As a destination skier who doesn't live anywhere remotely close to a ski hill, never mind a mountain, I found myself holding both the Ikon and the Epic this season. I bought the Ikon this year so I could go to either Jackson Hole or Banff/BC for Xmas or New Year for a week. Besides the great skiing, the main rationale here is that these are the two big mountain areas with reasonable lodging prices during the Xmas holiday (got kids in school so need to ski holidays) . Lift passes for 7 days at JH would be at least $1,050 so the Ikon pays off over the holiday, and any extra days anywhere else are gravy. I also get the discounts on buddy tickets, or whatever Ikon is calling them, which helps for the family who will ski a few days, but not all of them.
I then got the Vail limited pass so I could get the blackout access to Whistler (only resort on the Epic I really love), where lodging is too expensive for my tastes/budget at Xmas. Unfortunately I didn't make Whistler this year (though just managed to make the Epic pay via other mountains), so I am dying to go next year (joint favorite mountain with JH). I usually do about 4 trips a year (a 10 day trip, a week trip, and two long weekends) so I'll do Xmas at JH/Banff, a week or so in Whistler and then two trips to Colorado or Utah. So, basically each pass more than pays for itself, especially with the additional discounts for buddy tickets.
For this upcoming season, however, I am considering whether I should just get one and sacrifice either JH/Banff (where to go for Xmas in that case??) or Whistler. Essentially it would be the Ikon all the way for me if it weren't for the fact I am dying to go to Whistler after not having been in 3 seasons or so. Anybody else faced and/or resolved this particular dilemma? Obviously just foregoing Whistler would be one solution and not skiing at Xmas would be another, but those aside what's a good argument (or should I say itinerary) for not getting both given my plans/situation? My more financially prudent side says I'm being unreasonable and uncompromising, the skiing fanatic alter-ego says it all makes perfect sense.