360-degree panorama of the French, Swiss and Italian Alps.

To the south in Italy, the pass is good at Skirama Dolomiti Adamello Brenta, home to 150 lifts and 236 miles of ski slopes that make up acclaimed resorts such as Madonna di Campiglio and Pinzolo in Val Rendena; Folgarida-Marilleva, Peio and Tonale in Val di Sole; Ponte di Legno, Andalo-Fai della Paganella, Monte Bondone and Folgaria-Lavarone.

In the Swiss Alps, Verbier, part of the 4 Vallees ski area, is the largest resort in the Switzerland. It is considered one of the premier “off piste” resorts in the world, and is home to a number of professional free-ride competitions.

In Austria, the mountain range between Tyrol and Vorarlberg is home to Arlberg, widely considered the cradle of modern skiing. Come December, thanks to the opening of four new cable cars, it will become Austria’s largest linked ski area.

Info: Epic Pass, (970) 754-0005

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