Wisp Resort Celebrates 70th On-Snow Season with Platinum Deals & Anniversary Weekend
Deep Creek Lake, MD (January 7, 2026) Wisp Resort, Maryland’s first and only four-season ski and recreation resort, invites guests to celebrate its 70th on-snow season all winter long with Platinum Deals and a weekend-long Platinum Anniversary Celebration, Friday, January 9 through Sunday, January 11, 2026.
Platinum Anniversary Weekend Celebration
From the original Poma lift to 33 slopes and four-season fun, Wisp Resort will celebrate its evolution with a weekend full of festivities. Guests are invited to join the celebration from Friday, January 9 through Sunday, January 11, 2026, featuring rich history, festive après, a commemorative cake cutting by Charm City Cakes, live music, historical film premieres, and more.
Friday, January 9
- All Day: $19.55 Platinum Day Lift Ticket
- 4:30–7:00 p.m.: Herb & Hanson — Last Chair Bar + Bistro
- 8:00 p.m.: Historical Film Premiere — McHenry Lodge
Saturday, January 10
- 2:00 p.m.: Birthday Cake Cutting Ceremony with remarks by state and local officials, featuring a mountain-of-a-cake by Charm City Cakes (Baltimore, MD) — McHenry Lodge
- 4:00–7:00 p.m.: Platinum Après — Beer Garden Deck
- 4:30/5:00 p.m.–Close: $19.55 Platinum Night Lift Ticket
- 8:00 p.m.: Historical Film Encore — McHenry Lodge
- 9:30 p.m.: Torchlight Parade — Base of Squirrel Cage
Sunday, January 11
- All Day: $70 Learn-to-Ski/Ride Platinum Package
- 11:30 a.m.: Time Capsule Ceremony — McHenry Lodge
Platinum Midweek Deals
In honor of 70 years of on-snow adventures, Wisp Resort is offering Platinum Deals on select winter activities throughout the season.*
- Wednesday: Night Lift Tickets — $19
- Thursday: 4-Hour Tubing Tickets — $24
Quantities are limited and expected to sell out.
*Holiday blackout dates include: January 16–19, and February 13–16, 2026.
To purchase tickets in advance, stay up to date on events, offers, and celebration details at Maryland’s Mountaintop, guests are encouraged to sign up for text alerts at wispresort.com.
About Wisp Resort
Founded in 1955 by driven entrepreneur Helmuth “Ace” Heise, Wisp Resort introduced snow sports to the state of Maryland and ignited a passion for winter recreation throughout Garrett County.
As Wisp celebrates its 70th “Platinum” season, guests and the greater Deep Creek Lake community are invited to experience the resort’s winter playground, featuring 132 acres of skiable terrain, nostalgic mountain charm, and memories that span generations.
“This seventieth season is an impressive milestone for Wisp, and we are thrilled to honor the dedication and vision of our founder, Mr. Heise, with affordable offers and a weekend-long celebration,” said Ron Hawkes, Wisp Resort General Manager. “The path Mr. Heise forged—not just for the resort, but for all of Garrett County—forever changed the economy and winter culture in this corner of Maryland.”
Wisp Resort opened in 1955 on an old cow pasture to offer skiing on Marsh Mountain. The first season featured a one-room hut warmed by a pot-bellied stove, a single ski trail known as The Face, a truck-engine-powered tow rope, and ski rentals offered out of a pickup truck bed.
Over the next several decades, Wisp steadily evolved. The first twenty years brought snowmaking, aerial chairlifts, and night skiing. The 1970s ushered in expanded terrain, additional chairlifts, an airless snowmaking system, and the resort’s first lodging with The Village Inn. In the 1980s, Wisp affirmed its four-season identity with the opening of an 18-hole golf course—now known as Fantasy Valley Golf Course—and expanded lodging through a condominium hotel. The East Ridge opened during this period, adding five trails and two triple chairlifts.
Entering the 21st century, Wisp experienced a period of rapid growth with a new 11,000-square-foot lodge, a state-of-the-art snowmaking pumphouse, a snow tubing park, and expanded summer activities. The North Camp terrain expansion—featuring ten trails and two quad chairlifts—opened in celebration of Wisp’s 50th anniversary.
Growth continued through the 2010s with the addition of the Mid-Atlantic’s only mountain coaster, three canopy tours, gem mining, and the opening of Lodestone Golf Course, Maryland’s highest-elevation golf course. The Sundown Yurt Village was also introduced, housing snowsports learning programs in winter and serving as golf operations and event space during warmer months. Today, Wisp’s focus remains on continued investment in snowmaking infrastructure and guest experience across all ski terrain.
Wisp Resort is a four-season mountain resort by the shores of Deep Creek Lake in Western Maryland. Wisp offers skiing, snowboarding, two golf courses, whitewater rafting, canopy tours, activities on Deep Creek Lake, escape games and a variety of other mountain recreation activities. The ski resort has 11 lifts and 33 trails on 132 acres, more than 90% of which is lit for night skiing. The slopeside Lodge at Wisp offers 169 rooms along with meeting and conference space for weddings, corporate retreats, family reunions, conventions and general group business. For more information about Wisp Resort, visit www.wispresort.com.
Photos Courtesy of Wisp Resort.
