Ranking Ski Resorts

[mj4cy]

I have been interested in going to Welch Village. I see you have that right below Afton. Are they about the same or is Afton that much better?

Afton's a little bigger but more or less the same. Nice short runs with varying inclines.

 

[SolarGarlic]

It is cool to see other people on here who branch outside of Colorado and encourage it. It is interesting how fixated people in Iowa are that skiing=Colorado. I think all of us, including myself, just grew up with that being our annual ski road trip, beings how it is technically the closest place to drive, even though it isn't even that close. In the meantime, Vail has bought everything, jacking up prices, and every millennial has moved to Colorado in the past 10 years, making crowds and traffic almost insufferable. This isn't even counting how narrow a view of skiing only Colorado is, especially when there are equally good if not better to much better options out there in North America. Don't get me wrong, Colorado is still good and fun, and I still ski there some, but many people are really missing out if that is all they know. I think you'll find the more you branch out and try other stuff, the less inclined you will be to go back to Colorado.

I think for a lot of people, skiing is just part of the equation, and maybe a small part of it. Many people coming from Iowa are average to below average skiiers. Finding "fresh pow pow" doesn't really matter. They're going to get a condo, ski for a little bit on greens and blues, grab a beer or 12, enjoy the views and vibe, and call it a day. Absolutely nothing wrong with that if you can afford it. Those weekends are a blast, and Colorado is an easy drive.

But I agree, Colorado has gotten crazy expensive and lost some of the small ski town vibe that many of these places had 20+ years ago. Going from Denver for a Saturday day-trip is now almost completely out of the question given the traffic, crowds, and price. If you don't mind getting up at 4:30 a.m. and heading back to Denver at 2:00 p.m., you can kinda make it work, but still feel like I'm not getting enough bang for my buck.

 

[cuphues]

My rankings as of today:

1. Vail (expensive as heck but the back bowls/blue sky = take my money please)
2. Brighton
3. Deer Valley
4. Alta
5. Keystone
6. Solitude
7. Park City
8. Breckenridge
9. Copper Mountain
10. Snowbird
11. A-Basin
12. Afton
13. Welch Village
14. Sundown
15. Mt Kato
16. Seven Oaks

I take it that you have never been to Telluride, Squaw Valley? I can’t fathom any top 20 list that doesn’t include those 2

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

mj4cy, you, like many other people in Iowa need to broaden your scope from just Colorado my friend. I make no bones about my love for Utah over Colorado in nearly all ways, shapes and forms. I recommend giving it a shot with your next ski trip. While Utah is a flight rather than a long car ride, Frontier flies there cheap out of Des Moines, and whatever extra you spend on flying rather than driving, you'll easily make up for in cheaper lift tickets, lodging, food, and headaches. With all that said, I haven't even mentioned how much better snow they get there too and how much greater chance you'll have of getting a fresh powder day.

Typically on longer trips I find it's actually cheaper(monetarily) to fly than to drive. Time consumed is obviously a whole different thing.

 

[Triggermv]

It was weird that day. Got to the top and the winds were ridiculous and I dropped my ID in the middle of the snow. So bad vibes from the start. Later on I ventured to Alta, found some great runs and got a call from my buddy he randomly found my ID! So a lot of my list is back to how I felt at the time.

Overall though Alta seemed to have more runs that I like vs. Snowbird.

That's hilarious because somewhat the exact same thing happened to me the first time I skied snowbird. My whole wallet fell out on a run that I didn't realize was gone until we got on the lift. I figured I was totally screwed, but we still decided to track back down somewhat what path we thought we followed. It literally was like finding a needle in a haystack, but nevertheless here I find this little black speck of the corner of the wallet sticking out of the snow as we went down and there it was. I was so happy. Those days and bad snow days can really screw with any resort. I'd encourage you to try it again as Snowbird has some crazy good terrain. If you like steep, its tough to beat Snowbird. I've only found Jackson Hole as the only place to be overall steeper on average, but it is still not too different than Snowbird. The layout of Jackson's terrain has many similarities as well.

 

[Triggermv]

I'm an average skier and haven't been to all these resorts, but when I've been out to Colorado the last few times I went to Loveland and Cooper (not Copper) primarily due to cost and fewer people. I also thought Cooper was great when the kids were smaller because it seemed like it would be less likely to lose them. It cost a small fortune to take the family out to the well-known mountains and ski for a few days.

Could any of you well-traveled skiers list your favorite lower-cost ski slopes (base lift ticket price under $75 not including discounts)?

No shame at all in loving those smaller, cheaper, family-friendly resorts. Like I talked about in an earlier post, you are why they sell these Gems cards: https://www.coloradoski.com/store/gems-card-2019-2020
Its $30 and gets you 2 for 1 lift tickets or 30% off single lift tickets at pretty much all the smaller, cheaper, family-friendly resorts in Colorado. I've gotten the card once and did both A-Basin and Loveland. Both are good locations. Otherwise, Eldora is close to Denver, my brother and sister-in-law took their family with kids to Granby Ranch and loved it, and Monarch looks like a decent option into the mountains from Colorado Springs. All of them are fairly small mountains to keep families from getting spread out. I think all of them too at full price are under the $75 mark, no even using the coupon. Otherwise, in Utah, I'd say Brighton and Solitude are also great family-friendly mountains. You can pick up discount lift tickets there in Salt Lake City at the ski shops: https://www.skinsee.com/discount-lift-tickets . Those are slightly above the $75 price point, but at the same time, they are closer to lower mid-size mountains with more speed lifts than any of those Colorado ones. So, you do get more bang for your buck. Brighton in particular is super laid-back and every trail leads down to the base of the mountain.

 

[IASTATE4LIFE]

My List:
1. Jackson Hole(WY)
2. Kicking Horse Mountain Resort(BC)
3. Revelstoke(BC)
4. Big Sky(MT)
5. Whitefish(MT)
6. Telluride(CO)
7. Whistler(BC)
8. Red Mountain(BC)
9. Powder Mountain(UT)
10. Alpine Meadows(Lake Tahoe)
11. Heavenly(Lake Tahoe)
12. Canyons/Park City(UT)
13. Snowbird(UT)
14. Squaw(lake Tahoe)
15. Steamboat(CO)
16. Copper(CO)
17. Vail(CO)
18. Keystone(CO)
19. Breckenridge(CO)
20. Brighton(UT)
21. A-Basin(CO)

I'll stop there. There are more fun ones that could easily make this list but my top 10 should be on everyones short list.

 

[Triggermv]

My List:
1. Jackson Hole(WY)
2. Kicking Horse Mountain Resort(BC)
3. Revelstoke(BC)
4. Big Sky(MT)
5. Whitefish(MT)
6. Telluride(CO)
7. Whistler(BC)
8. Red Mountain(BC)
9. Powder Mountain(UT)
10. Alpine Meadows(Lake Tahoe)
11. Heavenly(Lake Tahoe)
12. Canyons/Park City(UT)
13. Snowbird(UT)
14. Squaw(lake Tahoe)
15. Steamboat(CO)
16. Copper(CO)
17. Vail(CO)
18. Keystone(CO)
19. Breckenridge(CO)
20. Brighton(UT)
21. A-Basin(CO)

I'll stop there. There are more fun ones that could easily make this list but my top 10 should be on everyones short list.

Nice list. Got some solid love on there for Powder Mountain. That is one of the few Utah ones I haven't hit. Maybe I need to make a point to get up there.

 

[coyoteclone]

Keystone is a good starter hill.......Copper nice move up. Vail's back bowls worth putting them #1 in Colorado. Do they still have the rope pulls?

 

[IASTATE4LIFE]

Nice list. Got some solid love on there for Powder Mountain. That is one of the few Utah ones I haven't hit. Maybe I need to make a point to get up there.

Powder Mtn is the best kept secret in Utah. Place is crazy big. It is called powder mtn for a reason. The first time I went a group of us ponied up for a guide. Best decision ever, he literally showed us all the secret pow stashes. Great aspen tree runs and cool terrain. Zero amenities, so it is just a day trip place when your in the area. If they have snow, it is a must go.

 

[mj4cy]

Keystone is a good starter hill.......Copper nice move up. Vail's back bowls worth putting them #1 in Colorado. Do they still have the rope pulls?

Really like the back two peaks in Keystone. Starfire run on the North Peak is probably my favorite there. Nice wide fast black run that's groomed. It's never too full either. Good run to practice turns on.

 

[Triggermv]

Just got a chance to ski Beaver Creek for the first time this past Saturday, and while I had fun and it snowed a few inches in the afternoon, I can't say I was super impressed too much. For as big of a resort as it is, the entire thing is about as homogeneous as they come by way of terrain variety. If you like lots of in-the-tree-line, wide, moderate-level on average runs, its pretty decent. However, that is about all it is. There is no bowls, no open-faced anything, nothing above treeline, no cliffs really or jagged rocks, and for all the trees it has, there is very little by way of actually ski-able tree runs. There are a few good tree runs, but not many, and they are hard to find. Again, since nothing is above tree-line and with little by way of tree runs, there really is hardly any off-trail stuff to ski period, especially for how big it is. Also, for how expensive the resort is ($204 window price the day I went), while nearly all the lifts are speed-lifts, there is barely any gondolas for such a high-end resort. There is pretty much one short one I saw and one bigger one with that is mostly chairs, but also has a gondola every 5 chairs or so. I'm not high maintenance and have to have Gondolas, but for the price tag Beaver Creek asks for, I tend to at least expect more for what I'm paying. It didn't help the day I went was pretty cold as well. In the end, while Beaver Creek isn't a terrible resort, it seems more meant for ritzy moderate-level skiers who are more concerned with good shopping, good restaurants, and good selfie shots while eating their expensive cookie (I got a good pic myself). For those just caring about the skiing, I wouldn't recommend. Oh yeah, there was one good thing about its high cost and distance from Denver though, apparently there is pretty much NEVER any lines there according to them. Beings how I went on Saturday and didn't even see anything close to resembling a line, I tend to believe them, so that is a positive.

Next up, I've got a trip planned to Oregon in a couple weeks where we likely will be skiing Mt. Bachelor, Mt. Hood Meadows, and maybe Hoodoo. After that in late Feb, I've got a trip planned to the Aspen area where we likely will ski Snowmass and Aspen Highlands. Can't wait for both trips.

 

[Triggermv]

Just got a chance to ski Beaver Creek for the first time this past Saturday, and while I had fun and it snowed a few inches in the afternoon, I can't say I was super impressed too much. For as big of a resort as it is, the entire thing is about as homogeneous as they come by way of terrain variety. If you like lots of in-the-tree-line, wide, moderate-level on average runs, its pretty decent. However, that is about all it is. There is no bowls, no open-faced anything, nothing above treeline, no cliffs really or jagged rocks, and for all the trees it has, there is very little by way of actually ski-able tree runs. There are a few good tree runs, but not many, and they are hard to find. Again, since nothing is above tree-line and with little by way of tree runs, there really is hardly any off-trail stuff to ski period, especially for how big it is. Also, for how expensive the resort is ($204 window price the day I went), while nearly all the lifts are speed-lifts, there is barely any gondolas for such a high-end resort. There is pretty much one short one I saw and one bigger one with that is mostly chairs, but also has a gondola every 5 chairs or so. I'm not high maintenance and have to have Gondolas, but for the price tag Beaver Creek asks for, I tend to at least expect more for what I'm paying. It didn't help the day I went was pretty cold as well. In the end, while Beaver Creek isn't a terrible resort, it seems more meant for ritzy moderate-level skiers who are more concerned with good shopping, good restaurants, and good selfie shots while eating their expensive cookie (I got a good pic myself). For those just caring about the skiing, I wouldn't recommend. Oh yeah, there was one good thing about its high cost and distance from Denver though, apparently there is pretty much NEVER any lines there according to them. Beings how I went on Saturday and didn't even see anything close to resembling a line, I tend to believe them, so that is a positive.

Here is a little rankings update for me including Beaver Creek and any I missed adding to it from last year.

1. Jackson Hole (Wyoming) - Best terrain, Steepest Terrain, Coolest tram, 5-way tie for best snow, best for expert skiers, 2nd best views, Beautiful resort, Lots of vertical feet, Good lifts, Little spendy, Big resort
2. Snowbird (Utah) - 5-way tie for best snow, 2nd Best Terrain, 2nd Steepest terrain, 2nd best for expert skiers, 3nd best views, good lifts with a tram, fun tunnel to backside, crowds can get bad
3. Alta (Utah) - 5-way tie for best snow, 3nd best terrain (fairly extreme terrain), Good for Expert Skiers (hard terrain, but a little lighter than Snowbird), Best Value, No boarders allowed
   
4. Whistler Blackcomb (British Columbia, Canada) - Biggest resort in North America, Longest vertical feet by far, Crazy-long fun Peak to Creek run to do 5,000 vertical feet, Best views, 4th best terrain, Best ski village, Good lifts, Good value (due to US dollar), Decent snow, Little crowded
5. Solitude (Utah) - 5-way tie for best snow, Awesome terrain, highest chance of getting untouched terrain, 2nd Smallest Lines, Best tree Runs, Too Many Slow Lifts, 2nd Best Value, Similar to Brighton, only a little bigger, and a little more challenging
6. A-Basin (Colorado) - Very High Altitude, Very Cold, Great Views, Smaller Resort, Very Good Terrain, Fairly Difficult Overall, Best Food, Cheapest and Best Food (ribs are incredible), Terrible Lifts (only one speed lift), 2nd Best Value in Colorado, Very Laid-Back, Kind of a Blend of Kirkwood and Alta With Less Speed Lifts
   
7. Snowbasin (Utah) - Good lifts, Nice Resort, Good Variety of Terrain, Decent Value, Fun Tram at Top to Olympic Downhill Course
8. Vail (Colorado) - 3rd Biggest Resort, Nicest Resort, Great Runs, Best Back Bowls, One of the Best Ski Towns, Too Many Catwalks
9. Brighton (Utah) - Very Simple and Laid Back (I like), 5-way tie for Best Snow, Great Tree Runs, Smallest Lines, 3nd Best Value, Best Place to Take Young Family For Value Skiing
10. Kirkwood - (California) - Almost an exact blend of Alta and Brighton, only with not as good and consistent of snow and too many slow lifts, 3nd Smallest Lines, 4th Best Value, Very Laid-Back, Fairly Challenging Terrain, Not great lifts
11. Keystone (Colorado) - 2nd Best Tree Runs, Best Lifts, Best Night Skiing, Fun Snowcat Skiing
    
12. Heavenly - (California) - 4th Best Views (mostly due to the lake), Nice Resort, One of Best Ski Towns, 4th Largest Resort, Good Runs, Great Lifts, Good Tree Runs, Best for Skiing in T-Shirt, Worst Consistent Snow
13. Copper Mountain (Colorado) - 4th Best Value (best in Colorado, especially when using coupons), Nice Runs Overall, Smaller Lift Lines, Free Snowcat Skiing, More Laid-Back
14. Park City Mountain Resort (Utah) - 2nd Biggest Resort Now That Combined With Canyons (I skied it prior to being combined), Coolest Town Setting, 3rd Nicest Resort, Great Lifts, So-So Views, Decent Snow
15. Breckenridge (Colorado) - Decent Overall, Very Busy, Too Many Boarders, Good Lifts, Cool Ski Town
16. Beaver Creek - Very Homogeneous Mid-Level In-Tree-Line Terrain, Very Expensive, Good Lifts but No Gondolas for Price, Very Nice Village, Good Cookie, So-So Views, No Crowds
17. Loveland - Very High Altitude, Very Cold, So-So Views, Smaller Resort, So-So Terrain, Not Super Difficult, Great Food, Terrible Lifts (zero speed lifts), Very Laid-Back, Good Value
18. Sunrise Park (Arizona) - Fun Place, Not Colorado or Utah, Still Lots Better Than Iowa
19. Snow King Mountain (Wyoming) - Fun enough place, Very steep terrain for a small resort, Super good value, Good snow, The smallest crowds you might get anywhere (nobody skis here), Very cold skiing since mountain faces North and the sun never touches it)
20. Chestnut Mountain (Illinois) - I Like the Runs, Resort Area, and Views Better than Sundown, Little further drive than Sundown, Underrated for being in Midwest
21. Sundown (Iowa) - Closest Ski Resort, Best in Iowa, Rentals are terrible and the place is kind of a dump, but decent runs for Iowa
22. Mount Kato (Minnesota) - Better and larger than expected, but has half the vertical feet of both Sundown and Chestnut. Kind of a bit of a dump similar to Sundown.

 

[mj4cy]

Just found out I have a free day to ski from points built up!

We're going to do two days at Keystone this year and a day at my favorite place of all time- Vail.

Going to SLC for work in a couple weeks....tempted to stay an extra day and hit up Alta or something.

 

[Triggermv]

Just found out I have a free day to ski from points built up!

We're going to do two days at Keystone this year and a day at my favorite place of all time- Vail.

Going to SLC for work in a couple weeks....tempted to stay an extra day and hit up Alta or something.

After doing Beaver Creek, I'd say Vail is better choice of the two overall, EXCEPT that Beaver Creek has significantly lower crowds. Vail can get pretty crowded depending on when you go, which can suck. Also, based on your criminally under-ranking of Snowbird, I think you need to give it a shot again over hitting up Alta again. Some of the steeps and terrain there are only out-matched by Jackson Hole.

 

[cuphues]

Perhaps your list only includes resorts you have been to for skiing. If so, I can appreciate it. However, there are several missing resorts in my opinion. For one Telluride. It may be a bit hard to get to, but that’s part of the appeal. The views here are flat out spectacular and anyone who has been there will rank that aspect #1 in North America. Further, the skiing is outstanding, offering a diverse sampling of runs for all ability levels and the Victorian mountain town connected to the resort has a incredibly authentic vibe and laid back character not matched by any other resort. We used to frequent the resorts off the I70 corridor outside of Denver for years. Heck, we even got married in Beaver Creek (during the summer). Once we visited Tellluride, it was obvious our frequent yearly trips to these resorts would become infrequent at best. Forgive me if so sound like a marketing agent for Telluride, but in all seriousness, if you were to pick one new resort to visit that you have never been, you need to make Telluride your top choice. It is as special as they come. You will not be disappointed.

Also, Big Sky in Montana is an up and comer. Squaw Valley is a favorite of many folks from West of the Rockies. And Deer Valley is probably the nicest resort out there. Truly, so many more to consider. Nonetheless, I like your list as it appears you are a true ski enthusiast.⛷

 

[Triggermv]

Perhaps your list only includes resorts you have been to for skiing. If so, I can appreciate it. However, there are several missing resorts in my opinion. For one Telluride. It may be a bit hard to get to, but that’s part of the appeal. The views here are flat out spectacular and anyone who has been there will rank that aspect #1 in North America. Further, the skiing is outstanding, offering a diverse sampling of runs for all ability levels and the Victorian mountain town connected to the resort has a incredibly authentic vibe and laid back character not matched by any other resort. We used to frequent the resorts off the I70 corridor outside of Denver for years. Heck, we even got married in Beaver Creek (during the summer). Once we visited Tellluride, it was obvious our frequent yearly trips to these resorts would become infrequent at best. Forgive me if so sound like a marketing agent for Telluride, but in all seriousness, if you were to pick one new resort to visit that you have never been, you need to make Telluride your top choice. It is as special as they come. You will not be disappointed.

Also, Big Sky in Montana is an up and comer. Squaw Valley is a favorite of many folks from West of the Rockies. And Deer Valley is probably the nicest resort out there. Truly, so many more to consider. Nonetheless, I like your list as it appears you are a true ski enthusiast.⛷

Good advice. Yeah, Telluride is definitely on my list of wanting to ski sometime. Just never been there. Beings how Zrankings (https://www.zrankings.com/) has Telluride as #2 on their list, what you are saying is not surprising at all. Honestly, my top 2 resorts to hit up next year are both Telluride and Big Sky. In fact, my Aspen trip this year was originally supposed to be intended to be a Big Sky one, but the flights and hotel costs weren't lining up well for when we wanted to go, whereas Aspen did, so we switch it up. But yeah, my list is only including those resorts I've been to. There is no doubt there are plenty of really good ones I've yet to visit and can't wait to.

 

[everyyard]

I started a thread on this last year after my trip to Utah, and since I've taken a new ski trip to Lake Tahoe this year (skied Heavenly and Kirkwood), I figured it would be worth updating and resurfacing this topic for some fun discussion for all you avid skiers out there. With that said, the following is my updated rankings of all the ski resorts I've been to in my lifetime and a bit of why I chose them that way. Feel free to post your own lists as well or simply just critique mine.

1. Alta (Utah) - Best snow, Best Terrain (especially extreme terrain), Best for Expert Skiers (everything is harder at Alta... greens, blues, blacks, double-blacks), No boarders allowed
2. Keystone (Colorado) - Best Tree Runs, Best Lifts, Best Night Skiing, Fun Snowcat Skiing
3. Vail (Colorado) - Biggest Resort by Far, Nicest Resort, Great Runs, Best Back Bowls, One of the Best Ski Towns, Too Many Catwalks
4. Brighton (Utah) - Very Simple and Laid Back (I like), 2nd Best Snow, Great Tree Runs, Smallest Lines, 2nd Best Value (I call Brighton Alta-Light)
5. Kirkwood - new (California) - Almost an exact blend of Alta and Brighton, only with not as good and consistent of snow and too many slow lifts, 2nd Smallest Lines, 3rd Best Value, Very Laid-Back, Fairly Challenging Terrain, Worst Lifts
6. Heavenly - new (California) - Best Views by Far, 2nd Nicest Resort, One of Best Ski Towns, 2nd Largest Resort, Great Runs, Great Lifts, Good Tree Runs, Best for Skiing in T-Shirt, Worst Consistent Snow
7. Copper Mountain (Colorado) - Best Value, Nice Runs Overall, Smaller Lift Lines, Free Snowcat Skiing, More Laid-Back
8. Park City Mountain Resort (Utah) - Coolest Town Setting, Big Resort, Good Lifts, So-So Views, Decent Snow
9. Breckenridge (Colorado) - Decent Overall, Very Busy, Too Many Boarders, Good Lifts, Cool Ski Town
10. Sunrise Park (Arizona) - Fun Place, Not Colorado or Utah, Still Lots Better Than Iowa
11. Chestnut Mountain (Illinois) - I Like the Runs, Resort Area, and Views Better than Sundown, Little further drive than Sundown, Underrated for being in Midwest
12. Sundown (Iowa) - Closest Ski Resort, Best in Iowa

keystone? No way. Nice tree runs but way too packed. Vail is better by far.

 

[Triggermv]

keystone? No way. Nice tree runs but way too packed. Vail is better by far.

That is a pretty old ranking from me. I've adjusted it some in my latest one a few posts back.

 

[mj4cy]

After doing Beaver Creek, I'd say Vail is better choice of the two overall, EXCEPT that Beaver Creek has significantly lower crowds. Vail can get pretty crowded depending on when you go, which can suck. Also, based on your criminally under-ranking of Snowbird, I think you need to give it a shot again over hitting up Alta again. Some of the steeps and terrain there are only out-matched by Jackson Hole.

Yeah we are going to hit Vail on a Monday or Tuesday to help keep the crowds down. Also going before spring breakers.