Plan a ski carpool with your riding crew

For skiers and snowboarders with empty seats on the drive to the mountain, or riders who need one, a carpool works when pickup, gear space, costs and the drive home are settled before anyone gets in the car. Carpooling has been part of SkiBuds since the original app, which was built partly to get riders sharing cars: less traffic, lower emissions and a shared parking bill. The rebuilt app, coming soon to iOS and Android, will give each resort its own carpool channel. Riders will arrange the trip between themselves in chat; SkiBuds won't book seats or take payments.

Post the whole trip

Start with the resort, the date and the general area you're leaving from. Then say whether you're driving or need a ride, when you want to leave and when you want to head home. Two people can share a car and still want different days, one chasing first chair and one happy to leave at 2, so settle that before the morning. For example:

“Driving to Keystone from Denver on Saturday. Leaving around 6:30, heading home around 3:30. Room for two riders and their gear. Passengers split gas and parking. Pickup at a public spot, details by message.”

If you also want to ride together, add your ability and terrain. You can find ski buddies or snowboard partners and sort that out before the trip. The ski carpool planning guide has a worked cost split and message templates for drivers and passengers.

Agree on the details before departure

• Pickup: a public meeting point, a time and a way to reach each other.
• Gear space: count skis, boards and boot bags, not just people, and confirm the car can carry it all.
• Shared costs: agree on fuel, parking and tolls, and how you'll split them, before you leave.
• Return: a time to leave the mountain and a plan if someone finishes early.
• Changes: when you'll check the forecast again and how you'll call off or delay the trip.

A profile doesn't tell you how someone drives or whether their car is ready for a mountain road. If you've only talked online, pick a public pickup spot rather than a home address, or ride together once before you share a car. The safety page covers meeting someone new.

Check the forecast and the roads the night before

An overnight storm can undo a plan made on Tuesday. Look at snowfall timing and wind alongside the official road report and the resort's current operating updates, and make sure everyone has seen the same plan before you leave. Every resort guide on this site includes a snow forecast, and the mountain region guides cover reading the forecast and checking the roads. A snow forecast tells you nothing about road closures or which lifts are running, so check the official sources for those.

Keep the trip in one group chat

Once the crew agrees on a carpool, keep the destination, pickup, return time and any changes in one group chat, so nobody has to scroll three conversations to find the meeting time. At the resort, pick a regroup point even if you plan to ride together. In the app, friends who choose to share their location will show on the mountain map when their phones have a connection.

SkiBuds is coming soon to iOS and Android; the launch status will change when it's in the stores. Until then, the carpool guide works just as well with people you already know.