Epic Experience: Vail Resorts Puts Guest Experience at the Center of New Growth Plan
- Begins multi-year transformation of the end-to-end guest journey, setting a new standard for the modern ski experience across its network of premier mountain destinations
- Raises the bar on mountain food with significant investment to elevate its most popular dishes
- Launches Epic Ascent for an enhanced private lesson experience with concierge services, white-glove gear rental and high-touch customer support
BROOMFIELD, Colo., July 14, 2026 /CNW/ -- Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz today announced a new era for the company defined by delivering the best and most differentiated guest experience in skiing and riding. Anchored to the belief that future growth will come by offering an exceptional experience that drives loyalty and visitation, the Epic Experience vision spans a multi-year roadmap that comes with a series of immediate investments in food, lessons, gear, guest engagement and talent. Most notably, new next season, Vail Resorts will raise the bar on mountain food with a significant investment to elevate its most popular dishes, and introduce Epic Ascent to enhance private lessons with concierge services.
"For years, Vail Resorts focused on building the Epic Pass model and expanding its resort network," said 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."
As the world's largest and only fully integrated ski resort company, Vail Resorts has consistently led the industry in innovation and is uniquely positioned to influence every part of the end-to-end guest journey across its network of premier mountain destinations.
"Exceptional experience is not one moment – it is the standard we want guests to feel across their entire journey. From the food, lessons and gear that shape a day on the mountain to how we communicate with and support our guests, we are focused on removing friction, elevating the experience and creating more moments that inspire guests to return."
Throughout its transformation of the guest experience, Vail Resorts will continue to prioritize delivering an incredible experience on snow. The company will maintain its industry-leading investments in lift infrastructure to help guests get up and around the mountain faster, while taking an aggressive approach to snowmaking strategy and technology to create the best possible early-season and in-season conditions for guests.
Beyond the snow experience, Vail Resorts will focus on the five experience pillars outlined below to drive future growth.
Reimagining Rentals with My Epic Gear
Vail Resorts is continuing its previously announced plans to integrate the best features from My Epic Gear® into traditional gear rentals, as part of a multi-year effort to transform the gear experience for all skiers and riders.
Beginning this season, guests who book high-performance Demo rentals at the company's rental outlets across 12 participating resorts will receive the curated My Epic Gear experience without the membership fee. That includes the ability to select their preferred ski or snowboard model, and BOA® ski boots or Step On® bindings, online, ahead of their arrival.
Ahead of the 2027/28 winter season, Vail Resorts' rental outlets will offer expanded and upgraded gear and service options, which will include the ability for anyone to choose a specific gear model – online or in app. Returning guests will have the ability to get their skis or snowboards fully teched, tuned and ready for pickup or delivery, without going through an in-store fitting process. Other future offerings include slopeside valet and digital enhancements for easier browsing and booking.
Elevating Lessons into Personalized Mountain Experiences
Vail Resorts is redesigning its private lesson experiences to be more personalized and seamless for every guest. This winter at Vail Mountain and Beaver Creek, the company will upgrade all private lessons to Epic Ascent, an elevated private lesson experience offering concierge services, white-glove gear rental and enhanced customer support.
Private-lesson guests will get high-touch customer support and a dedicated concierge to coordinate every detail of their overall trip, like dining reservations, transportation coordination and white-glove gear rental. Epic Ascent will expand across more Vail Resorts mountain destinations in the 2027/28 season. More information on Epic Ascent will be shared ahead of the upcoming season.
In parallel, Vail Resorts is further simplifying the pathway to progression with connected ski and ride school in the My Epic app by expanding from four to 14 resorts. A first-of-its-kind digitized offering, ski and ride school in the My Epic app offers guests in group lessons a seamless arrival with direct-to-lesson digital check-in. It helps parents stay connected with real-time updates and photos during child lessons, and monitor progression with skills tracking that includes badges for milestones achieved.
Setting a Higher Standard for Guest Engagement
Vail Resorts is committed to delivering a guest service experience that feels more thoughtful, responsive and connected at every step of the journey. The company's 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. This commitment reflects the belief that an exceptional experience is not a single moment, but a consistent standard that shapes the entire trip.
Supporting this focus on guest engagement are continued investments in digital technology to remove the small hassles that get in the way of enjoying the magic of the mountains. Starting this fall, guests will be able to purchase Passes and lift tickets, as well as share Epic Friend Tickets with friends and family, directly in the My Epic app. Guests can also expect the introduction of Apple Pay and Google Pay, while continuing to enjoy favorite features like Mobile Pass, lift line wait times, Find My Friends and personalized stats.
Ahead of the 2027/28 season, guests will be able to purchase lessons and rentals directly in the My Epic app. Future app enhancements will leverage modern AI to support intuitive trip planning and surface intelligent personalized recommendations and itineraries – from parking and lessons to lunch, après and more.
Raising the Bar on Mountain Food
Skiing and snowboarding are about the full on-mountain experience, and food is a critical part of a memorable day on the slopes. As Vail Resorts embarks on a journey to elevate dining on the mountains, the company is making its most popular menu items better across 15 destination resorts. Ski-day classics like chili, burgers, pizza, fries, hot dogs, chicken fingers, and mac and cheese – which make up the majority of resort food sales – are all getting elevated with a significant investment in higher-quality ingredients and refined presentation. For instance, guests across 15 destination resorts can enjoy a butcher's blend burger with melted New School American Cheese and pecan-smoked bacon on a griddled brioche bun, served with crispy waffle fries and a signature comeback sauce.
Next season, skiers and riders will continue to see chef-driven dishes that bring fresh energy and flavor to each mountain experience. Resorts like Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Whistler Blackcomb will continue to focus on the development of unique signature dishes that reflect the energy, culture and character of each resort.
More information will be shared in the coming months. The food improvements next season will not come with higher prices, beyond normal inflation. In addition to elevated food, the company will be looking to add new technology and processes to reduce wait times and increase seating capacity.
Investing in Top Talent to Drive Excellent Guest Service
Vail Resorts is committed to making every interaction easier and more personal by elevating its ability to anticipate and exceed guests' expectations. Delivering an exceptional guest experience starts with excellent people, who will always be the foundation of the company.
Following a $175 million investment in wages and benefits, the company has continued to build a world-class frontline team through a disciplined, technology-enabled approach to recruiting, staffing and scheduling. These investments have helped the company remain fully staffed each season, become more selective in hiring for guest-service orientation, increase seasonal employee return rates and give employees more hours while reducing overall hiring and housing pressure. This is collectively translating to better service, with frontline teams serving as a key driver of record guest satisfaction scores last season.
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About Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN)
Vail Resorts is a network of the best destination and close-to-home ski resorts in the world including Vail Mountain, Breckenridge, Park City Mountain, Whistler Blackcomb, Stowe, and 32 additional resorts across North America; Andermatt-Sedrun and Crans-Montana Mountain Resort in Switzerland; and Perisher, Hotham, and Falls Creek in Australia – all available on the company's industry-changing Epic Pass. We are passionate about providing an Experience of a Lifetime to our team members and guests, and our EpicPromise is to reach a zero net operating footprint by 2030, support our employees and communities, and broaden engagement in our sport. Our company owns and/or manages a collection of elegant hotels under the RockResorts brand, a portfolio of vacation rentals, condominiums and branded hotels located in close proximity to our mountain destinations, as well as the Grand Teton Lodge Company in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Vail Resorts Retail operates more than 250 retail and rental locations across North America. Learn more about our company at www.VailResorts.com, or discover our resorts and Pass options at www.EpicPass.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements discussed in this press release, other than statements of historical information, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements regarding the Company's expectations and assumptions related to future performance; guest experience; investments in and enhancements to food, lessons, gear, guest engagement, people, products, services, and other offerings; opportunities; key initiatives; and strategies. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. All forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks related to our ability to execute on our key initiatives and strategies; risks related to a prolonged weakness in general economic conditions, including adverse effects on the overall travel and leisure related industries and our business and results of operations; the willingness or ability of our guests to travel due to terrorism, the uncertainty of military conflicts or public health emergencies, and the cost and availability of travel options and changing consumer preferences, discretionary spending habits; risks related to travel and airline disruptions, and other adverse impacts on the ability of our guests to travel; our ability to acquire, develop and implement relevant technology offerings for customers and partners; the seasonality of our business combined with adverse events that may occur during our peak operating periods; competition in our mountain and lodging businesses or with other recreational and leisure activities; risks related to resource efficiency transformation initiatives; risks related to changes in security and privacy laws and regulations which could increase our operating costs and adversely affect our ability to market our products, properties and services effectively; potential failure to adapt to technological developments or industry trends regarding information technology; our ability to successfully launch and promote adoption of new products, technology, services and programs; risks related to our workforce, including increased labor costs, loss of key personnel and our ability to maintain adequate staffing, including hiring and retaining a sufficient seasonal workforce; and the risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. All forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by law.
SOURCE The Vail Corporation
Vail Resorts Communications at [email protected]
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