The long-awaited gondola connection between what used to be two different Tahoe ski resorts will be operating next ski season.
Alterra Mountain Co., a Denver ski conglomerate that owns Palisades Tahoe, confirmed Monday (Feb. 28) that the new gondola will connect the Palisades and Alpine Meadows sides of the resort for the 2022-2023 ski season.
Alterra expects the gondola will carry up to 1,400 people per hour.
According to Alterra, the significant development will create the third-largest ski area –roughly 6,000 acres – in North America, behind Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia and Park City Mountain in Utah.
“This historic investment is clear evidence of our commitment to deliver a premier guest experience at our North American destinations and our engagement towards the long-term future of our mountains,” said Rusty Gregory, CEO, Alterra Mountain Company.
The gondola will allow skiers and snowboarders to travel between the base areas of Olympic and Alpine, rather than the current mode, which is driving along congested mountain roads and Highway 89.
A gondola trip will take 16 minutes and climb about 2,000 vertical feet over the ridge that separates the two ski areas. It will not be a boring ride. The gondola will provide sweeping views of Lake Tahoe and the surrounding mountains.
Construction of $65 million gondola project began last spring, yet it was never made clear if it would be available for the current ski season.
The gondola project reportedly includes two main terminals, two mid-stations and additional base area improvements targeted to enhance the guest experience.
Prior to merging, Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows were neighboring ski resorts with varying terrain. The Tahoe ski resorts merged in 2011 under a different company and eventually came under the Alterra Mountain Company group of ski resorts.
At the inception of the merger, the question lingered: would Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows eventually be connected? Fairly quickly, the answer came back as a yes, but the process has taken more than a decade to get to this point.
Alterra says it would also like to expand the Palisades village and upper mountain infrastructure at Olympic Valley to include 850 housing units, 300,000 square feet of commercial space and a water park.
However, that ambitious proposal has come under criticism from local conservation groups and is currently undecided.
