traveltraveltravel

Winter is just around the corner and our family wants to take another ski vacation. We have gone to Vermont the past two years and loved it, but may want to try another area.

Any suggestions on awesome places to ski that are family friendly with trails for all levels and activities on site. Also, we found Vermont to be reasonable with passes/lift tickets...so looking for some great places to ski with lots to offer at a reasonable price....

Any suggestions?

Thank you fellow travellers!

tcapp

Park City, Utah would get my vote.
Also, Sundane, Utah is a small resort, but very nice and charming.

tcapp

ttt

padams421

Winter Park, Colorado; Sundance, Snowbird or Alta, Utah

astein12

Where are you traveling from and do you plan to drive or fly?

If you're an east coaster and want to drive, I'd suggest going up to Quebec. I love both Stoneham and Mt. Ste Anne. near Quebec City or Tremblant north of Montreal. Reasonable prices, nice snow, and you get the feeling that you've really left the country. Plus at Stoneham and MSA, the lifts are open until 10pm!

Out west, I second most of the responses above. I also like the Tahoe region and Whistler.

Byrd

There are so many great ski areas in Colorado.

Depending on your taste and style, check out Steamboat Springs, Aspen and Snowmass, Vail, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, and so many others.

We have had so many wonderful family ski trips. I don't think you will disappointed in the Colorado Rockies.

Byrd

John

Big Mountain in Whitefish Montana.
www.bigmtn.com

TripleSecDelay

Banff, Steamboat, Bogus Basin, Park City, Tahoe.
What is a "reasonable price"?
$55 lift ticket is reasonable to me. But then, we've been price-conditioned to believe so.
We also need to include food/lodging costs in the "reasonable price" equation.

kangamom

If you are going to Utah, the little Cottonwood Canyon has many reasonably priced tickets still available at Alta and Brighton. If you want more of the big resort feel, you can also ski at Snowbird. I've found the snow in Utah to be the driest, lightest snow around. FYI, Alta ski resort gets the most snowfall out of all the SLC area resorts, but doesn't allow snowboarding.

virginia

while i can appreciate kangamoms snow quality suggestion, i personally think montana has the driest/lightest. (the morning i could blow 8 inches of snow off my windshield with 2 breaths - 1 for each side, has forever swayed me) but all rocky mtn snow will seem drier/lighter than vermont!
however, i am going to add to the steamboat springs contingent. denver is easy to fly into and montana is not so much. the town is still a working ranch town so the atmosphere is wonderful for families. tons of restaurants, hot springs, and super skiing. known for its kids programs.

historytraveler

For Colorado, Steamboat Springs and Winter Park will be your best bets for prices and ski terrain. You might also check out Copper Mt. It has a great mountain to ski on and is actually divied into parts with beginners on the west slopes, intermediates in the middle and more advanced skiing on the easy slopes.

astein12

Hey, who wants light, fluffy snow? Crud, Hardpack, Boilerplate! That's where it's at!

It's all a matter of perspective... for those of us who grew up with east coast skiing, I'm much more at home on a sheet of ice than 18" of powder.

traveltraveltravel

Thank you for all of the wonderful information. I need to start planning!

architectlink

If you are taking kids under 10 please consider the altitude. Here is my assessments from prior experience:

Copper...loved it but daughter was sick in bed for 7 days there...too high

Crested Butte, pretty but terribly old units ski in ski out and daugther puked the entire ride through the mountains...too high

Utah, not great ski in ski out but easy to get to from Florida...lower altitude

Steamboat..we are looking at this for the low altitude, and need recs, haven't been there in 10 years

Aspen, too hard to get to with kids

Tahoe...very cold and wet, but fun

I'd say Utah and Steamboat are the easiest low altitude to get to

nancicita

I agree Copper was too high in altitude. I got sick when I was on top of that mountain.

I liked:

Mammoth - long drive though

Tahoe - Northstar, Sierra, Heavenly (can get really crowded during holidays, but still great mountains)

Sunday River, Maine (beautiful, love the tree trails!)

lizziea06

I spent many winters at Snowbird and Alta with my family growing up. Our little rat pack of cousins LOVED ski school at Snowbird, especially when we were younger (6-9 yrs.). The instructors were remarkably friendly and tons of fun. I remember getting dropped off in the morning with our class, meeting up with our parents for lunch, and then "school" would officially end mid-afternoon. This left us enough time to get in a few runs with our parents and show them all the secret trails and tricks we'd learned that day.
As I got older, Alta became my preferred resort. It's much quieter, and almost feels like you are in Europe. Lots more trees and little paths than Snowbird. Alta is beautiful, and still my favorite!
Snowbird is larger and has more of a "resort" feel to it. Probably more beginner terrain than Alta, too. It's up to you, but you really can't go wrong in Utah!
I've stayed both at the resort and in downtown SLC when I've been out there. You can take advantage of some of the tourist sights in the city, and get to the mountain via rental car, if you prefer that.

hotskier101

I would say go to Colorado because it's closer to Vermont. But if you don't mind traveling a little further west go to Lake Tahoe. All I can say is it's fantastic skiing, absolutely breath taking and the night life is 24 hours.

This guys site is packed with all kinds of information.
http://www.mountainyahoos.com/
Have fun!