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Arapahoe Basin ( ; often shortened to A-Basin, or simply The Basin) is an Alpine skiing ski area in the Rocky Mountains of the United States, in the Arapaho National Forest of Colorado. Arapahoe Basin is known for its extended ski season and its extreme terrain. Arapahoe Basin is located south of Loveland Pass on U.S. Highway 6 in Summit County. The resort's terrain spans over 1,400 acres, serving up a mix of groomed runs, moguls, cornices, and glades. It features a lift-served vertical drop of 2,270 feet and is served by nine lifts, with easy access to 145 trails. Additionally, there is a significant amount of hike-to terrain which expands the in-bounds area appeal. There is also an abundance of non-winter activities available.
Arapahoe Basin is located just below Loveland Pass and offers views of the Continental Divide (which it borders) from the lifts. From the top of the ski area there are views of Lake Dillon, Breckenridge, Keystone, Montezuma, and Loveland Pass.
The Basin is located about west of Denver.
There is no overnight lodging at Arapahoe Basin. The nearest lodging is located at the Keystone ski area, six miles to the west. Arapahoe Basin is also a short drive from several other towns including Breckenridge, Frisco, Dillon, Silverthorne, Silver Plume, and Georgetown.
Pika Place is conveniently located close to the base area lodge and is a carpet conveyor for kids and never-evers.
Hogan's Magic Carpet, on the bunny slope, is conveniently located adjacent to the closest base area parking area. It is for beginners getting prepared to ride the nearby Molly Hogan chair lift.
Molly Hogan is a slow lift running over the bunny slope, for use by those just learning to ride a chair lift.
Black Mountain Express services greens, blues, and four blacks: The Gulch which runs parallel to Black Mountain Express; Exhibition which runs under the chair and features bumps, steep terrain, and a fair number of jumps; "Lower Standard", & "Lower International" which can be accessed from the standard race traverse.
The Pallavicini double services mostly black and double black terrain on the west side of the mountain, though it is possible to take some difficult blues back to the base and to ski the "WestWall". The Pallavicini face itself, a group of very steep and seemingly endless mogul runs, is rated double black diamond. It provides gated access to Steep Gullies, an even more challenging area.
The Lenawee Express takes skiers to the top of the mountain, where they can access blues, blacks, and the East and West Walls. On the West Wall there is a blue called Cornice Run where skiers can take leaps from windblown cornices. The East Wall has some of the most difficult terrain at Arapahoe Basin. The Lower East Wall is rated black diamond and can be reached without hiking. Open primarily in late winter and spring, the Upper East Wall is rated double black diamond extreme and is only accessible on foot. A hike of approximately 30 minutes will take guests to the North Pole, a very steep descent through rocky terrain over avalanche-blasted territory. Along the ridge prior to the North Pole is a group of chutes accessed through notches in the cliff band. One chute actually requires some rock downclimbing to reach skiable snow, an interesting experience in ski boots while holding a pair of skis. These chutes are often only a couple of ski widths wide and require mountaineering skiing ability. Most of the terrain is prone to avalanches and is regularly blasted by the ski patrol before they declare the wall open. The Lower and Upper East Wall is bisected by the East Wall Traverse which is quite long and accesses a lot of difficult-to-reach territory from above and below, leaving prime snow conditions available for those willing to make the trek. The entire East Wall is not groomed and should not be taken lightly since evacuation by the ski patrol in this area is a difficult undertaking.
The Zuma lift services blue, black and double black trails over the backside of Arapahoe Basin in "Montezuma Bowl". Montezuma Bowl offers everything from groomed intermediate runs to advanced cornice runs. It has mostly southern exposure.
The "Beavers Area" is 468 acres of terrain serviced by a fixed grip quad. It is a bowl to the northwest of Pallavinci, with blue and black rated runs. The full terrain includes open powder bowls, tree skiing, and rocky chutes, as well as two intermediate groomed runs.
Arapahoe Basin became the first ski resort in the United States to open for the 2006–2007 season on October 13. It repeated for the 2007–2008 ski area by opening at 9:00 a.m. on October 10. This was the area's earliest opening in 61 years and the earliest opening in North America for the season. Arapahoe Basin opened for the 2009–2010 season on Friday, October 9, the earliest start in its history.
During the 2007–2008 season, Arapahoe Basin expanded into Montezuma Bowl, with the largest terrain expansion in the nation for that season. Facing southwest towards Keystone, it provided a back bowl.
In 2010, Leitner-Poma replaced the Exhibition lift on the lower mountain with a high speed quad, the Black Mountain Express lift, Arapahoe Basin's first detachable lift.
In November 2016, 468 acres were approved by the Forest Service and added to the ski area. Of those 468 acres, 329 opened for the 2017–2018 season; 232 in the Beavers section and 129 in the Steep Gullies section. Initially, the terrain was accessible by a 30-minute hike and contained expert and extreme terrain only. A fixed-grip quad chair lift was built in the summer of 2018.
Opening date for 2016–2017 Season announced on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, with First Chair at 9:00am on Friday, October 21, 2016.
For the 2020–2021 season, Arapahoe Basin's last two Yan double chairlifts were replaced with new lifts from Leitner-Poma. Pallavicini was replaced with a double, while Molly Hogan was replaced with a fixed grip quad.
For the 2022–2023 season, the ski area received its second high speed lift with the replacement of Lenawee Mountain with a high speed six pack.
In February 2019, Arapahoe Basin announced it was ending its 20+ year partnership with Vail Resorts and its Epic Pass at the end of the 2018–19 season. On August 2, 2019, Arapahoe Basin announced it would join the Ikon Pass starting with the 2019–2020 winter season.
In February 2024, Alterra entered into an agreement to purchase Arapahoe Basin from its previous Canadian Owner, DREAM. The deal officially closed on November 19, 2024. Alan Henceroth, the ski area's President & COO, will continue to manage it.
Season Open Date (Day of Week)
Summer activities
Statistics
Elevation
Trails
Lifts
Arapahoe Basin has a total of six chairlifts, and three surface lifts. All of the chairlifts at the resort are manufactured by Leitner-Poma, with most of the lift fleet being modernized throughout most of the 2010's. The oldest chairlift on the mountain is the Zuma quad, which was built in 2007.
Built to replace the Lenawee Triple chairlift, which was also a Leitner-Poma model. Replaced a Yan Lift double chair in 2010. Runs on lookers right of the mountain, and opened hundreds of new skiable when built in 2018. The mountains first four-person chairlift, and is the oldest lift in operation at A-Basin. One of the shortest Quad chairlifts in the world, and has only two towers. Built to replace a Yan Lift double chair in 2020.
Resort Historical Opening and Closing Dates During Snowmaking Era
Arapahoe Basin and Loveland compete yearly for the #RaceToOpen. Ski enthusiasts from around the world watch to see who will open first. Below are the opening dates during the Snowmaking Era.
Zuma Bowl Opening and Closing Dates
Season Open Date Close Date Total Days Open for Zuma Bowl
Benchmark Dates
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