Colorado's Gems Card Adds Purgatory, Expands Programs For Kids
Before Epic or Ikon, before Mountain Collective or Indy Pass, there was the Colorado Gems Card that has been good for a couple of days at Colorado's off-the-beaten track ski and snowboard "gems" since 2006.
A Gems Card gets 2-for-1 deal on a day ticket or 30% off a single ticket. And, that deal holds for two visits to any of the mountains except during holiday blackout periods (Dec. 25-Jan. 1; Jan. 13-14; Feb. 17-18).
Available to anyone skiing or riding in Colorado, the Gems Card also gives adult cardholder a $79 midweek (Tuesday-Thursday) ticket at Arapahoe Basin, or a $99 weekend ticket good for two times.
After purchasing a Gems Card online, register on the CSCUSA pass portal, validate each visit on the portal, and head to the ticket window when you arrive.
This season, purveyor Colorado Ski Country USA has added a couple of new twists. Purgatory Mountain has been added as the 11th member of the Gems network. There is now a Gems Teen Card, good for two visits to any of the 11 mountains for cardholders ages 12 to 17. And, in 2023-2024, the new Parents Gem Card gets any who buys either a Teen or Kids Passport two days at participating resorts.
In recent years, the program linked up with the trade group's Kids Passport -- one of the cheapest ways to get kids on the hill. For $65, youngsters in grades 3-6 get four days at each of 20 Colorado resorts -- all 11 Gems mountains, plus Steamboat, Howelson Hill, Winter Park, four Aspen-area mountains, and Silverton. The passport includes two free junior rental packages from its sponsor.
Participating mountains are Front Range regulars Arapahoe Basin, Echo Mountain, Eldora,Loveland, and Granby Ranch.
Then there are Continental Divide straddlers Ski Cooperand Monarch, Western Slope stalwarts Powderhorn and Sunlight, and Southwest partners Ski Hesperusand now Purgatory.
