Family Ski Vacations

Never been on any ski vacations, sorry.

 

Jet

Skiing is expensive - you might check out staying at glorietta in new mexico. It is an SBC encampment - the slopes are a 30-45 min drive from there - and I think they have ski packages. It will probably be the most economical deal you will find.

 

Keystone, CO is ranked as one of the best family-friendly ski resorts. Not too big, not too small, and a nice long green run for beginners and the less adventurous. We have found lift passes for Keystone readily available on e-bay, too.

 

I like Keystone - very family oriented with a lot of green slopes. Also, you may want to check out Breckenridge which is a short drive to Keystone.

 

Some of it may depend on the ages of your family.

One option could be to drive to the slopes each day. You can go to Salt Lake City from Birmingham fairly cheaply, especially if you are willing to do Southwest. If you stay in the city, lodging is rather cheap. You can then drive to any number of places each day. The areas around Park City have an interstate that goes nearly all the way and I hear that they rarely have travel problems. If they do, there is a $5 ski bus that will get you there. Some of the ski passes include free transportation on the shuttle. I think it might be 30 minutes or so. Unfortunately, my only experience with SLC was a month ago and I stayed at Snowbird which is a bit south of Park City. Very stepp and not a place I would recommend for a family. I think the Park City areas (Park City, Canyons, Deer Valley) have more family friendly areas. Solitude in Little Cottonwood Canyon is supposed to be nice. And Alta in Big Cottonwood Canyon has a very nice beginner area.

You could do the same thing in Colorado. Stay at one of the small towns on I70. Dillon. Frisco. Silverthorne. And then drive somewhere each day. There are a ton of places along the interstate. Vail, Beaver Creek, Loveland and Copper are essentially on the interstate. Breckenridge, Keystone, and A-Basin are not but a few miles off. (I have personally been to Vail, Breck and Beav Cr.Of the three, Breck would seem to be your best bet. A big area, a lot of beginner terrain. And a nice ski town with plenty to do and eat.) For a family trip you might consider some of the smaller areas like Monarch or Cooper.

Where I want to go with my family when we have kids is Grand Targhee in Wyoming. Getting there could be expensive as you have to fly to Jackson Hole. Fairly good sized area. Wonderful beginner area. Most of the rest of the mountian is perfect for intermediates. Huge amounts of snow. An incredible view of the Tetons. I went a couple of years ago and spring break week was $60 a night for a lodge room with 2 queen beds. They also have a small condo there with I think two bedrooms each. Lift tickets aren't bad. The only thing is that it has a small base. 3 lodges and maybe about 5 restaurants so your nightime and dinner choices are limited. Hot tub and heated pool though. The kids program looked to be really well run.

One final option for someone in your shoes might be to drive up to somewhere like Snowshoe WV for a week. It is not the Western experience and the conditions might not be near as good...but you can drive there from here.

 

Brianhead(sp?) UT very family friendly and less expensive than most places, Mostly beg/int runs. Get condo within walking distance of resort for good prices. Can get there with one of those inexpensive flights to Las Vegas then a 3 hour car ride.