When does ski season start in Spokane this year? Mt. Spokane is aiming for Saturday, Dec. 5, if the weather and snow cooperate. The first snow already showed up on the mountain's webcams on Sunday, Oct. 11. For anyone holding a 2026-27 pass, though, the season starts earlier, with a short run of dates that all fall between Saturday, Oct. 31, and Nov. 10.
The reason is simple. On its conditions page, Mt. Spokane says it is not mailing passes this year, so pass holders need to pick theirs up in person before the season starts. Getting the pass in hand is now an errand with a calendar attached, and that calendar overlaps with the region's biggest gear sale and the last day of fall pricing.
Your Pass Is Waiting at a Pickup Event This Year
The mountain added extra pickup events in October and November to make up for not mailing passes. Several are already over. Passes went out at REI on Oct. 3, at Alpine Haus South Hill on Oct. 10, at Alpine Haus North on Oct. 17, and at Solnix on Oct. 24.
One step comes before any pickup. Mt. Spokane's season pass page says it can only print and hand out your pass once your online account has a digital photo and a signed Release of Liability Waiver. If a family is collecting four passes at once, every account needs a photo and a waiver before anyone gets in line.
That same page still has older wording about passes going in the mail. Since the mountain's newer announcements say mailing is off this year, it's best to settle any odd cases directly with guest services at [email protected] or (509) 238-2220.
Three Pickup Windows Left, and a Price Change Two Days After the Last
As of Thursday, Oct. 29, these are the in-person chances still on Mt. Spokane's calendar:
- Oct. 31 to Nov. 1 at the Mt. Spokane Ski Patrol Ski Swap, Spokane Fair & Expo Center
- Nov. 7 at River Park Square downtown, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Nov. 8 at the Elevation Celebration on the mountain, noon to 4 p.m.
Fall pass pricing ends on Nov. 10, two days after the last pickup event. Anyone still deciding whether to buy has the same three dates to work with. Each of them puts you face to face with mountain staff, and the price goes up the Tuesday after.
Halloween Weekend Belongs to the Ski Patrol
The first window left is also the busiest. On its website, the Mt. Spokane Ski Patrol Ski Swap says it is the region's largest winter sports equipment and clothing event, with thousands of new and used items from both shops and individual sellers. This year it's at the Spokane Fair & Expo Center, 404 N Havana St.
The swap runs on its own schedule, and sellers need to know it before Friday:
| What | When | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Gear registration and drop-off | Friday, Oct. 30, 3 to 8 p.m. | Bring clean gear to the Fairgrounds' north-side entrance |
| Shopping | Saturday, Oct. 31, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. | $5 admission, kids 12 and under free |
| Shopping | Sunday, Nov. 1, 9 a.m. to noon | Same admission |
| Seller checks and unsold gear | Sunday, Nov. 1, 2 to 4 p.m. | Equipment left unclaimed after 4 p.m. is donated to the patrol |
That last row is a hard deadline. If you sell your kids' outgrown boots on Saturday and forget to come back Sunday afternoon for the check or any unsold gear, whatever is left goes to the patrol.
Your $5 at the door stays on the mountain. The patrol's FAQ says swap proceeds pay its operating costs, including facilities overhead, medical and first-aid supplies, rescue supplies, training and administration. Mt. Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park is also listed at the swap for season pass sales and pass photos. That means you can fix a missing account photo, pick up a pass and buy a used helmet in the same stop. One date note: an older event listing gives a different pickup date for seller checks, so go by the swap's own FAQ, which says Sunday, Nov. 1.
What the Nov. 10 Deadline Is Worth
The pass pages list fall and winter prices side by side, so it's easy to see what waiting past Nov. 10 costs.
| 2026-27 pass | Fall price, through Nov. 10 | Winter price | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult All Access, ages 18 to 59 | $699 | $899 | $200 |
| Youth All Access, ages 7 to 17 | $499 | $649 | $150 |
| College or Active Military/Veteran All Access | $599 | $799 | $200 |
| Flex Season Pass | $449 | $599 | $150 |
For a household with two adults and two kids on All Access passes, buying after Nov. 10 adds $700 to the bill. The All Access passes are good on every operating day with no blackout dates. The college and military pass requires an ID or proof of enrollment at a college, university or trade school, or a valid military ID, when you pick it up. If that's your pass, bring the paperwork to whichever event you go to.
Fifth graders have a separate option. The Ski NW Rockies 5th Grade Ski & Ride Passport gives free days at participating Inland Northwest mountains all winter. Mt. Spokane points families to the Ski Northwest Rockies website to get one.
Downtown on Nov. 7, Up the Mountain on Nov. 8
The last two pickup events fall on back-to-back days in very different places, so you can pick the one that fits your weekend.
Saturday, Nov. 7, downtown. "Explore All Four: Meet Your Mountains" fills the River Park Square Atrium at 808 W Main Ave. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The four mountains are 49° North, Lookout Pass, Mt. Spokane and Silver Mountain. Each team covers tickets, programs, ski school, specials and events, and passes and holiday gift cards are available. Mt. Spokane's booth lists pass pickup, lesson registration, gift cards and 5-pack lift tickets. If your household splits time between two mountains, this is the one place this fall where you can sort out both.
Earlier that same Saturday, on the mountain. Mt. Spokane's winter job fair runs from 8 to 11 a.m. at Lodge 1. The mountain says no experience is needed and every schedule is welcome. It also notes that seasonal jobs fill fast and that you can apply online if you can't make it. The fair and the downtown event overlap on Nov. 7, so a teenager going after a lift-line job and a parent picking up passes will be in two different places that morning.
Sunday, Nov. 8, on the mountain. The Elevation Celebration is Mt. Spokane's pre-season party at Lodge 2, from noon to 4 p.m. The listing promises live music, prizes, food specials, activities and new merchandise, and calls it a family-friendly event. It's also the final pickup date before fall pricing ends on Tuesday.
What the Pass Covers This Season
Most of what's new at Mt. Spokane this winter adds more evening options, which matters for anyone who skis after work or school. Out There Outdoors reported on Oct. 18 that the EZ Ski 1·2·3 learn-to-ski program now has Friday and Saturday evening sessions from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Club Shred, until now a Friday night program, is adding Saturday nights. The same article describes the new Flex Season Pass as Monday-through-Friday skiing plus night skiing Wednesday through Saturday.
The weeknight lineup in that report continues once the season opens. Wednesday nights bring $5 youth skiing with a paying adult. College Night starts Jan. 7 and runs every Thursday, with $29 tickets for anyone with a valid college or active military ID. Ladies Day returns Friday, Feb. 12.
Out There Outdoors also quoted Mt. Spokane assistant general manager Jodi Kayler on the theme of the season:
"This season is really all about learning, community and giving people more ways to enjoy the mountain."
The same article calls Mt. Spokane the region's only nonprofit ski area, with more than 1,700 acres, 53 runs, six chairlifts, a handle-tow terrain park lift, a magic-carpet conveyor for beginners and a 400-foot tubing hill. The mountain describes its night skiing as the largest in the Northwest. Every one of those evening sessions starts with a pass in hand, and this year that means visiting the Fairgrounds, River Park Square or Lodge 2 before Nov. 10.
We're BranDen and Shianne Tipton, and like a lot of Spokane families, our November weekends now come with a pass pickup on the list. If you're thinking about a home where a weeknight Club Shred session or a Wednesday $5 youth night is an easy drive, Inland Empire Home Team can help you see what that looks like across Spokane County. When you're ready to start looking, Explore Properties with us.
