New England Looking for New England ski resort recommendations

[Clay49]

Consider the NE in the future then. It's much better than most here give it credit for.

I will! Thank you!

 

[mdf]

Consider the NE in the future then. It's much better than most here give it credit for.

New England can be glorious. But it has too many "heartbreaker" storms. Years ago (before cell phones) I
drove up to Killington with a coworker just before Christmas. It was supposed to be a day trip because he was going to spend time with his fiance and her family in New Jersey. Of course it snows like crazy.
He says, we aren't leaving. I'll make some excuse. We contact central reservations and get a room, then go to dinner. it happened to be an old fashioned place, dark with few windows.

You know what happened, right? We come out after dinner and it is POURING rain. My friend looks at the sky in disbelief and then looks at me and says "I have to drive to New Jersey". And he did.

 

[BLiP]

Consider the NE in the future then. It's much better than most here give it credit for.

The East is great. I don’t think anyone here is saying otherwise. But the OP has a specific list of things he wants, and the East doesn’t fit that list as well as the West. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Itinerant skier]

The East is great. I don’t think anyone here is saying otherwise. But the OP has a specific list of things he wants, and the East doesn’t fit that list as well as the West. Nothing wrong with that.

The specific things listed in the OP (airport access, blue terrain, scenic slopeside lodging, etc, etc) can all be found at any number of eastern resorts. Rather than providing the answers the OP asked for, many that replied seemed aghast that they would dare to go east to ski when they could instead ...you know...go west. I'm sure the OP will have a great time at Beaver Creek (I don't ski Vail resorts, but will totally mooch their cookies in the afternoon as I often base myself in Avon when skiing CO).

The fickle weather in the east is quite familiar to me. I've also been rained on up and down the PNW from Ashland to Whistler and skied on mud in Hokkaido when the Japow hadn't arrived by late December.

I love skiing the West. If I was choosing a place to live just based on snow conditions, it would likely be ID, MT or UT. But the northeast is a legitimate claimant for the birthplace of American skiing and can provide an awesome ski trip, even if it's a totally different feel than out west.

 

[BLiP]

The specific things listed in the OP (airport access, blue terrain, scenic slopeside lodging, etc, etc) can all be found at any number of eastern resorts

Well, give us the name of an eastern resort that is less than an hour drive from any airport, let alone a major airport. If you don't like the answers everyone else has given, give your own rather than complaining.

*Edit: That probably came off more hostile than I intended. The point was simply that its easy to pick at other's recommendations. There's more value to everyone if you add your own and share your own knowledge, experience, etc.

 

[Itinerant skier]

Well, give us the name of an eastern resort that is less than an hour drive from any airport, let alone a major airport. If you don't like the answers everyone else has given, give your own rather than complaining.

*Edit: That probably came off more hostile than I intended. The point was simply that its easy to pick at other's recommendations. There's more value to everyone if you add your own and share your own knowledge, experience, etc.

The OP asked for "easy access from a well traveled airport." Loon is closer to BOS than BC is to DEN and I-93 is far less troublesome than I-70. MHT is only 90 minutes and has easy connections from BHM.

That misses the point though. Comparing Loon to BC is silly on its face. Acknowledging the potential for a great ski vacation in the NE is not.

 

[Rich McP]

The OP asked for "easy access from a well traveled airport." Loon is closer to BOS than BC is to DEN and I-93 is far less troublesome than I-70. MHT is only 90 minutes and has easy connections from BHM.

That misses the point though. Comparing Loon to BC is silly on its face. Acknowledging the potential for a great ski vacation in the NE is not.

BOS to Loon is 135 miles; DEN to BC is 129 miles. Getting out of BOS is every bit as painful as getting through Denver. If you run into I-70 hell, then you are right. If you avoid that then your argument falls flat.

Since I was one who poo pooed NE, I'll say that I hope my post was seen as an attempt at a helpful, useful sharing of my own experience and viewpoint.

I grew up skiing the Sierras and Rockies, then lived in the south for 15+ years flying to ski, then CO for 15 years, now NE for the last 2 seasons. We have the opportunity to live in Breck in the winters now and will be doing that instead of staying in NE and skiing the ice coast. My perspective seems pertinent to the OP.

I hope his choice of BC turns out to be everything he's hoping for his family's trip.

 

[cantunamunch]

Well, give us the name of an eastern resort that is less than an hour drive from any airport, let alone a major airport.

Mont Sainte Anne.

 

[TheArchitect]

NE has great skiing when the conditions are good. Recommending Stowe, Sugarbush, Jay, etc. is easy to do when you know there will be good conditions. That’s the rub. Conditions have always been variable but in the last 5 years it’s gotten much more so. It’s really hard to recommend someone come here vs out west with the weather variable.

With that said, my personal bias is that I’d be hard pressed to ever recommend NE over western resorts, especially those in UT, CO, WY and MT. As good as northern VT can be it can’t compete with the big resorts we all know and love out west.

 

[Brian Finch]

New England is nothing like Tahoe or Winter Park.

That being said, Stratton or Okemo.

Stratton is very bad, stay away.

 

[Itinerant skier]

NE has great skiing when the conditions are good. Recommending Stowe, Sugarbush, Jay, etc. is easy to do when you know there will be good conditions. That’s the rub. Conditions have always been variable but in the last 5 years it’s gotten much more so. It’s really hard to recommend someone come here vs out west with the weather variable.

With that said, my personal bias is that I’d be hard pressed to ever recommend NE over western resorts, especially those in UT, CO, WY and MT. As good as northern VT can be it can’t compete with the big resorts we all know and love out west.

But did the OP ask for opinions about whether or not the west was better than the east?
No. They did not. They asked for NE resort suggestions.

I don't feel the need to point out how bad vail is for the sport in every thread where someone asks for tips about Breck or Keystone.

I ride northeast lifts with plenty of folks from the south who choose the NE over the west, particularly Florida and the Carolinas who take advantage of the dirt cheap nonstop flights aimed at bringing New Englanders south to the sun in the winter. They often cite the cheap flights, more accessible skiing, no altitude challenges and better non skiing activities than at many western resorts. Boston history type stuff rather than outdoor pursuits. Note that while I've never heard one person suggest the snow conditions were better. I've heard plenty say the overall experience is better.

 

[James]

I mean tons of Brits come to Killington every spring. I also once met someone from Ireland on the lift at Cranmore.
Note that no one who skis at these places thinks it makes any sense. I do miss the Canadians who would drive 10hours from Ontario to Okemo in March. Somehow that migration has been curtailed.

 

[TheArchitect]

But did the OP ask for opinions about whether or not the west was better than the east?
No. They did not. They asked for NE resort suggestions.

And the OP also asked for Colorado options in the quote below.

Thank you for all of these responses! I think part of the equation was also the long travel time going and returning, you basically kill 2 whole days in doing that. I suppose flying to Colorado wouldn’t be quite as much of a trip. So I am open to considering other Colorado options other than Winter Park. Just not much going on there beyond the skiing

I don't feel the need to point out how bad vail is for the sport in every thread where someone asks for tips about Breck or Keystone.

I ride northeast lifts with plenty of folks from the south who choose the NE over the west, particularly Florida and the Carolinas who take advantage of the dirt cheap nonstop flights aimed at bringing New Englanders south to the sun in the winter. They often cite the cheap flights, more accessible skiing, no altitude challenges and better non skiing activities than at many western resorts. Boston history type stuff rather than outdoor pursuits. Note that while I've never heard one person suggest the snow conditions were better. I've heard plenty say the overall experience is better.

And I ride plenty of lifts with people complaining about how the typical conditions in the NE have deteriorated over the last five years and out west seems to be a better bet these days. They often cite less risk of them wasting their valuable vacation time and money given the uneven winter weather we have in the east. And respectfully, if you think your anecdote about never hearing one person suggest the snow conditions weren't better out west is a generally held view then you might want to reconsider that.

I'm not sure why you seem to have an attitude on this topic. The OP asked for NE suggestions and then asked for Colorado suggestions. A number of people responded with reasoned information for both.

 

[Itinerant skier]

And the OP also asked for Colorado options in the quote below.

Which was posted after four separate comments suggested they go west instead.

And I ride plenty of lifts with people complaining about how the typical conditions in the NE have deteriorated over the last five years and out west seems to be a better bet these days. They often cite less risk of them wasting their valuable vacation time and money given the uneven winter weather we have in the east. And respectfully, if you think your anecdote about never hearing one person suggest the snow conditions weren't better out west is a generally held view then you might want to reconsider that.

While last season wasn't the best (until it dumped in March) it was still fun. The two before that were pretty nice. I love me some Pow, but skiing is about far more than just snow conditions.

I'm not sure why you seem to have an attitude on this topic. The OP asked for NE suggestions and then asked for Colorado suggestions. A number of people responded with reasoned information for both.

If someone posts requesting suggestions for ski areas around Detroit, I'm not gonna reply with "Don't bother, they're all 200 foot hills covered with ice. Just go to DTW and fly west." That would, quite frankly, be a jerk thing to do. Rather, I'd tell them what I know about Brighton and Pine Knob and Mt Holly. That's why I have an attitude about it. Now, if it's mid season and 70 degrees in Detroit, I might mention that, but if people want to ski Detroit, let them ski Detroit.

I hope the OP has epic pow days the whole time they are in CO. I also hope that people come to the NE and have an amazing time. It's unfortunate that so many on a skiing forum don't share the latter.

 

[Itinerant skier]

I mean tons of Brits come to Killington every spring. I also once met someone from Ireland on the lift at Cranmore.
Note that no one who skis at these places thinks it makes any sense. I do miss the Canadians who would drive 10hours from Ontario to Okemo in March. Somehow that migration has been curtailed.

I've seen these Brit groups as well in NH. Unfortunately this year, the hotel threw their passports out....

https://www.wmur.com/article/lincoln-new-hampshire-hotel-uk-passports-update-39/43259286#

If people who live a two hour flight from the alps can have a good ski trip to NE (and the groups come back every year), then so can folks in the American south.

 

[DebbieSue]

I love skiing in New England, where I learned to ski. And I love skiing out West. But, in the decades that I had little vacation time, and had to book months in advance, you can be darn sure I booked the winter week in CO, UT, CA, NM rather than VT, NH, ME. Much better chance of good to excellent conditions, blue sky, and importantly, little chance of rain!!! I like slush and skiing in a trash bag, but it's not everyone's cup of tea. And invariably, after the rain, whatever is left freezes. New England gets rain in Jan, Feb, Mar. I don't think this happens in those Western states mid-winter. Also it is much less likely to be really, really cold out West, or at least with the blue sky and sunshine, you don't think it's as cold! The path of least regrets leads West!

 

[Clay49]

I love skiing in New England, where I learned to ski. And I love skiing out West. But, in the decades that I had little vacation time, and had to book months in advance, you can be darn sure I booked the winter week in CO, UT, CA, NM rather than VT, NH, ME. Much better chance of good to excellent conditions, blue sky, and importantly, little chance of rain!!! I like slush and skiing in a trash bag, but it's not everyone's cup of tea. And invariably, after the rain, whatever is left freezes. New England gets rain in Jan, Feb, Mar. I don't think this happens in those Western states mid-winter. Also it is much less likely to be really, really cold out West, or at least with the blue sky and sunshine, you don't think it's as cold! The path of least regrets leads West!

Yes, I do hope, someday, to find myself in New England in the winter and in ideal snow conditions… At that point, I will try it. Until then, I will stick with the west. My wife and I decided on Beaver Creek, thanks to a boatload of Capital One points, it shouldn’t set us back to terribly much.

 

[cantunamunch]

Yes, I do hope, someday, to find myself in New England in the winter and in ideal snow conditions… At that point, I will try it.

Hehe, pretty sure that's not how New England works.

You have to commit, stick with the commitment in the face of imminent disappointment, fight your way through traffic, find parking somewhere and then - maybe - get lucky.

Or just hang out with friends on the good-for-you snow.

Until then, I will stick with the west.

Of course I still remember the winter when Vermont had all the snow, including the western stuff.

 

[4aprice]

New England is the land of the weekend warrior, the west is for vacations. Making plans for skiing New England is almost counter productive. One needs to leave weekend plans open till at least a Wednesday or Thursday when one can get an idea of exactly what the weather and conditions will be or really be a warrior and take a chance and go anyways. It can be maddening. That said like people have opined here when it good it's game on and you will have a smile on your face when you return to work on Monday.

 

[TheArchitect]

Which was posted after four separate comments suggested they go west instead.

While last season wasn't the best (until it dumped in March) it was still fun. The two before that were pretty nice. I love me some Pow, but skiing is about far more than just snow conditions.

If someone posts requesting suggestions for ski areas around Detroit, I'm not gonna reply with "Don't bother, they're all 200 foot hills covered with ice. Just go to DTW and fly west." That would, quite frankly, be a jerk thing to do. Rather, I'd tell them what I know about Brighton and Pine Knob and Mt Holly. That's why I have an attitude about it. Now, if it's mid season and 70 degrees in Detroit, I might mention that, but if people want to ski Detroit, let them ski Detroit.

I hope the OP has epic pow days the whole time they are in CO. I also hope that people come to the NE and have an amazing time. It's unfortunate that so many on a skiing forum don't share the latter.

I hardly think the 4 separate people you mentioned were being jerks for offering opinions differing from the first post. In fact, seeing as the OP decided to go west it seems that he was pretty open to an alternative to NE.

"Skiing is about far more than just snow conditions".

Really? 'Snow conditions' does not equate to just "pow". Bumps, steeps, groomers, glades can all be awesome or terrible...depending on snow conditions. What exactly is the "far more than" in your mind?

"It's unfortunate that so many on a skiing forum don't share the latter"

You're making a lot of assumptions, aren't you? The people who live in the NE are giving advice about whether the OP should fly to NE for a ski vacation. They are correctly letting the OP know the risk of variable conditions in NE. No one has said the skiing here is bad.