 Poster: A snowHead
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How does $175 for a day ticket sound? That's over £120 at current exchange rates! 
That's what they were charging in Vail last week when we were there. Luckily we made use of our $580 season passes for Summit County, that included 10 days at Vail or Beaver Creek.
There seemed to be no shortage of visitors queuing to buy tickets but God knows who pays that for a day's skiing!
We had a great (25 day) trip, despite having no significant fresh snow when we were there, though we had a few days of 2 or 3" top ups which helped. We had a condo in Keystone, so spent most of our ski days there, though we did also ski at Breckenridge (3 days) Vail (3 days) Beaver Creek (2 days)and Arapahoe Basin (2 days).
We loved Vail - and Blue Sky Basin in particular, with its steep stuff and brilliant bump runs. Keystone was fantastic (& underrated in our opinion) and we spent a lot of our time there on great bump runs, particularly in the Outback area where the glades were fantastic. Our favourite runs were Timberwolf, The Grizz and Bushwhacker, where we were usually the only 2 on the runs. Although a number of the south facing runs suffered from the sun (and very warm weather) the north facing runs of the Outback and North Peak retained packed powder bumps for the duration of our trip. The Outback had nicely (and tightly, if you wanted) spaced trees; with bumps, top to bottom over a 500m drop. We just kept lapping the one lift and had the place to ourselves.
There were also lots of blue bump runs at Keystone, which were great for practising on.
In comparison with Colorado, we can't help but think that Europe does too much grooming/pisting. Why not leave some runs half pisted, like in Colorado, with moguls being allowed to build up on the other half?
We had 4 days marred by high winds, 2 at A-Basin, one at Breckenridge and one at Beaver Creek but nevertheless enjoyed all areas. There was lots of varied skiing at each, with everything ranging from moderate, immaculately groomed runs to ferociously steep black bump runs - and everything in between.
The service of lift staff and ski patrollers was exceptional, as was the service we encountered in restaurants. Food and drink in the town was cheap (especially at happy hour - $3 a pint) to very reasonably priced. However, the only downside was the prices in the mountain restaurants. I was there 11 years ago and things were ok - but not now. At Keystone it was $5 for a coffee on the mountain, $14 for a slice of pizza, $18 for soup, $19 for a burger and $11 for chilli fries - all served on paper plates or in plastic bowls in a glorified transport cafe (Summit House). There was a lovely, modern mountain restaurant at the Outpost, although the choice of food and drink was not dissimilar to that mentioned above.
Both Beaver Creek and Vail had lovely mountain restaurants with a wider choice of food and prices that weren't too bad (eg chicken burrito for $13);- and Arapahoe basin had a wider choice of food at much cheaper prices than everywhere else.
We ended up with picnics and flasks of coffee, which didn't detract at all from the holiday experience. In comparison, a daily slice of pizza (or similar) and a 2 coffees each per day would have cost 2 of us a princely $1200 on the trip!
Snow conditions were excellent overall, despite not having any significant new snow when were there, and we can't wait to go back in the future. 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Bergmeister,
Too much grooming in Europe? I know this has been discussed before, but I think the answer is simply that too few people want to ski bumps. Some do, but not that many.
Restaurant prices in U.S. - those prices are pretty horrendous and it sounds like the food was fairly grim too. It's one if the things that puts me off the idea of skiing in the States. Lunch on the mountain is a huge part of the charm of a skiing holiday for me. Sitting in the sun enjoying a fabulous view with a piché of rosé, a plate of charcuterie, salad Montagnarde or tartiflette, all served by a pretty French/Austrian/Swiss/Italian waitress. Life doesn't get much better than that. Self-service chilli and American beer in a food court never sounds quite as appealing.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Bones wrote: |
Bergmeister, Glad you enjoyed Colorado, been a while since we were there. Glades etc are one of the things which sets North America from Europe and something we really love to ski, along with inbounds un groomed stuff  Or Slack country.
The prices do sound quite bad though, but that's Vail Resorts for you - get you to the place and sting you with outrageous food and drink prices. We were only paying around $3 a coffee/ hot choc. at Alta/ rest of UT this year - which we thought expensive compared to last. Lunch wise we aren't too bothered and prefer to ski, as a hearty breakfast and decent evening meal more than makes up for lunch.
foxtrotzulu, Euroepean skiing is a totally different experience to North America, many families just bbq at the base, and when car lots are ski in ski out it makes it so easy  Its really like comparing beer to wine. Both good and enjoyed for different reasons. |
BBQ-ing in the parking lot! Love me up a tailgate party! Nothing more American than that!
Love skiing the states, but then again, the whole skiing in Italy is just so civilized.... hard to compare.
Well done on the summit county pass - that's the way to go![/url]
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| foxtrotzulu wrote: |
@Bergmeister,
Too much grooming in Europe? I know this has been discussed before, but I think the answer is simply that too few people want to ski bumps. Some do, but not that many.
Restaurant prices in U.S. - those prices are pretty horrendous and it sounds like the food was fairly grim too. It's one if the things that puts me off the idea of skiing in the States. Lunch on the mountain is a huge part of the charm of a skiing holiday for me. Sitting in the sun enjoying a fabulous view with a piché of rosé, a plate of charcuterie, salad Montagnarde or tartiflette, all served by a pretty French/Austrian/Swiss/Italian waitress. Life doesn't get much better than that. Self-service chilli and American beer in a food court never sounds quite as appealing. |
Can't say I disagree with this sentiment. But sometimes you just got to ski where you live. So, we Americans suffer with over-priced food, that tastes like cardboard or worse. We drink what passes for beer that also is over-priced. And if you are unlucky enough to show up on a powder day without having pre-planned it, and bought your lift pass months in advance, it is truly painful to shell out big bucks to ski anywhere in America these days. Heck, most lodging doesn't include a breakfast fit for a king. It's cold cereal or stopping off at the local Starbucks for a coffee and warm breakfast sandwich. Just typing that makes me want to book a flight to the French Alps!
Luckily the 1,100+ cm that has fallen at my home mountain this year has softened the blow! Besides, I usually pack my lunch... 
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We're just back from Breckenridge this year and bought the area ski passes in advance so they weren't too bad - covered Vail, Breck, Keystone, A Basin, Copper Mountain and Beaver Creek. Also, you're paying for the patrolled 'off piste' areas, which are pretty vast and cheaper than arranging for a guide / insurance. My missus won't go off piste in Europe as she's paranoid about hurting herself and having to pay for her own extraction. Could hardly get her on the pistes in Breck though!
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| foxtrotzulu wrote: |
@Bergmeister,
Too much grooming in Europe? I know this has been discussed before, but I think the answer is simply that too few people want to ski bumps. Some do, but not that many. |
But it's not just bumps. Fresh powder too. I've been at the Alps when I found the ENTIRE piste flattened after a storm! Edge to edge, every bit of powder GONE!!!
Yes, that's too much grooming in my book. That's probably a good thing for the guide industry, if not for the average punter.
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Lunch on the mountain is a huge part of the charm of a skiing holiday for me. Sitting in the sun enjoying a fabulous view with a piché of rosé, a plate of charcuterie, salad Montagnarde or tartiflette, all served by a pretty French/Austrian/Swiss/Italian waitress. Life doesn't get much better than that. |
Yes, it CAN get better. Lunch after laps of 3" "hero powder", on a well-groomed base no less. 
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