This is a historic year for Park City as it connects its Park City and Canyons resorts, making Park City the biggest resort in the US. With 3300 acres, 9 bowls of terrain and a 10,000 foot summit, Park City is a great place to find adventure with your family.
The speedy lifts on the front side of this 50 year young Utah favorite destination is just what families need to get their adventure groove on.
Park City Mountain Resortis located in the heart of Utah’s famed western town of Park City, just a 30-minute drive from Salt Lake City Airport. The US Ski and Snowboard Teams train on the front side and the 2002 Winter Olympic snowboarding and ski racing events were held here.
What Programs Do They Have For Kids?
Kids Signature Programs offer just the right mix of fun and education; the perfect balance for getting young ones started on the slopes. By limiting class sizes to five students or fewer, they give your child more personalized attention with more time to play, more time to practice and more time to learn.
They’re now open for the 2015 2016 ski season at Park City. Here’s the video to prove it!
So after the CES show I made a quick jump up to Lake Tahoe to check out the skiing up there. I’d noticed that Heavenly Resort was one of the most searched on ski resorts this winter so I had to see what it was about. I flew up after the show and met some ex-ski instructor friends who live in the area vbefore heading home. Here’s my take on everything:
Heavenly Resort Ski Resort
It’s an interesting mountain with beautiful views. Most of the trails are intermediate so it’s great for families with children. Everywhere you look there are decent, long, wide trails with slopes that are challenging but not super aggressive. There are a few blacks but you have to work to get to them and then my friends who used to teach there, told me there’s a big jump between blue and black in these areas. So be careful if you have young children. You might find yourself going from a nice easy blue to a monster black. Even so, the trails were covered in powder so even if you had to pick your way down with a little one it might not be so dire.
Since I didn’t have my daughter with me this time, I was able to go full throttle, which was nice, except that I found myself bored with the mountain. For the $125 lift ticket price, I would have liked a few tougher trails besides the scary blacks tucked away in the corner. So I would say if you have a mixed bag of skier levels with you, and kids, this is the place to be. If you are on your own or with very experienced skiers, I’d opt for another mountain. My ski instructor friends said Squaw is better for expert level.
It’s a little odd how you can’t buy your tickets from anywhere on the mountain. I find that obnoxious. I would have liked to have been able to order my tickets and have them waiting in my room the way I can in Tremblant. And there are no discounts, so if I am going to pay $125 a person, I don’t want to have to wait on line to do it. Order them on the mountain’s website and give yourself time because the site is a little clunky. Desktop is a lot easier than mobile. Also parking is tough but there’s free parking behind Harrah’s. From South Lake you actually take a Gondola up to the mountain so it’s a little disconcerting not being able to walk to the main lodge from the parking lot. I drove around and around trying to find a big entrance to the mountain until I realized the bottom of the Gondola was it. There are also a few other access points to get on the hill from the Gondola is the main one.
Overall, definitely a mountain I would go back to when in the area but wouldn’t make a big trip out to go there if I have to make a big trip out of it.
The Ridge Resort
I got an upgrade because I’m an Expedia gold member and while I booked a hotel room I ended up in a beautiful apartment with views of the village. Large master bed, a living room, with fireplace and a full size kitchen and dining table. The bed pulls out as well, plenty of room for a large family.
One thing that wasn’t made clear to me was that you can’t just rent any car from the airport to get up the hill. The Ridges is located at the very tippy top of exactly that, a ridge. The road goes straight up. I rented an Elantra and on the way up were signs all over about chains and 4 wheel drive when signs are flashing. With the sun melting the snow and the run off continually soaking the road, I knew if I went down into town I better get myself back up that mountain before the sun went down and it began to freeze. So I would recommend not booking this place unless your car can handle steep drives up and down in inclement weather, unless you feel like being stuck up there after sundown.
The Ridges is more of a compound with several buildings, scattered around the main lodge. There’s no housing inside the lodge itself but it’s where you go for the fitness room and spa. I didn’t love that you had to trek out in the cold to get to the spa or fitness center, or grocery store, especially since it was a pretty steep walk. They do have buses but it seemed kooky to me to wait for a bus to take you only a short distance, so I just hoofed it.
There’s a nice bar and restaurant in the lodge, except sadly the weekend I was there it was completely booked for a wedding. So I only got to hear the party going on from downstairs. One of the reasons I booked this place was because I knew they had a nice bar and restaurant on the premises, so that combined with the fact that I didn’t want to risk the drive down the mountain, really kind of stunk.
The best part of the Ridges is it has it’s own private gondola that will take you right down to the ski area. It’s about a ten minute ride and remember to bring your key with you to call the gondola. It’s a great feature, the only downside to it is you don’t get to go to all the cool restaurants down in town by the main gondola.
Breckenridge is a world-class destination for Colorado vacations with kids who are looking to experience a fun Colorado family vacation in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. There are tons of activities and restaurants on and off the mountain and lots of options of where to stay.
Parents can also watch their kids excel on the hill after a day of lessons at their world renowned ski school. Adult, Child, and Private Lessons are available for all family members.
Need a break from skiing? Take the kids ice skating, sleigh rides or snowmobiling. You can even enjoy a ride on Breckenridge alpine slide or just relax in the historic Town of Breckenridge.
When fortune seekers flocked to Breckridge back in the 1800s little did they know they found something better, the perfect ski mountain town.
Taos Ski Valley is located in the Sangre De Cristo Mountains in Northern New Mexico, with access to 1,294 acres of skiable terrain, and receiving an average 300 inches of snowfall annually. The ski area has a great mix of terrain combined with a distinctive mix of European, local Native American and Spanish cultures. It’s also home to one of the country’s highest rated ski schools.
Blue Mountain Ski Area is one of the most searched for ski areas on the Internet.
It’s a favorite for Pennsylvania and New York families who love to ski and snowboard. Skiing is a great way to spend time as a family and this mountain is a good size for families.
Blue Mountain boasts the highest vertical in PA at almost 1100 feet. There’s plenty for everyone to do there.
Located in Little Gap Valley alongside the Pocono Mountains, Blue Mountain has 39 trails, and 164 ski-able acres. It’s definitely family friendly for parents. It has a flexible 6 hour ski ticket (so you get there when you get there) and has one of the largest beginner terrain areas in the tri-state area. The learning center offers private and group lessons, but also strangely, promote the idea of you teaching your own kids if you are comfortable (I always did this because I was a ski instructor) but I don’t know if I’d recommend that for anyone that wasn’t trained in teaching skiing.
Blue Mountain is not only for beginners, it’s also got 3,000 foot long Double Black Diamond Trails, where skiers earn a breathtaking view of Pennsylvania’s beautiful Pocono Mountains.
Blue Mountain Resort also has some cool features where they includehands-off lift ticket scanners, RFID, that will fast track you through lift lines. The Summit can be reached by the High-Speed Detachable Quad and the 6-Person Chair Lift. In addition, three double chair lifts give access to the western mountain side where skiers and boarders will find novice, intermediate and expert terrain. Numerous mogul fields and glades accompany Blue Mountain’s varied terrain for all skill levels.
As for lodging and food. No one’s going to go hungry while skiing or boarding at Blue Mountain resort. They have over twelve places to eat slopeside and even more around town. There’s no on site lodging but plenty of local ski and stay parters in the immediate area for you to choose from.
Located in the southwest corner of the volcanic Long Valley Caldera on the eastern edge of California’s Sierra Nevada Mountain Range; Mammoth Mountain reaches over 3,500 skiable acres and a 3,100ft vertical drop.
The mountain is blessed with over 400 inches of snowfall a year and it’s the highest elevation in California at a neck-bending height of 11,053ft.
The modern resort has world class terrain options, and an ski season that can sometimes last into July.
Waterville Valley is a nice, quiet, uber-family friendly resort nestled in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The best part of the resort is that everything is right there where you need it, no need for driving around. In the winter there’s skiing on four different peaks, and in the summer there’s plenty to do as well.
It has a town square, places to dine, pool, fitness centers, shopping and has that special, New England country resort feel. It’s a little bit dirty dancing, a little bit Tremblant, but on a smaller scale.
There are 50 trails, 4000 foot elevation and plenty of terrain parks. There’s also the option of going Nordic to break up the week. You can also take the kids tubing and even dog sledding.
It’s a great place to reconnect with family and the outdoors.
Gore Mountain Ski Resort is a well known family friendly ski destination to upstate New Yorkers. Not too far from Albany, this is a serious size mountain with a little bit of everything for any type of skier.
This isn’t the mountain where you spend most of your time waiting in line to get on the lift; this is the mountain where you re-discover your love of the slopes. A mid-peak stop at the rustic mid base lodge for some après ski/coffee gives you an unparalleled view of the Adirondacks and Vermont and makes you fall in love even more.
Serious East Coast Ski Spot
Gore has 109 trails, boasts 2,537 vertical feet, and is known for helping beginners and experts continue to grow with the sport. The 15 lifts including the eight-passenger Northwoods Gondola and two luxurious high-speed quads keep you out of lines, with more time on their four peaks. There are also six dining options scattered across the mountain, you can refuel and keep skiing or riding without missing a beat.
Bring your child to the Mountain Adventure Center for lessons and coaching, open to all levels of skiers and riders, from beginner to advanced black diamond. Children are grouped by similar age and ability. All-day adventures and two-hour sessions are available daily. Your younger kids will love their Mini Learning Park, just for 4-6 year old beginner skiers. Choices include daily group and private lessons, holiday camps and season long programs. There’s also a Bear Cub day care area where they will keep your little ones entertained while you tear it up on the slopes.
Here’s a good video that really gives an overall view of the kind of terrain you can expect at Gore Mountain. I told you it was a serious East Coast Mountain.
The speedy lifts on the front side of this 50 year young Utah favorite destination is just what families need to get their adventure groove on.
The learning center offers private and group lessons, but also strangely, promote the idea of you teaching your own kids if you are comfortable (I always did this because I was a ski instructor) but I don’t know if I’d recommend that for anyone that wasn’t trained in teaching skiing.
t peaks, and in the summer there’s plenty to do as well.
