Help me decide where to ski this year. (Read 713 times)

Living about 20 minutes from Lake Tahoe, I will tell you we have no snow at all. It's mid 50s up at the lake today, near record highs. This winter has been scary mild.  Great for running, but lousy for skiing...

Everyone is hoping for 20 feet in February to make up for it... 

-Kelly

I would say that your list matches up with Park City quite nicely.  I have had plenty of great ski trips there... the Park City Resort has quite a bit of terrain, plenty of choices for all levels of skiers.  If you want something pretty special, check out the Washington School House (going to be pricey, but, hey... no food for the kids all year goes a long way!).  You have access to free Park City shuttles and are a very short walk from the downtown area restaurants and shopping. 

 

I not cared for Deer Valley (free shuttle from hotel), but have always had fun at Park City Resort for skiing.  I have also paid extra for shuttle from the Washington School House over to Snowbird/Alta, which are my favorite for skiing (about 30-40 minutes on the shuttle).  I have not checked snow levels in Utah.

 

Flights into Salt Lake City are plentiful and not too terribly expensive... 30-40 minute shuttle (not complimentary) up to Park City (don't need a car up there). 

That hotel is incredible! I think I would have to stop feeding the cats to afford it though. Not feeding my imaginary kids is one thing, but I draw the line at the cats.

I don't know what it is about Park City that doesn't grab me. It's on my husbands list of places, but not mine. So translated, I'm pretty sure it means we'll never go there.

How do people afford to go skiing?

How do people afford a house in the Hamptons? How do people afford a new Ferrari each year? etc. etc.

Skiing is actually not *that* bad cost-wise if you're careful about it. I used to go when I was a student - four of us drive overnight in a car to get down to the French Alpes, we stayed in a bunk-house with shared dorms. Lived on bread, cheese and fruit from the supermarket. Dirt cheap.

These days it costs rather more (partly because I have school age kids and the prices rocket when the kids are on school holiday), but not terrible.

I go to Aspen for a couple months in the summer and every time I'm there I think about how lucky people must be to get to ski there! I would love to go there in the winter. Some day. 

Airfare can be pricey in Aspen but this summer they extended the runway at the airport and added another airliner... so it might be cheaper now, with the airliners competing. The town of Aspen is fantastic and has tons of great restaurants and bars. Personal favorites: Aspen Brewing Company, Grateful Deli, Asie, Hickory House, and Campo. 

Just throwing that out there for anyone who decides to go to Aspen. 

Snowmass is great too and not far from Aspen. 

Also, if flights to Aspen are super pricey but Denver isn't.. there's a pretty cheap shuttle service. MTA: Or rent a car from Denver. I did that last summer, but flew in and out of Aspen the times before. 

MTA: they/the 

How do people afford a house in the Hamptons? How do people afford a new Ferrari each year? etc. etc.

 

I buy my Ferrari's used. 

I buy my Ferrari's used. 

Me too, but never my Porsches. 

Yeah, definitely not the cheapest place. Did you look for lodging in Basalt? A friend of mine stayed in Basalt this summer and just took a the down valley bus into town everyday. (That's another great thing about Aspen -- free buses!) 

 

Also keep your eye out on Craigslist. People rent out places in and around Aspen all the time. 

That's a good idea too, but here's the deal though.... my agreement with my husband is that we have to go skiing out west every year. Every 3rd year we take a BIG trip - like going to the Alps in 2010. So this year we're still on an "off" year and I just have to keep it reasonable so that next year we get to do something awesome again. So, Aspen seems better suited for a year when we up the budget. And knowing that, I think I'd rather save it for a year when we do it up right, rather than trying to do it on the cheap and not getting all that we want out of it. Make sense? This whole idea of "budgeting" and "give and take" is new to me...but I'm doing the best I can!

 He's a solid black diamond skier at most places, but I heard that in Jackson Hole, the blacks are more like double blacks and the blues are more like blacks. Did you find that to be true?

I have to chime in and agree with Jackson Hole.  It is absolutely my favorite place to ski (and I used to live in Colorado and be an avid skier).  The mountain is huge and there is such a variety of terrain.  It has two mountains, Rendezvous and Apres Vous.  Apres Vous has a ton of easier stuff, while Rendezvous has a mix.  The best thing about Jackson Hole is that it has the most vertical of any ski area in the United States, so you can get on a long cruiser and just go on forever.  

As far as how challenging the terrain is, I think it is pretty true to other ski areas out west.  I found that it depends on snow conditions.  I was on a double black in Jackson Hole that was comically easy, I have been on blues that have absolutely handed my ass to me.  

So what about the six mile ride into Jackson?  It is worth it.  It is a cute town and there a bunch of  restaurants and bars (check out the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar). It is easy to catch a shuttle (pretty easy to hitch hike, too ).  I can try to look up the name of where I always stayed, but they have these pre-fab log cabins that have a full kitchen.  I've found that you end up saving money with these because you can make your own breakfast and dinner, plus keep sandwich fixins and pack a lunch for the day.

If you get a car, it is worth it to go ski at Grand Targhee one day.  They get absolutely dumped on.  There is usually a ton of powder there.  It takes maybe an hour or so to get there (you have to swing through Idaho).  It can get really foggy there in the afternoon, but the powder is worth it).