It’s hard to pick the very best ski resorts in North America, which is why this list–or any other, for that matter–is incomplete. In fact, it would even be hard for us to choose the best ski resort in our home state, Colorado.
What we’ve done here is choose five of the best ski resorts representing several regions in North America, curated from best-of lists across the Web. We’re obviously biased toward the Rocky Mountains, and it’s undeniable that some of the best skiing in the world is in our region. However, we’d be remiss to exclude all ski resorts on the east and west coasts.
Telluride, Colorado
Photo by Telluride Ski Resort
Telluride is one of the most difficult-to-access ski resorts in Colorado, and that makes it appealing to out-of-state tourists and frustrating for Colorado locals looking for good weekend skiing. While the town has a small airport, flights are limited. The drive from Colorado Springs (which has a decent size airport) to Telluride is about five and half hours in good weather, six from Denver.
The resort includes 127 runs, and in the past decade they’ve expanded; while over 40% of those runs are black diamonds, there are enough beginner slopes that going with a group of variously experienced skiers and snowboarders would still be fun.
Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia
Photo by Andysonic777
Also part of the Rocky Mountains, Whistler Blackcomb (formerly two ski resorts–Whistler and Blackcomb) in British Columbia is one of the most visited ski resorts in the world, and the largest ski resort in North America. You can fly into Seattle and drive about four and a half hours to the resort, or fly into Vancouver, BC and drive less than two hours.
The resort has over 200 runs, and 35 of them are rated easy and 55 are black or double-black diamond. This year they’re opening new eight-passenger walk-in gondolas, and the resort is constantly making improvements. A couple common complaints of the resort include the steep prices for lift tickets (pun intended) and concessions, and the fact that the upper lifts close by 3:00pm.
Sugarloaf, Maine
Photo by Vratkostrmen
Sugarloaf is the largest ski resort east of the Mississippi, and many skiers rate it as the best resort on the East Coast. It’s a two and a half hour drive from the airport in Portland, Maine, or four and a half hours from Boston.
Sugarloaf has 154 runs: 43% are black or double black diamond, and the remainder are blue, green, or glades. One major difference between a resort like Sugarloaf and Whistler Blackcomb is the amount of snowmaking. Sugarloaf required 95% snowmaking, while the Whistler side of Whistler Blackcomb requires only 4.5%. For snow purists, this could be a turn off.
Mammoth Mountain, California
Photo by Sean Lynch
One of the best things about Mammoth Mountain is its incredibly long season. There have been years when the resort didn’t close until August and opened again in October. From Los Angeles it’s about a five-hour drive north to the resort, whereas the route from San Francisco is much less direct and takes about six and a half hours. There’s also a small local airport in the Mammoth Mountain / Yosemite vicinity.
Mammoth Mountain is known for its extreme snowboarding and skiing. Some of the top snowboarders in the world come to Mammoth Mountain for its incredibly challenging pipes. Despite its reputation for extreme sports, of the 150 runs 65% are blue or green. Unfortunately there are many complaints about bad customer service, and some people feel that the number of nearby cliffs makes this a dangerous ski destination.
Jackson Hole, Wyoming
Enricokamasa
Photo by Enricokamasa
Forbes has named Jackson Hole the best ski resort in North America for three years in a row, and SKI Magazine, TripAdvisor, and other resources also rank Jackson Hole near the top of all ski resorts. Happily airlines like United and Delta fly into Jackson, WY–otherwise it’s pretty difficult to get to.
So why is Jackson Hole so amazing? Advanced skiers and snowboarders love it because it has some of the most challenging runs on the continent, as well as the steepest vertical drop. 50% of the runs are advanced. There’s also a lot of incredible backcountry skiing, but it’s definitely risky to ski out of bounds; in the past few years several people have been crushed to death by avalanches.
As mentioned above, there are so many other fantastic ski resorts in North America. If you’re an avid skier or snowboarder, we encourage you to share with us your favorite runs!
