Alyeska opening day

Alyeska opened for ski season on Nov. 29, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. The mountain was open only to season pass holders that day, before opening to all guests over the weekend.

Rose Walker, the manager at the ticket office described opening day.

“We had a total of 1,131 people ski here yesterday! Which was a great opening day! We had a total of 6,388 scans at our gates, this counts all the laps taken by all of our guests,” said Walker.

The temperature hovered around single digits throughout the day, with the only lifts open being Chair 7 and the Bear Club Quad. The mid and upper mountain was kept closed due to lack of snow.

The snow on the bunny hills was freshly groomed and gradually turned to ice as the day progressed. Despite the slippery conditions, Alaskan residents and college students were still ready to get some laps in.

Walker described the day as not super busy due to only season pass holders having access to the mountain. She speculated that last year’s opening day was busier; however, many passes had been reloaded, which kept the lines at the ticket office short.

Walker also spoke about the resort’s revenue accumulation.

She said Alyeska is sitting around 6,400 season pass holders and sold about 65 season passes the week before opening day.

According to Walker, they have been selling plenty of lift tickets and multiday packages.

Walker said the resort is sitting at great revenue numbers and is excited to introduce the Peak Pass which offers free skiing from April 14 to closing day, as well as beneficial rates for lift tickets.

The Northern Light interviewed a ticket counter employee who was enjoying her first day working for Alyeska. She described how exciting it was to see the variety of people coming to the mountain and the inspiring atmosphere.

She said the amount of returning guests talking and preparing for the season was infectious, and she was keen to start her first winter in Alaska.

Timing their opening alongside Thanksgiving was a clever way to get all the visiting friends and family on the mountain after the season pass holders got the opportunity to shred.

Skiing at Alyeska is always the trigger that winter has arrived. Lifties were gathered on both sides of each lift with glitter rubbed on their cheeks and speakers bumping popular songs by Katy Perry and Kesha. A great variety of people were moving across the slopes, from young Alyeska Ski Club students to seasoned shredders.

Clusters of young skiers sent flips and tricks below Chair 7. Parents with toddlers practiced for the upcoming holidays, hoping to get their kids off the leash.

General ski bums whipped it up while they enjoyed their favorite gravity sport. Snowboarders and skiers alike were scattered across the mountain, and even a snow skate was spotted.

Alyeska is ready to take on the 2024-25 ski season, all they need is one more dump of snow and significantly less rain.