Best Epic Pass and Ikon Pass Resorts in California 2026/27, Ranked by Size

These are the 9 Epic Pass and Ikon Pass resorts in California for 2026/27, biggest first.

Key takeaways

Biggest: Palisades Tahoe (2,428 ha), Mammoth Mountain (1,416 ha) and Northstar (1,283 ha).
Ranked by skiable area; every figure is cited on each resort guide.

California resorts ranked

Ikon PassEpic PassBoth

#	Resort	Pass	Area (ha)	Pistes (km)	Vertical (m)	Top (m)	Lifts	Days to ski it all*
1	Palisades TahoeOlympic Valley	Ikon: Unlimited	2,428	200	869	2,758	39	6
2	Mammoth MountainMammoth Lakes	Ikon: Unlimited	1,416	90	945	3,369	25	3
3	NorthstarTruckee	Epic: Unlimited, unrestricted	1,283	97	695	2,624	20	3
4	KirkwoodKirkwood	Epic: Unlimited, unrestricted	931	65	610	2,987	15	2
5	Sierra-at-TahoeTwin Bridges	Ikon: 7 days	809	46	674	2,698	14	2
6	June MountainJune Lake	Ikon: Unlimited	607	41	789	3,075	6	2
7	Snow SummitBig Bear Lake	Ikon: Unlimited	97	29	366	2,499	10	1
8	Snow ValleyRunning Springs	Ikon: Unlimited	97	34	317	2,390	9	1
9	Bear MountainBig Bear Lake	Ikon: Unlimited	80	27	507	2,684	7	1

Ranked by skiable area, the figure North American resorts publish. *Our estimate: marked pistes divided by the 35 km a confident intermediate covers in a full day. Each resort's figures are cited on its own guide.

Resort guides

Palisades Tahoe: 2,428 ha
Mammoth Mountain: 1,416 ha
Northstar: 1,283 ha
Kirkwood: 931 ha
Sierra-at-Tahoe: 809 ha
Ikon Pass vs Epic Pass 2026/27: every resort compared

Frequently asked questions

What is the biggest Ikon or Epic resort in California?+

Palisades Tahoe, with 2,428 ha, followed by Mammoth Mountain (1,416 ha) and Northstar (1,283 ha). We rank by skiable area.

Which California resorts are on the Ikon Pass for 2026/27?+

Palisades Tahoe, Mammoth Mountain, Sierra-at-Tahoe, June Mountain, Snow Summit, Snow Valley and Bear Mountain.

Which California resorts are on the Epic Pass for 2026/27?+

Northstar and Kirkwood.

How do you rank the resorts?+

By skiable area, using each resort's cited figure. North American resorts publish acreage rather than piste length, so area is the fairer measure there.

Methodology

How we did this comparison

Mountain statistics come from each resort's own facts page where it publishes one, otherwise from Skiresort.info's trail-map data, and every figure links to its source. Pass access for the 2026/27 season comes only from ikonpass.com and epicpass.com, read on 26 October 2026; check the operator's page before you buy, because access and blackout dates can change.

Days to ski every marked run, how long to stay and how many days of data to buy are our own estimates, not resort figures. We assume a confident intermediate covers 35 km of marked piste in a full day, lifts included, and add a travel day either side for the eSIM. North American resorts publish skiable acreage rather than piste length, so where we rank them we rank by skiable area.

Sources & references

We verify carrier and regulator pricing directly from primary sources before publishing. Pricing is current as of the article's last update — always confirm rates on the carrier's site before you travel.

Ikon Pass 2026/27 destinations — Ikon Pass
Epic Pass 2026/27 resorts — Epic Pass

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About the author

Lotsotravel Team

The Lotsotravel editorial team writes hands-on guides for international travelers. We test eSIMs on real devices in real destinations, monitor Canadian and U.S. carrier pricing weekly, and compare coverage across local network partners before we recommend a plan. Every comparison post is updated when carriers change their rates so the numbers you read here match what you would pay today.

Last updated: October 26, 2026