The Steamboat Resort will usher in a new year Dec. 31, starting with the New Year’s Eve Light Up Snow Cat Parade and Fireworks before guests dance the year away at the Dress to Impress Masquerade Party at the top of the Gondola.

“It’s just such an amazing location at the top of the gondola and New Year’s is such a special event that we wanted to figure out how to tie the two things together,” said Loryn Duke, communications director at Steamboat Ski Resort.

The dance party — featuring a DJ with music from the ’80s through the early 2000s — will allow guests to ring in the New Year at 9,000 feet, and guests are encouraged to dress up for the event. The $125 price tag includes the event, appetizers and a masquerade mask for guests who don’t bring their own.

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Duke said the resort will also provide noisemakers, a drink ticket and a Korbel champagne toast at midnight.

The party, which is slated to run from 8 p.m. until 12:30 a.m., will cap off a night of festivities that begin with the New Year’s Eve Light Up Snow Cat Parade and Fireworks show, starting at 5:30 p.m. in the base area at 2305 Mt Werner Circle.

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“We will have the Snowsports instructors doing their synchronized skiing and with the torches will make cool shapes (as they ski down) on the snow,” Duke said. “Then we will have our Snow Cat parade where our teams have been diligently dressing up our snow cats in amazing lights.”

The colorfully lighted groomers will weave down the slopes as part of the torch-light parade that will also include the teachers from the resort’s Snowsports program. That event will be capped off by a fireworks show which will light up the night sky to celebrate the start of 2025.

Duke couldn’t say for sure how many people will attend the free Dec. 31 event, but in the past the number has climbed into the thousands as people pack Steamboat Square as part of their New Year’s tradition.

Duke’s advice is to show up early and to carpool, use your hotel’s shuttles or catch a ride on one of the free buses. She said the buses will drop passangers off at the Gondola Transit Center just a short walk from where all the action will unfold.

“With the holidays, and the snowstorm that’s supposed to come, we definitely are expecting and anticipating a lot of people wanting to come to the resort,” Duke said. “So having a good plan for transportation is really key — especially for the New Year’s holiday. Carpooling is always a great idea, and the free SST bus is a really, really good idea; that way we can hopefully minimize any parking woes.”

She added that this is traditionally a busy period at the resort.

“From the day after Christmas through New Year’s is really the bustling season for the resort and for the town,” Duke said. “It’s a really good reminder that it’s busy, and it’s the time of year where you definitely need reservations in town and parking is at a premium.”

Chances are reservations at the many Steamboat Springs fine dining and late-night hot spots will be limited at this point, but Duke said people can stay on top of the parking situation by signing up for text alerts at Steamboat.com which will provide up-to-date information about the availability of parking at the different resort-owned parking lots.

She said even with the large crowd that is expected, finding a good place to take in the sights will not be difficult because the groomers and skiers will be in sight as they make their way down the hill, and all guests need to do is look up as the fireworks light up the night sky.

Duke noted The Timber & Torch is “one of the premier spots” to view the holiday events, and The Range rooftop is “an absolutely amazing spot to watch.”

“This is one of our most popular events, so we expect the base area to fill up, and people need to be prepared for that,” she said.