Get 'em while it's hot: Affordable multi-mountain 'Gems' passes now on sale in Colorado

Amid the summer heat, the trade group representing the majority of Colorado's ski areas wants people to think snow.

Colorado Ski Country USA recently listed its multi-mountain family pass for sale. That's the Gems Pass, proudly featuring some of the state's non-mega resorts.

Passes for teens ($199) and parents ($325) grant two days at each of the 11 "Gems," including Arapahoe Basin, Loveland, Monarch, Eldora, Ski Cooper, Sunlight in Glenwood Springs and Purgatory near Durango. For kids in third through sixth grades, the $67 Ski Passport gets them four days at those ski areas and more. The Gems Parent Pass can only be purchased with a Gems Teen Pass or Ski Passport.

Another option is the Gems Discount Card. For two uses each at 11 "Gems" ski areas, the $48 card allows the holder to buy one adult lift ticket and get one free for the same day, or 30% off a single adult ticket.

The discounts go for Loveland, Monarch, Eldora, Ski Cooper, Sunlight, Purgatory and more. The Gems Discount Card also gives the option for two adult tickets at A-Basin at a pre-purchased cost: $79 for midweek, $99 for weekend.

Whatever the choice, Colorado Ski Country spokesperson Sarah Beatty implores skiers to buy sooner rather than later — "very much like airline tickets."

The trade group points to season passes or bundle packs at one's "home resort." A-Basin is selling three-, four- and five-day packs between $239 and $319. A Copper Mountain four-pack is $349, as another example. Loveland's popular four-pack is set to go on sale Labor Day weekend.

Early-bird deadlines have passed for Vail Resorts' go-to Epic Pass (including Vail, Breckenridge and Keystone) and the Ikon Pass (including Copper Mountain, Winter Park and Steamboat).

Epic Passes with varying access stand at $747 and $1,004, while Ikon is offering options of $969 and $1,359.