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Suggestions for family trip next March on a TIGHT budget?

post #1 of 99
7/18/12 at 12:31pm
Thread Starter 

Howdy folks!  This past January I asked for and got some great advice on skiing during a business trip to Las Vegas.  I ended up driving to Brian Head and spent a couple of days there.  Snow conditions were pretty poor, but I generally ski mostly groomers anyway, and they were fine for the most part.  I had a blast, so thanks for the great advice!

 

Anyway, the wife and I are trying to get an early start on planning and saving for a Spring Break ski trip during the last week of March 2013, and I'm thinking Brian Head is a pretty good choice.  We have a 12 yr old son that skied a couple of days at Snowshoe 5 years ago, and an 8 yr old that has never skied, so they will both need to take at least a one-day lesson (possibly 2).  I've contacted several Brian Head condo owners on VRBO and have gotten an offer for a nice 2BR/2BA ski-in/ski-out condo there for six nights for just under $800  (Sunday through Friday).  And I suspect we'll be able to get coupons for half-price lift tickets at Terrible Herbst after we leave the airport in Vegas (like I did in January).  But even without coupons, full day adult passes at BH are only about $50.  So if we ski 4 days, at the worst we're looking at about $400 for adult lift tickets, plus a similar amount or maybe a bit less for the boys (including a day of lessons).  It sounds like a pretty sweet deal and although I know BH is a small resort for 4 days of skiing, this trip is mostly about the boys and I'm sure we'll take lots of breaks and have some short days when they'll want to ride inner tubes, go snow sledding, go snowmobiling, etc. (with one full day of rest in the middle of the week where we may go see one of the national parks if they're open).

 

But before we commit to Brian Head and reserve a condo, I wanted to ask for recommendations for other resort destinations we should consider.  We should have enough AMEX points to pay for four plane tickets to pretty much anywhere in the U.S. so that doesn't need to be considered.  Basically I'm just looking for budget-oriented family-friendly resorts where we can get decent ski-in/ski-out lodging for six nights AND four days worth of lift tickets for a family of four (with a couple of kid lessons), for somewhere between $1,500 and $1,800.  I know that's a tough order at most resorts, but if it's possible at Brian Head then I thought I should ask about other resorts because there are tons of resorts I've never even heard of (didn't know about BH till this year).  And although I lean towards resorts in the Rockies, I'm certainly open to suggestions in the Northeast (been to Stowe and LOVED it).  But with the late date in March I'm concerned about mud season coming early....

 

So any suggestions or comments would be MOST welcome!

 

David

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post #2 of 99
7/18/12 at 1:17pm

Well, Whitefish is a very good value and is good for ski parties of mixed abilities, especially families.  The airfare may be an issue as although the airport is only a half hour away, it is not a major hub.  The resort lodging link is:  http://skiwhitefish.com/winter_lodging.php

 

But you can probably do better with VRBO:  http://www.vrbo.com/search/usa/montana/glacier-country/whitefish-lake/whitefish/whitefish-mountain/keywords:whitefish/arrival:2013-03-24/departure:2013-03-29/sort-by:Bedrooms (the Morning Eagle one is perfect for convenience not only during the day but at night for the mountain restaurants.  At $195/night, it's perfect.)

 

Found this set of mountain offerings on the resort site.  (Lift tickets would run you a maximum of $50 * 4 * 4 as you can buy the tickets from Costco for adults at $50 a day.  On-mountain purchasing the boys will be only $30 a day, knocking $160 bucks off that total.  Hibernation House includes lift tickets, it's not clear to me if these condos do or not.  There is cheaper lodging in town and the Snow Bus can run you up the mountain if you don't rent a car.  Buying a Frequent Skier pass (next year's rates not yet available) may also save you money.  

 

 

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post #3 of 99
7/18/12 at 1:17pm

I've never been to BH, but heard it's pretty country around there and it sounds like you've scoped it out pretty well for what you want to do.  My first concern was how late does BH stay open, but it appears that they go into early April so you should be good for late March.  At that time of the season you want to consider high elevation resorts known for good snow retention.  BH seems pretty high elevation so I guess it would be good in that regard.  New England would definitely be a crapshoot at that time.  Here is a list of western US resorts compiled by Tony Crocker that are known for good late season conditions:

http://173.193.223.192/~bestsnow/latesnow.htm

 

Although many on that list will have more varied terrain than BH and as good or better snow, I doubt any on that list have more affordable slopeside lodging for your timeframe?  You might look into Solitude and or Brighton Utah.  Since you seem to have airfare covered by points, you might look into going to a place that normally involves more expensive airfares such as Big Sky or Whitefish/Big Mtn in MT or Grand Targhee in WY?  Whitefish/Big Mtn and Targhee might be competitive with BH for inexpensive slopeside lodging?

 

Edit:  Posted same time as SibHusky and included a shout out for her Whitefish/Big Mtnwink.gif

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post #4 of 99
7/18/12 at 1:37pm

As to late season conditions here at Whitefish.  I looked back at my ski journal for the past nine seasons and found the following weather related notes for days after March 20:

 

03-04:

Was away at other areas for races.

 

04-05:

had fresh powder, then away at races.

 

05-06: 

skied with Sylvia (SLOW!), but knocked out 14500 feet between 3 and lift close
New Vertical record
Tired, arrived late, started raining, left early
 
Skied until all wet from wet snow
Rained for most of the AM, but was nice in PM
Had migraine, started raining, went home

 

 

06-07: 

 

Hard as a rock, frozen corduroy, which ripped wax off in a few feet.
Sunny and fast.
Raw and cold.  Boring groomers, no buddies around.  Left early.
 
Elkweed, Cal's Country, Schmidt's Chute
Weird snow, clumpy
Fresh pow on Stumptown!
accident.  Broken wrists, concussion. (included this to show why I stopped skiing)

 

07-08:

 

 

Fresh powder boot deep.  Elephant's, Moose, twice down the bowl
NO more powder.  Got migraine and left early.
 
Best day of skiing EVER.  Snow sometimes crotch deep.  Gray's, Elephants
Took Metcalfs on tours of Bob's Run, Gray's Rim, Whitey's.  Good Med

 

08-09:

 

Got herky-jerky really early, but since it was Saturday we didn't plan to ski long anyhow.
Conditions frozen granular over eastern ice.
Beautiful January type snow, bright blue day.
Just like January again, without the frost bite.  Extremely windy.
Wow, dumping, dumping.  Deep snow, but not fluff.

 

09-10:

 

Fresh snow, but got lumpy bumpy pretty quick
Nice snow, surprisingly
Nightmare coming down Toni at day's end.  Took 25 minutes due to really heavy slush
a trace of fresh snow over ice on the back, sheer ice on fhe front.  I must be nuts.
Better than expected and for a change the front was nicer than the back.  But, still groomer city.

 

10-11:

 

Took another try at skiing after being sick.  Tried to keep it a short day, but hit No Name, Upper Langley, the Face, Whitey's, Gray's Golf Course and Good Med.
Mostly groomers.  Started to soften up finally in the PM, then the sun promptly disappeared.  Did do Heap Steep and Glory Hole.
Boring groomers.  Should have brought home Recons for tuning…  Oops.
conditions dismal except in back trees.  Unfortunately went with Lisa from t-bar into Windowpane, slammed into tree, hurt quad pretty bad.  Now can't ski for a day or so.
Skied with Metcalfs, mostly groomers.  Snowed hard all day, should be EXCELLENT tomorrow.
Skied with Yolie, hit Good Med, 2 Purgatory - traverse.  SOCKED IN.  Left when I reached terminal humidity.

 

11-12:

 

 

Was too exhausted to enjoy the day.  Tons of deep powder, howling winds, etc.
a top 3 day.  3 Good Meds, but no other off groomed since couldn't find ski buds.  Dumping all day. 
 heavy snow.
 
Hot out.  Everything sticky.  Hit Hollywood, but didn't do well.  
Sticky by 11
Lovely spring condtions.  Stickiness seems to be over.  No Name, Heep Steep, Gelaendesprung.
Surprisingly good day.  All groomers, but in nice shape.
Skied until I was at terminal saturartion on my mittens. 

 

This was just end of March conditions.  Sometimes it improved in April after being not so great that last part of March. Re-reading it, looks like all over the map with a tendency to being wet.  For info on all those trail names, see my Guide.  Generally I don't make notes of anything other than blacks.  

 

Oh, and there is a blogger who covers the season in a more conversational way here:  http://northernrockiesview.com/2012/05/14/the-best-of-the-big-2012/

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post #5 of 99
7/18/12 at 1:54pm

Brians Head could be a real crap shoot for that late in the season.  

 

If you could give up on ski-in / ski-out accommodations consider a Salt Lake City based trip.  Being a city everything is cheaper, especially food and lodging.  There are all kinds discount lift ticket programs around there (solo got in about a dozen days for about $200).  SLC also offers a lot of non-skiing entertainment options for evening or off day fun if you want.

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post #6 of 99
7/18/12 at 2:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stranger View Post

Brians Head could be a real crap shoot for that late in the season.  

 

If you could give up on ski-in / ski-out accommodations consider a Salt Lake City based trip.  Being a city everything is cheaper, especially food and lodging.  There are all kinds discount lift ticket programs around there (solo got in about a dozen days for about $200).  SLC also offers a lot of non-skiing entertainment options for evening or off day fun if you want.

I was also thinking that staying in SLC can be pretty economical.  I found a little 2BR/2BA VRBO house in 2010 for $1200 that would be great for a family.  It was 30 min to LCC/BCC and just over an hour to Snowbasin.  There were other houses for even less.  The SuperPass comes out pretty reasonable if commit for 4+ days in advance.  Includes a transit pass if rent a 2WD and there is snow on the roads in the canyons.  Still get to explore four different places in BCC/LCC.  Brighton and Solitude ski school rates are decent.  My daughter loves the Alta ski school.

 

If you fly into Bozeman, well worth spending the first few days at Bridger.  A non-profit so lift tickets are cheap and so are the lessons.  I think many Bozeman families go to Bridger because of the quality of the ski school.  Plus it's only 20 min from the city.  Bridger is much less intimidating for a beginner/intermediate than Big Sky.  Privates for adults are a bargain, especially if you get a recommendation from a local.  Actually possible to stay around Bozeman and do day trips to Big Sky or Moonlight Basin since it's about a little over an hour's drive.

 

What runs did your 12yo like at Snowshoe?

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post #7 of 99
7/18/12 at 2:43pm

Have you considered flying to Reno?  Could do Mt. Rose or the other smaller places in north Tahoe.

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post #8 of 99
7/18/12 at 4:23pm

I agree with others on SLC. If I were planning a whole trip to UT for that length of time, I wouldn't make it at Brian Head. Cool, isolated resort with interesting scenery but it just doesn't seem like the place to choose for a vacation if you're talking flying anywhere in the countr - more of a Vegas add-on like you used it last time. Stay in SLC and you can ski Alta/Snowbird/Brighton/Solitude, which tend to have stellar March conditions. Or stay in the Ogden area and you can ski Powder and Snowbasin. A lot more options in terms of terrain and conditions than Brian Head affords and also more off-slope activities.

 

That being said, combining Brian Head with a trip to Zion or other national parks in the area would make for a really nice combo trip for the family. The parks are open every day of the year; the question is more how the current weather will impact what you want to do.

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post #9 of 99
7/18/12 at 5:08pm
Thread Starter 

You guys are AWESOME!  icon14.gif

 

I agree that SLC would be a great choice for many reasons.  I've done a couple of trips with a buddy (stayed at the Super 8 in Midvale) and we hit Alta, Snowbird, Solitude, and Snowbasin.  And the wife and I stayed in SLC a few years ago and skied Alta and Snowbird as well, so I know how much fun (and cheap) it can be to use SLC as a hub.

 

Buutttt... the wife REALLY wants a ski-in/ski spot this time so that we aren't dragging 4 sets of gear all over the place, and I tend to agree with her (guess who would be carrying most of that gear).  Personally, I don't mind driving up to a resort, gearing up in the parking lot, and then hitting the slopes hard all day, before driving back to a hotel.  But the wife and boys are more likely to want to take long breaks, and I'll admit that being able to occasionally just ski up to the door, click out, and fall on a couch does sound very enticing.  I think it will make for a much more laid back, relaxing family trip as opposed to the hard driving, hit-a-different-resort-each-day kind of trip I've enjoyed in the past (without kids).

 

So I'm pretty committed to on-slope accommodations for this trip if at all possible.  And I'll definitely check and see if I can find something on-slope at Brighton or Solitude.

 

I actually began this research thinking hard about Montana (Big Sky mainly), so it's great that a couple of you have mentioned it.  I've never skied anywhere in Montana, and we would all love to take one day off the slopes and go to Yellowstone.  But it didn't take me long to realize that Big Sky would pretty quickly bust our budget.  So I'll definitely take a look at Whitefish and Bridger as alternatives.

 

How about Colorado?  I've done Vail and Beaver Creek before and obviously those are out.  And I've done Keystone once and Copper once, but I haven't checked their lift ticket prices lately, and my hunch is that I'm not likely to find on-slope accommodations at those resorts anywhere near our budget.  So if anybody has any suggestions for smaller, budget-oriented resorts in Colorado I'm all ears.

 

Thanks for all your comments!

 

David

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post #10 of 99
7/18/12 at 6:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by David Giles View Post

So I'm pretty committed to on-slope accommodations for this trip if at all possible.  And I'll definitely check and see if I can find something on-slope at Brighton or Solitude.

 

I actually began this research thinking hard about Montana (Big Sky mainly), so it's great that a couple of you have mentioned it.  I've never skied anywhere in Montana, and we would all love to take one day off the slopes and go to Yellowstone.  But it didn't take me long to realize that Big Sky would pretty quickly bust our budget.  So I'll definitely take a look at Whitefish and Bridger as alternatives.

There aren't really on-slope lodging options for Bridger.  They do offer overnight storage for equipment.  We took advantage of that option for our skis since my SE friend and I skied Sat and Sun at Bridger after a week at Big Sky with a bunch of others.  It was her first trip out west.  As a cautious intermediate, she really liked Bridger.  Her biggest mountain before that was Snowshoe.

 

Note that Bridger has plenty to keep an advanced skier happy.  Or even an expert who can handle back country requirements.

 

Are you aware that there is an EpicSki Gathering at Big Sky the last week of March 2013?  That means discounts on lodging and lift tickets.

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post #11 of 99
7/18/12 at 6:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by marznc View Post

Are you aware that there is an EpicSki Gathering at Big Sky the last week of March 2013?  That means discounts on lodging and lift tickets.

Yes I'd read about that while doing my research on Big Sky, and had thought about asking if I could get in on those discounts. But since I'll be with my family and won't be able to hang with the EpicSki crowd, I didn't know if that would be cool. I guess I should probably ask Nolo if it's okay. $53 lift tickets at Big Sky would certainly help! If that was our destination, I might be able to talk my wife out of the ski-in/ski-out requirement. :-)

David
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post #12 of 99
7/18/12 at 7:10pm

if your thinking adding Yellowstone while skiing Big Sky be sure to check park site to avoid any disappointment. A lot of the park is closed in winter. 

If you have passports there are a lot of other ski in ski out resorts that are at a good price north of the border.

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post #13 of 99
7/18/12 at 7:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by David Giles View Post

You guys are AWESOME!  icon14.gif

 

I agree that SLC would be a great choice for many reasons.  I've done a couple of trips with a buddy (stayed at the Super 8 in Midvale) and we hit Alta, Snowbird, Solitude, and Snowbasin.  And the wife and I stayed in SLC a few years ago and skied Alta and Snowbird as well, so I know how much fun (and cheap) it can be to use SLC as a hub.

 

Buutttt... the wife REALLY wants a ski-in/ski spot this time so that we aren't dragging 4 sets of gear all over the place, and I tend to agree with her (guess who would be carrying most of that gear).  Personally, I don't mind driving up to a resort, gearing up in the parking lot, and then hitting the slopes hard all day, before driving back to a hotel.  But the wife and boys are more likely to want to take long breaks, and I'll admit that being able to occasionally just ski up to the door, click out, and fall on a couch does sound very enticing.  I think it will make for a much more laid back, relaxing family trip as opposed to the hard driving, hit-a-different-resort-each-day kind of trip I've enjoyed in the past (without kids).

 

So I'm pretty committed to on-slope accommodations for this trip if at all possible.  And I'll definitely check and see if I can find something on-slope at Brighton or Solitude.

 

I actually began this research thinking hard about Montana (Big Sky mainly), so it's great that a couple of you have mentioned it.  I've never skied anywhere in Montana, and we would all love to take one day off the slopes and go to Yellowstone.  But it didn't take me long to realize that Big Sky would pretty quickly bust our budget.  So I'll definitely take a look at Whitefish and Bridger as alternatives.

 

How about Colorado?  I've done Vail and Beaver Creek before and obviously those are out.  And I've done Keystone once and Copper once, but I haven't checked their lift ticket prices lately, and my hunch is that I'm not likely to find on-slope accommodations at those resorts anywhere near our budget.  So if anybody has any suggestions for smaller, budget-oriented resorts in Colorado I'm all ears.

 

Thanks for all your comments!

 

David

 

You may want to attend the gathering at Big Sky. http://www.epicski.com/t/111768/big-sky-gathering-dates-prices Prices mentioned in the thread seem reasonable and the skiing is phenomenal. 

 

In UT, you would be better served at Park City than SLC or the cottonwoods given the family and desire for a vibrant ski town and slopeside lodging. End of march is late season and deals should be available. 

 

What about Whistler? 


Edited by tromano - 7/18/12 at 7:54pm
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post #14 of 99
7/18/12 at 7:44pm

Big Sky is not known as a real bargain place.  If on slope is a must another vote for Whitefish, or look farther West.  

 

North Idaho offers both Schweitzer just out of Sandpoint ID, and Silver Mountain in Kellogg ID.  Both offer pretty reasonable rates and really good family mountains with a good variety of terrain. Really pretty places with not too many people on them.  Very short drive from Spokane so easy access. 

 

Silver is not exactly ski-in; you ride the gondola down and walk over to the condos (they do offer an indoor water park complete with a permanent wave for surfing if anybody is interested).  Silver also offers lots of educational opportunities just up the road in Wallace, including a brothel museum if anybody is interested.  

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post #15 of 99
7/18/12 at 8:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by David Giles View Post


Yes I'd read about that while doing my research on Big Sky, and had thought about asking if I could get in on those discounts. But since I'll be with my family and won't be able to hang with the EpicSki crowd, I didn't know if that would be cool. I guess I should probably ask Nolo if it's okay. $53 lift tickets at Big Sky would certainly help! If that was our destination, I might be able to talk my wife out of the ski-in/ski-out requirement. :-)
David

I haven't been to an EpicSki Gathering, but from reading about them it doesn't seem like there is any requirement to stay with Epic folks the entire time to qualify for whatever discounts are available.  You should definitely ask nolo.

 

Who knows, you might find a deal on ski-in/ski-out at Big Sky or Moonlight Basin since late March is late season.  That's one reason nolo could get good discounts.  Also possible you could find people to share a larger VRBO house/condo.

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post #16 of 99
7/18/12 at 8:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by marznc View Post

I haven't been to an EpicSki Gathering, but from reading about them it doesn't seem like there is any requirement to stay with Epic folks the entire time to qualify for whatever discounts are available.  You should definitely ask nolo.

 

Who knows, you might find a deal on ski-in/ski-out at Big Sky or Moonlight Basin since late March is late season.  That's one reason nolo could get good discounts.  Also possible you could find people to share a larger VRBO house/condo.

 

I don't think previous Gatherings have really had discounts ... usually people are kind of on their own, and there are meeting times that you may or may not adhere to. Big Sky might be different, but I'm not sure there is precedent. 

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post #17 of 99
7/18/12 at 8:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by marznc View Post

I haven't been to an EpicSki Gathering, but from reading about them it doesn't seem like there is any requirement to stay with Epic folks the entire time to qualify for whatever discounts are available.  You should definitely ask nolo.

 

Who knows, you might find a deal on ski-in/ski-out at Big Sky or Moonlight Basin since late March is late season.  That's one reason nolo could get good discounts.  Also possible you could find people to share a larger VRBO house/condo.

 

Previous gatherings have always been come and play as much or as little as you want to. I haven't seen any "strings attached" to the rate advertised in the thread I linked above. And previous gathering never required supporter status (or anything else other than showing up and being stoekd to ski) to participate. 

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post #18 of 99
7/19/12 at 2:52am

So folks, what's the cheapest ski in/ski out option in the West then, airfare prices considered too? Something tells me it might be Heavenly, but I don't really know. Solitude? Flights are reasonable but doesn't look like a cheap resort. There are cheap lodging options on the hill at Alta. What about Copper? 

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post #19 of 99
7/19/12 at 3:08am

I don't think there's any single answer. The best deal I ever found was at Copper, but I don't think that Copper is necessarily the cheapest. I don't think you'll ever find a "cheapest ski in resort in the West"; it really depends on the available packages.

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post #20 of 99
7/19/12 at 6:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeUT View Post

I don't think there's any single answer. The best deal I ever found was at Copper, but I don't think that Copper is necessarily the cheapest. I don't think you'll ever find a "cheapest ski in resort in the West"; it really depends on the available packages.

Joe, I respect your response, but it seems to me that the spirit of Epic in the bleak, joyless, snow-free season is more something like, "there's only one possible answer, mine."

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post #21 of 99
7/19/12 at 9:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by David Giles View Post.  So if anybody has any suggestions for smaller, budget-oriented resorts in Colorado I'm all ears.

 

 

 

 

How about Sunlight in Glenwood Springs?

 

http://www.sunlightinn.com/index.html

 

There's a 2br. ski in/out condo in the real estate section that they picked up for 40K?  I can't imagine that they rent for much?

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post #22 of 99
7/19/12 at 9:29am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stranger View Post
 Silver also offers lots of educational opportunities just up the road in Wallace, including a brothel museum if anybody is interested.  

 

Interactive exhibits???  biggrin.gif

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post #23 of 99
7/19/12 at 10:08am
Thread Starter 

Thanks for the additional suggestions and discussion!  I took a look at Sunlight and it looks like I could have a lot of fun there for a couple of days, but with the shortage of green runs, the boys and wife would probably get pretty frustrated on a 4-5 day ski trip.

 

Right now I'm focusing on Big Sky/Moonlight Basin again because of the discounts available through the EpicSki Gathering.  I'm also checking around to see if any individual condo owners are willing to make great early deals to guarantee a booked week in March.  :-)  But if I can't find any place that I think would suit our desires and budget, I'll definitely check into some of the other resort suggestions.

 

David

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post #24 of 99
7/19/12 at 10:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skierish View Post

 

Interactive exhibits???  biggrin.gif

Go find out!

 

It really is fascinating.  My wife thought it was one of the coolest museums she had ever been to, and no she was never in one before (professionally or recreationaly). It is an essential slice of history throughout a lot of western used to be mining towns, now ski towns.  

 

Google up MINING DISTRICTS, you will be amazed what you find out.  A large part of the character of our developed western ski regions came from this time; much of today's gladeing at AltaBird came from logging for mine shaft timbers, Joseph Smith is credited with making them stop scalping LCC.

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post #25 of 99
7/19/12 at 11:49am

Have a look at  tiny, and cheap, Badger Pass at Yosemite. Ski and see Yosemite on the same holiday.

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post #26 of 99
7/19/12 at 7:05pm

From my own experience, I think you are correct to make ski-in ski-out a major consideration.  We did several ski vacations with another family when our kids were young. We did it both on the hill and not, and it makes a big difference.  Younger kids, especially beginners, are not going to want to ski more than a few hours at a time.  If you are on the hill, they can take a long break, or some of them can quit early.  If you have to drive, the day is over when the first person gets tired.

 

When my son became a teenager, ski-in became irrelevant and we quit doing it.  We had a great "guys only" trip where we took the free bus from town and then skied from first chair (sometimes litterally) until the lifts closed.  And then all too soon he went off to college ...

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post #27 of 99
7/20/12 at 7:06am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by veteran View Post

Have a look at  tiny, and cheap, Badger Pass at Yosemite. Ski and see Yosemite on the same holiday.

Looks like fun for a day, but probably not a good choice for 4-5 days of family skiing.  Thanks for the suggestion though!

 

David

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post #28 of 99
7/20/12 at 7:24am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mdf View Post

From my own experience, I think you are correct to make ski-in ski-out a major consideration.  We did several ski vacations with another family when our kids were young. We did it both on the hill and not, and it makes a big difference.  Younger kids, especially beginners, are not going to want to ski more than a few hours at a time.  If you are on the hill, they can take a long break, or some of them can quit early.  If you have to drive, the day is over when the first person gets tired.

 

When my son became a teenager, ski-in became irrelevant and we quit doing it.  We had a great "guys only" trip where we took the free bus from town and then skied from first chair (sometimes litterally) until the lifts closed.  And then all too soon he went off to college ...

Thanks for your insights mdf!  Yeah ski-in ski-out is a really strong preference for us on THIS trip.  Our original budget was about $1,800 for ski-in ski-out lodging AND lift tickets, and we can hit that budget at a small resort like Brian Head (which would be fun no doubt).  But if we can come up with another grand or so, then we can get some AWESOME ski-in ski-out accommodations at a huge resort.  I've gotten a quote for a beautiful ski-in ski-out cabin at Moonlight Basin for $1,700 for 5 nights, and lift tickets for 4 days should be about $800.  It's one night less than we'd originally planned, but same number of ski days, and it should be a wonderful family experience that we wouldn't soon forget.  So the wife and I are trying hard to justify increasing our budget to make that happen.  :-)

 

And like you, I could see me and my boys having a nice "guys" trip in a few years when they're both more mature and know how to ski, where we don't worry about ski-in ski-out.  Staying at a cheap hotel in SLC and hitting a different resort each day would be a blast!

 

David

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post #29 of 99
7/20/12 at 8:19am

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but I believe that if you decide on Big Sky there is a Frequent Ski card that can save you on tickets if purchased before September 30th.

 

I think your original idea of Brianhead for a family trip with beginners is a good one, especially with a side trips to Cedar Breaks, Zion & Bryce.

 

JF

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post #30 of 99
7/20/12 at 9:17am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by 4ster View Post

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but I believe that if you decide on Big Sky there is a Frequent Ski card that can save you on tickets if purchased before September 30th.

 

I think your original idea of Brianhead for a family trip with beginners is a good one, especially with a side trips to Cedar Breaks, Zion & Bryce.

 

JF

Yeah we are still seriously considering Brian Head.  We can get a ski-in ski-out condo there on the Navajo side really close to the ski school and the tubing hill (which would be hugely popular with our boys) for about $500 less than the cabin at Moonlight Basin.  And assuming I can get half-off coupons in Vegas again, then 4 days of lift tickets at B.H. shouldn't cost more than about $400.  So it's definitely a great deal and would be much better on our budget.

 

It's just very tempting to get lured away by that gorgeous cabin with access to over 5,000 acres of likely great spring snow (as compared to 650 acres at a resort several hundred miles to the south where late March would be more risky).  :)

 

David

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