STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — The owners of the Steamboat Ski Area have teamed up with six other ski companies to form a pass that will offer skiing at 23 destinations throughout the United States and Canada.

Specific details about pass options and prices are expected in the coming weeks.

Alterra Mountain Co., which formed in 2017 to purchase Steamboat and 11 other resorts, announced its new Ikon Pass during the Outdoor Retailer Snow Show trade group meeting in Denver with a display above the escalator in the convention hall.

"It's getting a lot of buzz," Alterra Public Relation Director Kristin Rust said. "We really wanted to launch it to the industry."

It is unclear if Alterra will follow the lead of Vail Resorts, which has utilized a strategy of slashing the prices of season passes and in turn selling more of them.

Vail owns 13 resorts and sold 750,000 Epic Passes, according to the Denver Post.

Rust would not say whether Steamboat skiers should expect to pay less for their season passes.

A pass to Steamboat bought early before this season with unlimited access to Winter Park cost $1,149.

The Vail Epic Local Pass with 10 days at Vail and unlimited access to Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin cost $639.

Vail's Epic Pass with unlimited access to 15 resorts cost $859.

Alterra now owns 12 resorts and will partner with 11 destinations to form the Ikon Pass with nearly 50,000 total skiable acres in nine states and three Canadian provinces.

Alterra Mountain Co. owns Steamboat and Winter Park in Colorado; Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, Mammoth Mountain, June Mountain and Big Bear Mountain Resort in California; Stratton in Vermont; Snowshoe in West Virginia; Tremblant in Quebec, Blue Mountain in Ontario; Deer Valley in Utah; and CMH Heli-Skiing & Summer Adventures in British Columbia.

For the Ikon Pass, Alterra has partnered with Copper Mountain Resort, Eldora Mountain Resort, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Big Sky Resort, Killington Resort, Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Loon Mountain Resort, Alta Ski Area, and Snowbird and Aspen Snowmass.

Rust said Aspen Snowmass includes Aspen Mountain, Snowmass, Highlands and Buttermilk.

Henry Crown and Co. is a minority investor in Alterra and still independently owns the four Aspen Skiing Company resorts in the Aspen area.

"The Ikon Pass is a collaboration of like-minded mountain destinations across North America where incredible terrain, unique character and local traditions are celebrated," Alterra Chief Marketing Officer Erik Forsell said in a news release. "We've curated a community of iconic destinations. We believe this new pass offers tremendous opportunity and appeal to mountain enthusiasts who have a passion for outdoor adventure."

To reach Matt Stensland, call 970-871-4247, email mstensland@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @SBTStensland