Fifteen minutes from the edge of town to the top of Aspen Mountain. When it runs, what it costs, and how to make the most of the ride, whether you ski or not.
Photo: jofwooster, CC BY-SA 3.0 · All credits
The Silver Queen Gondola rises 3,317 vertical feet from downtown Aspen to the summit of Aspen Mountain at 11,262 feet, in about 15 minutes each way. Non-skiers can ride it in winter and summer: winter sightseeing starts at $41, and a summer single ride is $40 for adults.
Dates, hours and prices are from Aspen Snowmass's sightseeing pages, checked September 2026. The gondola runs weather permitting; high wind closes it.
Paul Montiel · Aspen · Updated September 2026
We ask for the Sundeck table so non-skiers can meet the skiers, and a driver to the base. Plan the day.
Skiers ride on their lift ticket; see lift tickets and passes. Walk-on sightseers share the cabins with skiers, so a late-morning ride after the first rush is calmer.
Buy online for a date (no time slot needed) or same day at the ticket office. Summer on top means hiking, a free 18-hole disc golf course, concerts and events at the Sundeck; the ride down is the easy way home after hiking up.
The summit is over 11,000 feet. On day one, ride up, sit, have lunch and ride down; save the hike for later. See the first 48 hours.
Afternoon storms build in summer; the views are best before lunch.
In winter, the gondola lets non-skiers meet skiers at the Sundeck for lunch. See Aspen for non-skiers.
Snowmass's Elk Camp Gondola runs for winter sightseeing too (November 26 to April 11), with the Alpine Coaster nearby.
In summer 2026, a single ride is $40 for adults (13+) and $30 for children 7–12; 6 and under ride free. Winter sightseeing tickets start at $41.
For winter 2026–27, sightseers load 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the last ride down is at 4 p.m., from November 26, 2026 to April 18, 2027.
Buying ahead online is advised: Aspen Snowmass says winter sightseeing tickets, from $41, can sell out. They give gondola access and the Sundeck, not ski terrain.
Yes. Winter sightseeing runs November 26, 2026 to April 18, 2027, uploading 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with the last ride down at 4 p.m.
About 15 minutes each way, rising 3,317 vertical feet to 11,262 feet.
10 a.m. to 4 p.m., last ride down 4:30 p.m., daily from about late June to early September and on weekends before and after.
In summer, well-behaved leashed dogs are welcome on the gondola and the summit trails.
A driver to the base, lunch at the top booked, a photographer for the family on the summit, and a massage at the house afterwards.
Reservations, timing, a driver and a picnic for Maroon Bells or a day in the valley, arranged around your group.
A local Roaring Fork Valley photographer, English and Spanish speaking, for family portraits, couples, proposals, celebrations and private dinners, in town, at the house or out in the valley.
A car and driver on call for dinner and the night out, so nobody hunts for a taxi at midnight.
Delivered before arrival for the first nights at altitude.
Aspen, known
Gondola hours, opening days and what changes on the mountain.
Written from Aspen by Paul Montiel. A few letters a season, only when something matters. Leave any time; we never share your address.Aspen Snowmass: winter sightseeing · Aspen Snowmass: summer sightseeing — checked September 29, 2026.
Tell us who's coming and what they'd enjoy. We'll arrange the day around the ride up, skiing or not.
Plan the day
