New Year family ski trip destination recommendations?

S

Spensar

New member
We are planning a post-Christmas/New Years family ski trip this year and I would really appreciate feedback about the best chance of hitting decent snow conditions. No gladebusters here, just family intermediate, so groomed black and blue would do the trick. I know it's always a crapshoot when booking ahead, so I'm trying to do my best to minimize getting into icy conditions.

Whiteface/Gore - Leading candidate right now as the family likes what is in the area.

Sunday River - From what I read they blow more snow than anyone, so it appears there is a good chance of reasonable conditions for what we are looking for.

Mont St. Anne/Le Massif - We all want to make a trip to here at some point, but my inclination is later in the year when the snow pack is deeper.

We've been to Jay the last couple of years and are looking to mix it up with about a 5 day trip to another location. Any other Northeast destination ideas where the snow should be pretty good on the trails at that time of the year?

Thanks
 
I spend the holidays every year near Gore and you are rolling the dice on conditions there. You are from Ottawa, so this may be obvious, but Tremblant is good for blue terrain and nice amenities and it may be cold enough to keep/make snow.
 
likewise, I have the same time booked for Mt. Ste Anne/Le Massif. I'm hoping it can't possibly be as bad as last year.
 
not to be fresh or anything but if i was you, and if it could be done, i would sit the children down and say
" children, i'm your father.. u may not think i'm smarter than you, but i am... therefore, you all will be doing homework over christmas break so that the week after christmas break, we can go skiing and ski twice the amount of runs with half the amount of nit wits for 1/2 the price. :P
i'd slip each of the respective teachers they have 50 bucks for a christmas gift/graft/bribe and get the lesson plans for 10 days ahead. it would be the best 3 or4 hundred you could spend
as far as where to go, all i would say is don't necessarily buy into the sunday river press releases about making more snow...it is more about the weather and as crocker has pretty much established, you can;t predict it at all
 
I have to agree that Stowe is the best...

Great savings/deal through their VRM program if you can pull the trigger on buying tickets 7 days in advance.

Great snowmaking system ensures if it is cold enough, there will be plenty of skiing

Best off hill atmosphere - ski town - shops - resteraunts

Best trail system, vertical drop, consistent pitch upper intermediates

High speed detachable Quads bottom to top on both Mansfield and Spruce ensure that no matter how cold it is, it's only 7 minutes on a lift to get 2000+ vertical to heat you up. And of course their is the Gondi....

Remoteness and Day trip cost ensures less crowding...

Sugarbush is not that far away if you want to mix in something different...
 
" children, i'm your father.. u may not think i'm smarter than you, but i am... therefore, you all will be doing homework over christmas break so that the week after christmas break, we can go skiing and ski twice the amount of runs with half the amount of nit wits for 1/2 the price.
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Better yet...skip all the holiday hullabaloo and pull the little buggers out of school early and head north to LeMassif for the best chances for snow or Stowe for the atmosphere. The rates are rock bottom before the holidays and it is usually cold enough for enough snowmaking to keep a family happy. The deep discounts in the lodging and lift tix will make for extra cash to buy the family more Xmas gifts.

Gore and WF for Xmas can be a gamble, especially if this year is anything like last year. I think the further north (or west for that matter) is better. Hell, the money you can save by skiing the week before Xmas would be better spent on airfare to a western mountain that will have many times the snow and terrain and a fraction of the crowds if you go before the holidays.
 
While I love Gore, it is a little slow-going when it comes to opening terrain. Whiteface is a better choice. In recent years, Whiteface has been good at getting its key trails open quickly due to large investments in its snowmaking and pumping capacity. It should be even better this year (temperatures permitting). It's definitely good for groomers, especially expert groomers; however, the intermediate options are limited. If you get tired of skiing, Lake Placid offers more for families than any ski town in the east.

Of course, there is always the possibility of way above normal temperatures during the early season (like last year). In this case, a resort like Tremblant would be a better option with its latitude and snowmaking. Stowe is definitely an option for similar reasons, with similar temperatures to WF, but with greater snowmaking.
 
Sharon":3i6g95kw said:
Hell, the money you can save by skiing the week before Xmas would be better spent on airfare to a western mountain that will have many times the snow and terrain and a fraction of the crowds if you go before the holidays.
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:lol: Must be wily females, my daughter is 14 and in an OH so innocent voice asked, "how much is airfare to Vancouver".....

Thanks for all the feedback. We didn't do a Christmas trip last year and I was glad when I saw the rain come down and got reports from friends who had a lot of rain at Jay. The kids have the week after New Years off so we don't have to be in the worst of the holiday crowds.
 
The March Canadian school break is still a much better bet than the week after New Year's. That applies to most western destinations as well as the East.
 
Thanks everyone for their input.
The family decided on Whitface for this January. For a family vacation with one non-skier spouse and travelling with a small dog, it's a lot easier to book something in Placid than a lot of places. Lots of lodging options and it's a very pet friendly town, plus activities for my wife.

As a nice bonus they have the Student Card deal for the 2 teens - $59, which includes 1 lift ticket and it's $35 for any day after at either Plaicd or Gore. That saves $58 total on 3 days skiing on the trip, plus I can see us popping down later in the season.
 
I'm still curious. What does your family do during the March spring break?

Given the extremely dry November in most of the West, I would advise easterners contemplating both vacation periods in 2007-08 to stay East for the early one and go West in March.
 
Tony Crocker":btrhtke8 said:
I'm still curious. What does your family do during the March spring break?

Given the extremely dry November in most of the West, I would advise easterners contemplating both vacation periods in 2007-08 to stay East for the early one and go West in March.
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For March break last year we did 3 days at Jay/Owlhead and a day trip to Tremblant. New Years is a family only trip, and March break the teenagers can bring a friend.

With the flight $, the west isn't in the books right now. Dollar-wise everything is a multiple of 3x$ for skiing as well. I recall a thread looking at the $ involved, east vs. west, and for reference the Placid trip will be about $900 (tax in) for 8 lift tickets (6 teen, 2 adult) and 4 nights accomodations with breakast. Add gas for 2.5 to 3 hours each way.

There is also a ton of terrain within driving distance that we haven't been too in the east so that takes the urge of a west swing too.
 
I think the Lake Placid trip makes sense for that time of year. They make plenty of snow there for all the events they host. Take a look at the calendar to see. They also have plenty of activities to keep the family entertained. If they like ice skating, the oval is fun at night, and there is also a couple of indoor rinks, and they often have the Smuckers Ice Skating show around that time.

If you have an urge for tree skiing and the snow is good, you can drive an hour south and use those lift tix at Gore. Or just go to Gore to break it up anyway. They have some nice terrain there. I find WF's terrain to be a bit limited. While the slopes are long, they are not abundant.

Snowshoe treks in the high peaks are another diversion. Check out the Adirondack Loj. They have rentals there. They also rent xc skis, and the xc skiing from there is vast. My favorite is up to Marcy Dam and on to Avalanche Pass/Lake. Don't forget to pack a hearty lunch if you do that jaunt.

Plus LP is such a nice town to stroll the main street, shop, relax, or do a lap around Mirror Lake. It isn't very expensive to stay there either, since the lodging is so abundant. I'm sure you'll have a nice vacation there. It is a great place to bring the fam.

I will be there 12/23-25
 
I agree that the price jump when you have to fly is significant, especially with a family. That's why a few of my family trips 10-20 years ago we drove from SoCal to Utah (10 hours) or Colorado (12-15 hours).

And air prices are up this season. From LA, Vancouver is now $375 and Calgary $450.

Nonetheless, with the currency situation I would think a cheap US destination like SLC might be tempting for March.
 
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