Sundance Resort 2026-27: What’s New and Where to Ski It

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Every preseason brings a few big headlines out of the Cottonwoods, and this one quietly belongs to Provo Canyon. Sundance Mountain Resort opens its biggest mountain upgrade in more than forty years this winter: a new high-speed quad, a new signature ridge run, and more than 100 acres of new terrain that push the resort past 600 skiable acres for the first time. If your entire experience of Utah skiing runs through Alta, Snowbird, and the Red Snake, this is the season to look south.

Sundance has always been the odd one out in Utah skiing in the best way. Founded by Robert Redford in 1969 and tucked under Mount Timpanogos, it trades lift-line crowds for a low-key mountain. The 2026-27 expansion keeps that character and fixes the mountain’s biggest complaint: the back side was worth skiing but a pain to lap.

What is new for 2026-27

The centerpiece is the Electric Horseman Express, a new high-speed quad that the resort says will run the back mountain in about six minutes. It starts near the base of the Wildwood Lift, traverses the Far East Ridge, and tops out at Red’s Lift near Bearclaw Summit. Per lap, that is more than 1,850 vertical feet, and it lets you ski the whole back mountain off a single lift instead of piecing together a slow route across three lifts.

With the lift comes more than 100 acres of new terrain, bringing Sundance to 605 skiable acres. The resort describes this as the conclusion of the first phase of its back mountain expansion, the most significant mountain project at Sundance since 1985, and it points to more expert terrain in future seasons.

The headline new run is Storyteller, a 1.7-mile groomed ridge run carved along the Far East Ridgeline. Sundance positions it as an upper-intermediate cruiser with some of the best views on the mountain. For advanced skiers, Storyteller also opens access to three new expert gladed chutes that drop back toward the base. If you have skied Sundance before and never quite found the goods on the back side, that is about to change.

How the new lift changes your ski day

Before Electric Horseman, lapping the back mountain meant chaining lifts and traverses, which kept a lot of strong terrain half empty and half the effort it should have been. A single six-minute lift changes the math. You can session the back mountain the way you session a pod anywhere else: ride, drop, repeat. Expect the back side to ski noticeably bigger this season even though the acreage number only moved by a sixth.

Warm up on the front side, head back on the new quad, and spend the afternoon on Storyteller and the glades without the old commute. On a powder day, that efficiency is the difference between three back-side laps and six.

Where to ski at Sundance

Sundance splits naturally into two mountains, and the new lift makes the split even cleaner.

The front mountain: families and warm-up laps

The front side is where beginners and families live, with gentle groomers and the Snowsports School base. The vibe is calm, the lines are short, and nobody is bombing past your six-year-old.

The mid mountain: intermediates

Blue-square skiers get the best value at Sundance. The mid-mountain groomers are consistently uncrowded, the pitch is honest, and the new Storyteller run adds a long, scenic upper-intermediate option to the rotation. This is also where night skiing happens, so an evening lap session here after work is one of the better deals in Utah skiing.

The back mountain: experts

The back mountain’s steeps, chutes, and new glades are where advanced skiers should spend most of their day. The three new expert gladed chutes off Storyteller give the back side teeth it did not have before.

Passes, tickets, and night skiing for 2026-27

• Unlimited Season Pass: $799 for adults (27 and up), valid every day of the season with no ski blackout dates. Perks include free UTA bus rides, discounted buddy passes, and Snowsports School discounts.
• VIP Pass: $1,249 for adults, with Fast Tracks lane access and two complimentary day passes for friends.
• Night Skiing Pass: $325 for ages 13 and up, $205 for ages 6 to 12. Valid Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, with select holiday blackouts.
• S-Card: the smart play for occasional visitors. $119 for adults on the first purchase, which includes your first day of skiing, then $109 per visit after that.

Passes and S-Cards are on sale now at sundanceresort.com.

Getting there and when to go

Sundance sits in Provo Canyon, about an hour from downtown Salt Lake City depending on where you start. The drive is straightforward on US-189, and passholders ride UTA buses free. Note that Provo Canyon gets its own traction requirements on storm days, so check conditions before you roll.

Timing-wise, Sundance shines in three windows. Early season, when the Cottonwoods are still building base. Midweek storm days, when everyone else is stacked up on the canyon roads. And night skiing evenings, when a $325 pass buys you after-work laps all winter.

If you are working the broader Wasatch this season, it pairs well with a trip to one of Utah’s under-the-radar ski areas, and the same powder day kit you pack for the Cottonwoods works just as well here.

Who should go, and who should skip

Go if: you want short lift lines without a multi-pass strategy, you ski mostly midweek, you are teaching kids or beginners, you want night skiing without the Brighton crowds, or you are an expert curious about the new back mountain terrain. It is also one of the best values in Utah for a second pass, especially via the S-Card.

Skip if: you need 3,000-vertical-foot top-to-bottom runs, you live for tram laps and 500-inch seasons, or your crew refuses to leave the Cottonwoods on principle. Sundance will never be Alta, and it is not trying to be. What it is trying to be is the easiest good ski day in Utah, and for 2026-27 it finally has the lift to deliver it.

The honest read: nobody is quitting their multi-resort pass for Sundance. But as a drive-worth-it alternative on the days the canyons are a mess, or as a cheap night-skiing habit, it just got a lot harder to ignore.

FAQ

What is new at Sundance for the 2026-27 season?

Sundance opens the Electric Horseman Express quad, adds 100+ acres for 605 total, and debuts Storyteller, a 1.7-mile ridge run with three new expert gladed chutes.

How much does it cost to ski Sundance in 2026-27?

The unlimited season pass is $799 for adults 27 and up. A night skiing pass is $325 for ages 13 and up. The S-Card costs $119 for the first day and $109 per visit after that for adults, making it the best value for occasional visitors.

Does Sundance offer night skiing?

Night skiing runs Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, with select holiday blackouts. The night pass is $325 for ages 13 and up.

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