People holding the multi-resort Ikon Pass will be required to make reservations before they are allowed to ski at Deer Valley Resort during the 2023-2024 winter, a notable change to the way the pass can be used locally.

The alteration was outlined as part of a broader Thursday release regarding Ikon Pass sales for the next ski season. The Ikon Pass is a key product of Deer Valley owner Alterra Mountain Company and offers skiing at more than 30 resorts. There are several levels of the Ikon Pass with different prices and access to the slopes.

There has been concern about multi-resort passes like the Ikon Pass and the rival Epic Pass, sold by Park City Mountain owner Vail Resorts, leading to increased crowds at mountain resorts across North America. The ski industry has recently attempted to address the crowding issues through a variety of steps, including adding a reservation requirement.

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Deer Valley has long been known for high service levels and daily caps on the number of skiers allowed at the resort. It said the reservation requirement will “help better manage daily skier numbers and the overall on-mountain experience.”

The reservations will be made online through ikonpass.com.

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It is not known how many Ikon Pass holders who are skiing at Deer Valley on any given day will be impacted by the new reservation requirement. There have been scattered complaints, though, about the size of the crowds at Deer Valley compared to those at the resort prior to the arrival of Alterra Mountain Company and the Ikon Pass.

People who hold a Deer Valley season pass will not be required to make a reservation to ski. Deer Valley season passes will be the “only products that will allow for unlimited skiing at Deer Valley all season long, including during the holidays, without reservations and restrictions,” the resort said. 

Deer Valley said people purchasing a lift ticket for a day, such as those bought at the resort’s ticket windows, will not be required to hold a reservation since those lift tickets already carry a date. Day tickets, though, are subject to sell-outs and the resort recommends advance purchases.

Deer Valley, meanwhile, did not provide information about any possible alterations to the operations of the parking outside Snow Park Lodge for the next ski season. It is not known if any are planned, but parking at the lower Deer Valley base has been closely monitored by the resort itself, City Hall and people who live or own places in the vicinity of Snow Park. Deer Valley in February launched a weekend satellite parking operation at Treasure Mountain Junior High in anticipation of full lots at Snow Park.

Alterra Mountain Company in the same Thursday release said Taos Ski Valley in New Mexico in the 2023-2024 winter will drop a requirement for lift reservations even as the one at Deer Valley is introduced.

Alterra Mountain Company released the information in the days before it puts Ikon Passes for the 2023-2024 ski season on sale. The sales are slated to start on Thursday, March 16.