Best Ski Resorts
What are the best ski resorts in the US and worldwide?
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In no order
US East: Mad River Glen, Jay Peak, Sugarloaf, Stowe
US West: Jackson Hole, Big Sky, Alta, Powder Mountain, Vail, Whitefish, Alyeska, Squaw
International: Chamonix, Verbier, Portillo, Las Lenas, Whistler, Revelstoke, Cortina
I was recently on a ski trip at Jackson Hole with 140 of my classmates. It was THE SHIT!!!!!
I've only been to a few (all in Canada), but I am certainly a fan of Mont Tremblant.
Heavenly, Kirkwood, Vail
Deer Valley, UT
My two favorites are Telluride CO and Tahoe CA.
MiserlyGrandpa covered the big ones.
From personal experience, I would recommend Jay Peak, Chamonix (Grands Montets in particular), Val d'Isere/Tignes, Avoriaz and Alagna which is in Italy and is absolutely nuts when it has good snow cover.
Montgenevre and Serre-Chevalier are great cheaper options in France and excellent if you are going with a big group that isn't necessarily into the whole backcountry thing.
Also, don't go to Saas-Fee in Switzerland, place is garbage.
I don't really know how it was all around, but Keystone in Colorado had an amazing terrain park. I pretty much spent the whole day there so I don't know too much about the rest of it.
Heli-skiing - CMH and Great Canadian Heliskiing
Back bowls at Vail are tough to beat.
Northstar, Lake Tahoe Killington, VT Stowe, VT
HA! you don't know anything dude.
Jackson hole, that's about it
US?
Probably Vail
And if anyone is going out to ski in CO, I was stationed out there in the military so I'd be more than happy to help you plan the trip and maybe even show you around.
I will not accept any North American resort as #1, not even Whistler. You guys don't know how to party.
Bode Miller would disagree. Though I'll admit, the 80's were the golden days of american skiing, source: Hot Dog the Movie
WHISTLER (has Blackomb mountain right next to it too) hands down - awesome skiing and great apres!
Other good resorts I've been to: Banf (sunshine village, lake louise), heavenly, coursheval, chamonix, verbier
WHISTLER (has Blackomb mountain right next to it too) hands down - awesome skiing and great apres!
Other good resorts I've been to: Banf (sunshine village, lake louise), heavenly, coursheval, chamonix, verbier
I'll say one thing kind of on the subject... the coolest thing that I ever discovered about skiing was Warren Miller. If any of you have never seen one of his films (just pick one, you can't go wrong), please stop what you are doing and look him up. Fantastic cinema!
Vail, Breckenridge and Keystone are great. But, they're also the only mountains i've been to outside of New England. You can ride all of them with the same pass too, I was at Breck and then went over to Keystone during our lunch break.
Going to Whistler next month. Anyone have any recommendations for while I'm there? Apparently we're also going bungee jumping. Seems like a bad idea in 20-30 degree weather.
Thanks! Anything in the Village I should be sure not to miss out on? Staying at Stoney Creek Northstar.
Great, now I'm going to get stuck behind an entire business school class trying to figure out how to sidestep down the high entrance to sapphire bowl. I suppose it's better than recommending Khyber.
Colorado (Vail is overrated- too many tourists, check out Aspen, CB, Steamboat), Tahoe (when it actually snows there), Whistler is probably the best in N.America. However, nothing beats the 3 Valleys in France in terms of sheer size and terrain.
Aspen is overrated too. Too many wannabee snowbunnies that doesn't ski nor board. Celebrities.
Can someone compile this into Official Rankings ... and it should be prestige based, "best" means nothing.
Deer Valley in UT, best place to ski ever
Vail is full of tourists, but that doesn't diminish the quality of the terrain....especially if you go during weekdays. If you can get there after it's snowed recently both Blue Sky basin and the back bowls are fantastic if not quite on par with Zermatt-Matterhorn.
Top BBs
Chamonix Verbier Jackson Hole Whistler
Elite Boutiques
La Grave Alagna A-Basin Jay Peak
This is very helpful. I probably don't have the pedigree to make it at these BB/EB locations. Perhaps, there are some MM's you could list... also I don't want to be at any resorts where the chicks put up HUGE walls. Thanks
Stowe for an East Coast regional? Stratton for chicks over skiing? Shooting from the hip here I'm afraid.
If this video is any indication, La Clusaz in France is pretty nice.
//www.youtube.com/embed/yKP7jQknGjs
That video is insane
I just got back from Nagano Japan, it was unreal. Amazing powder, and the fact that it's in japan means that the food was incredible.
Also depends on how much money you want to spend/what type of skiing you like. IMO there is great value in the Canadian/US Rockies and the back country is top notch.
I see best resort in ? and then see a bunch of mountains that are great but resorts suck.
Hands down #1 Zermatt Chamonix is fucking terrible; French are logistic morons. Whistler is great, conditions suck for most part. Park City grudgingly BC I love Alta and stick to that side of the mountains usually. Vail
I could care less for resorts so top 5 mountains (conditions and difficulty/trails): Alta (best powder in the world) Chamonix Zermatt Keystone Jackson Hole
Gotta give a shout out to BIG SKY Resort in Montana. It's the largest mountain in America with 5800 acres and is generally less crowded then the Colorado mountains.
Ya it's a great little town and the people are amazing. Everyone is happy. Also, since you have been there, it has become even bigger! (http://www.ski.com/blog/big-sky-purchases-moonlight-basin/)
Ischgl and St. Anton deserve a mention, hard to beat the apres in Austria
Ischgl and St. Anton deserve a mention, hard to beat the apres in Austria
Ischgl and St. Anton deserve a mention, hard to beat the apres in Austria
Best Snow - Japan Best Terrain - Europe (also the resorts are huge, 3V is +600KM) In-between - North America
My favorites, all over hyped already but for good reason...
Niseko (or really any resort on Hokkaido, especially this season): The snow. Japan tree lines. Chamonix: Ridiculous back-country, on your doorstep. Le Trois Vallees: Huge. Just fucking massive. St. Anton: Apres Zermatt: Because you can ride in two countries in one day. Crossing a border on ski/board is just fun.
Banff (Sunshine Village): Ball ache to get up to, but stays open way late in the season and the nightlife in the town is kinda fun. Whistler: Good lift system, decent parks, easy access back country. Revelstoke: Good ol' fashioned fun. Anywhere in AK: Heli days are the best days.
For my money, pin ball around Europe on the train/ hire car. Resorts in Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland, Austria etc. all so close together its perfectly doable.
It's a long flight, but Chile and Argentina are where it's at. The terrain and snow is as good if not better than Europe. And as a bonus, the girls in Argentina are hotter, the parties are better, and few people actually know how to ski so you'll feel like a pro and have all the good lines to yourself.
Deer Valley is for people who can't put their own boots on.
Go to steamboat or CMH.
Support my PA investment.
I've skied and snowboarded all over the US and Canada. The truth is, the "best places" are all subjective. It's all personal preference. I've been to Vail in shitty conditions and Vail when it's dumped in powder. I've done Jackson Hole in white out conditions and in spring riding conditions. I've been to Banff, Whistler and Tremblant. I've done the Northeast in an Ice Storm and the Poconos in a Noreaster. Given how easy it is to plan and wait for snow reports to come in, just go where its dumping day in day out. I have a friend who waited until December to book a trip to Jackson Hole next week just to see how the snow was going to fall. That's just something to chew on.
The big thing everyone forgets is that going somewhere amazing and not being able to take full advantage of it is a waste. Saying "I Skied/Boarded Alta/Jackson Hole/Tahoe/Magic Mountain/Mad River Glen/etc." when you can't take full advantage of it is a serious waste.
Oh, and @"Cries", I fucking love Steamboat. I've done more back country skiing and riding in and around Routt County (including a few drives up to Jackson Hole which is 2 hours away) than I should admit and have been when the mountain during non-peak high season when its locals only riding on 2+ Feet of fresh powder. It's a fantastic place.
Can't believe no-one has mentioned the Dolomites / Val Gardena..world's largest fully linked ski area with >500km of piste. You can do a week there and never do the same run twice. Plus it's Italy, so you have the best food, cars, fashion, women.
I live in Zurich and have done most of the major resorts in Switzerland. My favourite is Laax which is especially good for snowboarding and has the biggest snowpark in Europe. Davos is the St Moritz for people who actually want to ski, lots of good off-piste areas. You can't go wrong with Jungfrau/Grindelwald, Verbier (4Vallees) or Zermatt. Places to avoid would be Andermatt, Engelberg, Flumserberg, Gstaad, St Moritz - value for money is not great in terms of skiing experience. Anyway Switzerland is now way too expensive if you don't earn swiss francs. For e.g I paid 100 euros last weekend at Lech am Arlberg in Austria for a 3 day lift pass, whereas yesterday I paid 75 swiss francs for 1 day at Laax, crazy considering that now 1EUR=1CHF. I don't know how the Swiss ski resorts will survive at these levels.
On the wide brave shoulders of Russian oligarchs.
Semi-relevant question: Am I the only one who doesnt enjoy skiing when there's 8 feet of fresh unpacked powder? Shit just hurts my already fucked up shins. Give the powder a day to harden a little, and we are golden.
.
Interesting. I've been skiing for like 20 years and no one has ever suggested that. I'll definitely try that next time.
figured ya'll would enjoy this
//www.youtube.com/embed/yKP7jQknGjs
Someone already posted
i was wondering why someone threw shit at me haha. my bad
I use Volkl Bridges as a good, all round pair of skis. They're not going to ever move as fast as a race ski, nor will they glide like a powder ski but they will handle capably on any part of the mountain you go to.
Fuck that shit. If you're confident enough to do the back bowls (or the ridiculous trails like Corbet's Coular at Jackson Hole, the Bowls at Alta/Snowboard, go Off Piste at Whistler/Blackcomb) then just a damned Lvl 3 Ski Instructor who knows the terrain like the back of his hand to be your guide. My last trip to Jackson Hole I requested a ski instructor who knew the mountain like the back of his hand and got someone who was on the level of Warren Miller. He had me skiing stuff that was Off Piste and worth every second of ski time. If you're that damned good, get a guide to show you the place and spend the extra money for it. Skiing the best places in the world with a local guide is worth every penny you can spend for it.
There's a big diff btwn powder and packed skis IMO. Don't even bother bringing my skis when I head out west BC I'll fly on a moments notice to SLC to grab some powder. And time and money, it's a wash w/ going to VT and any East Crap mountains.
I feel like the Three Valleys in France haven't gotten enough of a mention. Largest ski area in the world, amazing apres (especially at La Folie Douce), epic slopes, amazing food, and great snow till the end of the season. Chamonix, La Plagne, and Verbier are awesome too. Also not enough Austria mentions: Ischgl (some of the best apres ever, apart from the occasional techno/yodeling mash-up music), Kitzbuhel, St Anton. Sapporo and Niseko in Japan are great too, lots of untouched powder because the locals only stay on the pistes, plus Kobe beef, Hokkaido crab, and Japanese whisky = total win
Also, Rossignol Soul 7s on the pow = win
I'm from breck, so I have some bias, but Vail is only worth skiing if there is fresh snow because the backside gets sunbaked so quick. I would have to say the best skiing for terrain I have done is Jackson, I will get up to Tahoe this year, and I am going to Chamonix for spring break, excited to check out some non US skiing
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