At Palisades Tahoe, a New $14,000 Pass Lets You Skip the Lift Line

A rendering of the new Apex Club mid-mountain lounge, which will occupy space in the resort’s Gold Coast building. Photo: Palisades Tahoe

Membership is capped at 200, with pricing starting at $14,000 per season. (It was priced at $12,000 before mid-December). Single and family memberships include access for dependents under age 23, as well as the right to purchase additional “priority lift access day passes” for $400 per person, per day. An additional 33 daily Apex passes will also be available at $800-$1,200 per day for those unwilling to commit to an entire season. Day pass benefits are not extended to dependents or guests.

Though the program advertises the food and lounge perks, the biggest benefit for skiers may be the time savings. Apex Club members receive priority lift access at 12 of the resort’s most popular lifts, allowing them to skip the line at the Resort Funiculaire, Siberia, Shirley, Red Dog, and Gold Coast, among other lifts. It also incudes guaranteed priority parking steps from the Palisades Village.

The goal, according to the resort, is to offer “the best experience on this mountain,” eliminating delays like parking backups, lift lines, and the crowded, overpriced ski lodges that have increasingly made headlines in the ski world.

Public reaction to the news has been relatively negative, though the mountain hasn’t announced how many memberships are still available. One Truckee local told area newspaper Moonshine Ink “It’s a fraud to sell me a $1,000 pass and tell me you are going to have a great experience, and then turn around and tell me I am going to have a terrible experience unless you pay $12,000.” On Facebook, another local commented, “so tired of the rich taking over and destroying the soul of mountain culture.”

At nearly all US ski resorts, anyone taking a lesson can use a ski school priority access line at the lifts. Photo: Palisades Tahoe

While the program may be making waves for its high price tag, the ability to skip the lines has already existed for years at Palisades Tahoe. Palisades has long had the “First Tracks” program, allowing Ikon Pass holders access to the lifts an hour early on select days. And like all major US resorts, it allows anyone skiing or riding as part of a lesson to use a priority line just for ski school. Competing resorts in the area owned by Vail, including Northstar California Resort and Heavenly Mountain Resort, offer private lessons and private guides, both of which include the skip-the-line perk.

Club access for the 2025-2026 season runs until April 12, 2026, with applications accepted online. Members will be offered first right of refusal on membership for subsequent seasons, with Palisades Tahoe noting that “a wait list is expected.”