My favorite place to ski is Aspen/Snowmass (I might be a bit biased based upon how incredible the house is there + it's a ski-in/ski-out + has a house manager for when we are there). However, I am a fairly good skier and have never gone there with green skiers who want to graduate to blues. I've also gone snowboarding in Snowmass - personally, I prefer skiing. However, my youngest daughter preferred snowboarding.

When I was a beginner (26 years old - a late beginner!), I really liked Breckinridge. I was skiing blues by the afternoon on my first day (I am naturally athletic).

When my girls went skiing for the first time, I took them to Tahoe - it was a good place for them. My oldest daughter was about 9 or 10 - she's very athletic and was skiing blues pretty well before we went home.

I didn't look up current ownership.

EDIT - I forgot to add Whistler - but apparently that won't help either.

Heanvenly at Tahoe (forgot to add) - is owned by Vail (I've skied there also) = Epic.

Aspen and Snowmass are Ikon. Breck is Epic. It may be nearly impossible to avoid Ikon and Epic, but we are going to do our best to try.

I believe Big Sky is still non epic/ikon and it is lovely but not alot of fresh powder this year.

Ok I just checked our ikon it does now limitedly cover big sky but not all trams/trails it seems. If east coast is an option Smugglers notch does not honor either and VT has a lot of fresh powder this year.

I think many of the western ski areas were snowless or nearly snowless this year. Park City was really sad looking when we were there.

We are thinking of somewhere on the east coast but we know nothing about it. All of our skiing has been done in the Rockies.

We took the kids on ski trips every year for over a decade, but we only went to ski in-ski out resorts, so that is somewhat limiting. They are all obviously very nice. I particularly liked Whistler and Lake Tahoe.

It is true that West Coast is generally warmer and a little more pleasant than East Coast. Stowe is nice but not a fave. Mt Tremblant, however, is someplace I'd really like to return to.

I also believe Jay peak is not affiliated with either pass, I know our ikon was not honored there. Be careful there though my DH skied off trail and shattered his tibia a few weeks ago and just had his third surgery and will be non weight bearing/ driving until at least May :(

Whistler is beautiful but is epic not ikon though. Tremblant is ikon but it is one if my favorite areas on the east coast. we go every March.

We prefer ski-in/ski-out. It is what we’ve had for the last 3 years.

We have friends who have gone to Mt. Tremblant and loved it.

The girls skied with school friends at PC. Those friends are going to Stowe for Spring Break. We are anxiously awaiting their report.

@roarah, I’m so sorry to hear about your DH’s injury! Was the trail poorly marked?

Okay - so, I haven't skied at these places - HOWEVER - they are all owned by Entertainment Properties Trust (HQ in Kansas City, MO.). It is a REIT (real estate investiment trust). I worked on the public offering back in 1997 when I was a young associate and did a majority of my legal work for AMC Theatres (AMC Theatres sponsored Entertainment Properties Trust for the public offering.

Entertainment Properties Trust was initially set up by AMC Entertainment Group as a way to sell some of their owned theatre properties (+ do sale/leasebacks for the theatre properties = AMC's operating company was still the operator of those properties).

My very close friend, Greg Silvers, is the CEO and Chairman of the Board:

EPR Properties Ski Portfolio (2025)
Based on the EPR Properties Ski Areas list, the portfolio includes:

• Alpine Valley (OH - Vail Resorts)
• Alyeska Resort (AK)
• Big Boulder (PA - Vail Resorts)
• Boston Mills (OH - Vail Resorts)
• Brandywine (OH - Vail Resorts)
• Camelback Mountain Resort (PA - KSL Resorts)
• Hunter Mountain (NY - Vail Resorts)
• Jack Frost (PA - Vail Resorts)
• Mad River (OH - Vail Resorts)
• Mount Snow (VT - Vail Resorts)
• Northstar California Resort (CA - Vail Resorts)

Vail Resorts operates most of their ski resorts - however, Entertainment Properties Trust owns the resorts.

I could ask Greg which ones he would recommend if you'd like. Just let me know.

Thank you, Bbstx, he purposely was off piste . At 60 he knows better now but has always been a risk taker skiing and our daughter has followed his lead and races. I am very risk adverse though :)

Mt snow I believe is epic.

I live just outside of Park City and I can say that our snow is abnormally low this year. I think I read 60-70% of normal. That's not to say that there isn't snow to ski, but it's not up to par with normal Utah quality. We have quite a number of resorts here with differences between of ski/snowboard vs ski only and a fair difference in terrain types.

My husband just returned from Grand Targhee. He likes the quiet laid back atmosphere, short lift lines and mostly for the snow. It does require dedication to get there and the accomodations are not as exciting as busier resorts. Other years he goes to Park City or Revelstoke.

Vail Resorts = Epic

@pricklypearcactus, it was sad to see the number of lifts in PC that were shut down. I’m sure it is having a terrible impact on the economy.

We did have some great snow in PC last week and it's preciptating right now -- rain where I am but hopefully snow on the slopes. But it's nowhere near the normal snow for January and February. I suspect we'll end up with a long winter though, snow lasting into the spring months.

I live in Steamboat Springs and have skiied here for 40! years f irst time in Spring of 86. Very family friendly. Lots of ski-out options. It is and always has been a great reosrt for kids! My DD started here at age 9 and my DGS, now 8, has been in classes here since he was 3 - both ski and snowboard. SB has added substaintial terrain and another new high speed gondola from bottom to top in the last few years. Also a great new ski school area — Greenhorn Ranch. Just like PC we’re a little thin on snow this year but had a nice snow last week and predicting a good snow tonight and tomorrow. Let me know if you need any local info.

I really love Sugarbush in Vt. Whiteface in Lake Placid is also a favorite though we hvent been in years. Lots to do in Lake Placid also. Sunday River in ME is a great resort. We owned a ski in / out condo there for all the years are kids were in school. So many weekends were spent there…..

So many of the amazing Canadian western ski resorts are part of Ikon however, a great option who does not, is Big White in Kelowna, British Columbia.

When I lived in the northeast I did most of my skiing at Killington, VT.

When we lived in CA we skied Mammoth.

When we lived in Japan we skied https://www.clubmed.us/r/sahoro-hokkaido/w

If you want a ski-in-ski-out resort, the list is pretty short. I think we've been to all of them. Maybe it depends on how you define ski-in-ski-out. To me, it literally means you walk right out the door, click into your skis and can ski off to the lifts. Somr resorts stretch it. Like at Stowe, you have to walk about a block to get to the lifts. Esp with three young kids, DH carrying their skis and his, that was enough of a difference to make me dislike Stowe.

The place we stay in PC is truly ski-in ski-out. I noticed when I was looking at Stowe and Smuggler’s that some of the condos claimed to be SISO but then noted that they were 1/10 of a mile or more from the slopes. I was puzzled.

@deegw, I don’t think I’ve ever been colder than when I was skiing in Crested Butte. It was also the last time I skied.

I think some people use ski-in-ski-out to mean you do not have to drive anywhere.

And I forgot about condos - we were only looking at full service resorts. A lot more choices with condos.

My vote would be the Ritz Carlton in Tahoe; have the grands been to San Fran? It's about a 3hr drive to Tahoe - Sacramento is a great place to stop for lunch.

I have no personal experience with it, but it came up in a conversation recently with a co-worker who retired as he was moving near Park City and we were talking about places where they have been skiing. He mentioned Banff, Lake Louise, and Ski Bromont as ones they had visited in Canada. I just put those on my list of potentials if I can ever figure out how to avoid random hemiplegia. I should note he mentioned Whistler too, but based on this thread it sound like it is out.

If we keep our family ski trip on President’s Day weekend, we have a very limited time. As it is now, we usually leave on Thursday and return on Monday. Schools are out on Friday and Monday. The kids only miss one day of classes.

IMPE Pres Day ski weekends are booked *at least* a year in advance, so good on you for investigating now!

My recs are not necessarily family-friendly, but I will share that one of the best parenting tips I received when my kids were in early elementary school, and I was stressing out over spring break schedules, was to take them out of school during non-holiday weeks, when fewer people are traveling. We had some wonderful family vacations during non-peak times. Fewer crowds, more options, less angst in planning so far in advance, and even things like dog sitters were easier to arrange. Kids can easily catch up with school work at that age.

@bbstx - I understand about Vail = Epic -

HOWEVER, I thought you wanted to stay away from resorts OWNED by Epic. Epic does not own any of the resorts I listed - Entertainment Properties Trust owns them and has ultimate control over them.

Vail operates them for Entertainment Properties Trust pursuant to an Operation Agreement that Entertainment Properties Trust drafted.

Steamboat does have true ski-in/ski out

https://www.timbersresorts.com/resorts/one-steamboat-place/

https://christieclubsteamboat.com/

https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/hdnss-sheraton-steamboat-resort-villas/overview/

There are many others as well.

OOh, I forgot Taos! We like the Blake.

I think the clearest definition of ski in ski out is that there is no carrying of your equipment. Stowe , for example calls itself SISO but I disagree

DSIL’s best friend’s birthday party (milestone) this year was at Taos, the weekend before we went to PC! DD & DSIL came back loving Taos. I believe the only drawback to taking the kids there is they thought the runs were too steep for them. I’ll have to talk to DD & DSIL in more depth. It might be a good option.

In the 3 years that we’ve been doing this, I book about a year ahead. I learned a hard lesson this year. I did not book our flights when I booked the condo. I kept thinking the price would go down. Nope, it kept going up - like 3x what it would have been if I had booked earlier.

Steamboat is managed by Ikon. We are trying to stay away from resorts managed by Epic and Ikon.

@Feathers11, I am not averse to taking the kids out of school and neither are their parents. I took DD out all of the time. However, DSIL has this impediment to our travel called ”work.” His company is not remote-work friendly. He has a very generous vacation package, but it is not unlimited, unfortunately.

We are trying to stay away from resorts managed by Epic and Ikon.

I don't even know. BTW, why?

Are they like, Big Ski?

Sorry, Bbstx. When you mentioned above the kids having to miss only one day of class, I assumed that was the reason to schedule around Pres Day.

I’ll preface this by saying we don’t ski anymore as my knees and DH’s hip said ’no more’. We have skiied a lot in the west and Canada, and I’ve skiied in Switzerland (very difficult but a blast), but never made it to any of the eastern resorts except one in West VA eons ago. I know nothing about Icon and Epic and what has happened with resort management except that prices to ski are way up.

I have no idea who owns or manages Telluride, but have you considered going there? It’s a little harder/longer to get there from the closest airport (Montrose), but worth it imo. You don’t need a car when you get there, so you can easily take a private shuttle. If you aren’t familiar with it, there is the town with a few hotels and condos, and then there is the base of the biggest portion of the mountain with several hotels & condos, with a gondola to go between the two. You can ski to the bottom but there are only a couple of trails iirc to do so. We have stayed at both and actually loved staying in town at a small hotel within view of the gondola (a parking lot was in between & a quick easy walk). So not exactly si/so but close. There were several good places to eat in town for any meals, breakfast thru dinner.

Park City was our other favorite place and we always had si/so there. Plus we enjoyed going over to Deer Valley to ski a day there. It is such an easy, almost always-groomed-everywhere place, and they don’t allow snowboards, so it was always a relaxing day for us old folks.

I think every place has it’s pluses and minuses, but for good blue trails and a wide range of blacks plus some great vistas and long green runs for a breather most any of the resorts mentioned are great.

@mtnrdredux_gw asked:

We are trying to stay away from resorts managed by Epic and Ikon.

I don't even know. BTW, why?

Are they like, Big Ski?

Yes, they are Big Ski. The business model, get people to buy lift passes by deeply discounting the price before they see what the season is going to be like, is brilliant, IMHO. However, they have raised single day ticket prices to the point that it is difficult for an ordinary person to afford to ski. Conversely, the annual pass is so cheap (when compared to the daily rates) that the ski areas are getting over-crowded. Some say the crowding is more than the staff and ski patrol can safely handle.

For example, an Epic annual pass is a little over $1,000. Daily lift tickets at Park City are $300 - $350/day. Whitefish Mountain, an independent ski resort, is $114/day for the most expensive single day ticket. A season pass, depending on when you buy it, is $780-$1500.

@OutsidePlaying, Telluride is Epic.

I sort of figured that was the biggest part of your avoidance. When we were skiing, it was big news when the Chinese were buying up a bunch of ski resorts. It was really odd in Canada one year, Whistler iirc, when so many Asian skiers were there, all in matching ski clothing.

We were always able to get a military discount in our tickets which was a little help. And a couple of times we went with our local ski club , so we had a group ticket discount for 5 out of 7 days or something like that.

We visited Whitefish one day while going to Glacier NP in early summer. Loved the little town, and several years later some friends went to ski there and really enjoyed it. So much so they went back again a couple of years later.

bbstx, I hope you found somewhere to book for your ski holiday. My DH and I skied this winter for the first time in 40 years (and we really hadn't done much before that). We visited our first ski in/ski out resort a couple of weeks ago in BC. I've been hearing more and about the effects of Ikon and Epic and remembered and appreciated your quick summary above to help provide context for us newbies. We probably don't have many years of skiing left in us, but it is good to be informed about our choices.