Ski lift chairs for sale, genuine and replica
There is a specific kind of person who rides to the top, looks back at the chair that carried them up, and starts wondering what it would look like on their deck. This page is for them. Some of what follows came off a working mountain. The rest was built here in Colorado to look like it did.
Colorado Ski Chairs builds and restores ski lift seating by hand in Manitou Springs, Colorado. Two very different things are sold here and we label them plainly on every product page, because the difference matters and it is the thing people ask about first.

Genuine retired lifts
Actual chairs pulled from working resorts. Aspen Mountain, Aspen Snowmass, Arapahoe Basin, Taos and Whistler. Usually one or two of each, then they are gone.

Handcrafted replicas
Welded steel recreations built to order in any powder coat color, in two, three and four person widths. No waiting years for a resort to retire one.

Gondola cabins
Four, six and eight person replica cabins. Restaurant booths, reception desks, DJ booths, trade show stands and reading nooks.
Genuine retired chairlifts
These are the real article, removed from working ski resorts and restored here. Each is a one off or close to it, and the provenance is stated in the product name so there is never any confusion. Current and recent examples include a vintage 2-person chair from Aspen Mountain, the 3-person Naked Lady lift from Aspen Snowmass, an original Taos Ski Valley Lift 5 chair, and a center pole bench from Whistler, British Columbia. We weld a stand up A frame or a hanging swing mount, add a new wooden seat, and powder coat it in whatever color you pick.
If you are buying one of these it is worth moving quickly. When a listing says two left, it means two.
Replica chairlift benches and swings
Most of what we sell is a replica, and for most buyers it is the better answer. They are newly handcrafted welded steel recreations, built to order, so you choose the width, the color and the fittings rather than taking whatever a resort happened to retire.
Benches and swings
Two, three and four person versions. Set one on a welded A frame and it stands wherever you want it. Hang it from a porch beam or a set of chains and you have a chairlift porch swing, which is exactly as good an idea as it sounds. The 2-person swing and the 3-person bench are the most ordered. There is also a 4-person swing and A frame combo for larger spaces.
Add a wrap around bar, a footrest, or your name
Pick any powder coat color, add a safety bar or footrest, and put a mountain range, a family name or a company logo across the back. Branded 2-person chairlifts with a custom wooden seat and a logo plate are a standard order for resorts and offices. A logo is never painted on: it goes on as a decal or a plate so the mark holds its exact shape and color, and aluminum and plastic appliques are alternatives at different prices.
Replica gondola cabins
Gondola cabins are the statement piece. Ours are vintage style replicas, handcrafted here rather than salvaged off a mountain, in four, six and eight person sizes with wood stained seats and an optional flip up table. People use them as restaurant booths, reception and DJ booths, trade show stands, and reading nooks big enough to lose a whole family in. You can also design your own to spec. If you came here looking for an old ski gondola for sale and want a particular lift recreated, send photos and we will build it.
Renting instead of buying
A ski lift bench is available to rent for one to seven days for events, launches and photo activations. Transportation is not included, so ask us early if the venue is awkward.
Frequently asked questions
Are these real chairlifts or replicas?
Both are sold. A small number are genuine retired chairlifts taken from working resorts, and those state the resort in the product name. Everything else, including all gondola cabins, is a handcrafted replica built to order in Colorado. The product page is always explicit about which it is.
Which should I buy?
If the provenance matters to you, and you want the actual chair somebody rode at Taos or Aspen, buy a genuine one and buy it quickly. If you care about the look, the size and the color, a replica gives you far more control and costs less.
Can it hang as a porch swing?
Yes. We build either a welded A frame so it stands freely, or a hanging mount for chains so it swings from a beam. Tell us which before we build, or ask about the combo if you want the option of both.
Can you put our logo or a name on it?
Yes. Custom wooden seats, logo plates, painted backs and brand color matching are all standard, and branded chairlifts are one of our most common commercial orders.
Can you recreate a specific lift?
Often, yes. Send us photographs of the lift you have in mind and we will tell you honestly what we can match.
How does delivery work, and how long does it take?
These are heavy steel pieces and ship freight. Made to order items are typically two to four weeks. Local delivery covers Colorado Springs, Denver, Breckenridge, Vail, Aspen and most of the state, and we ship nationwide to the lower 48. If you are working to a deadline, ask us. We usually make it.
More questions people ask about chairlifts
How much does a chairlift cost for a ski resort?
A working lift is a construction project, not a purchase. A fixed grip quad runs into the low millions installed, and a high speed detachable is several times that once you count towers, drives, engineering and the mountain work to put it there. Almost nobody asking that question wants the whole lift. They want the chair. That is what this category is, either a handcrafted replica built to order in Colorado or, occasionally, a genuine retired chair from a working resort. The product page always says which.
What is a ski lift chair called?
On the mountain the chair itself is a carrier, and the whole installation is a chairlift or an aerial lift. They are named by seat count, so a double, a triple, a quad, a six pack. Enclosed cabins are gondolas rather than chairs. Everyone who actually rides them just says the lift, and everyone who wants one in the yard just says the chair.
How safe are ski chair lifts?
Far safer than the drive to the mountain. Lifts in the United States are built and inspected to the ANSI B77 standard, checked daily by the crew and audited annually, and serious incidents are rare enough to make national news when they happen. The ones we build are safer still, since they hang from a welded A frame about two feet off the ground and the worst that can happen is somebody spills a drink.