Copper vs Winter Park

[NewEnglandSkier]

Has anyone skied both of these resorts? Does one tend to be less crowded than the other? I'm trying to choose my secondary ski trip for 2014 and am trying to choose a place that is close enough to Denver to drive in/out of rather than having to connect. The dates would be March 1-3 and I already decided against Breckenridge and Keystone due to crowd stories. I realize that any resort that is close to Denver will be more crowded but I was hoping to be able to just squeeze this trip in and only have to take one day off of work, so that means anyplace where a connection is needed is out. (My goal is to fly in Friday night, ski Sat, Sun, Mon and then get the jetblue red-eye out of Denver Monday night.)
I ski intermediate runs mostly and will do blacks if they are groomed and will also do short bump runs if they are not too steep. I think I am leaning toward Copper at this point but never really hear too much about Winter Park, so am now thinking about that as well. They are both currently running specials stay 3 nights, pay for 2.
Any opinions?

 

[pinto]

Hmmm. I have skied both, but I've only skied WP on a weekend once in the past 20 years. I think they will be comparable in terms of crowds. If you are worried about lift lines, Copper does have a "Secret Pass" option that allows you to cut lines in a few of the more popular lifts. I don't know how much extra it is, often it comes with lodging if you go through Copper.

 

[abc]

The last time I did weekend trip, I went to Loveland instead.

No crowd. No pass to cross. No worry about the tunnel. I even managed to catch an evening flight (I think Delta).

Though if you're flying out on the red eye, there's no rush on the last day anyway. Still, you'll get to hit the hill early on Saturday due to the shorter drive.

Another one close to Denver is A-basin. Although it's got a reputation for being an advanced skier's heaven, I think it's actually pretty good for advanced intermediate also. I've never had a problem with crowds there, though I'd rather let the Colorado locals give you the final word on that.

I know you didn't ask for that. Sorry for the side track... ;-)

 

[pinto]

I don't think she was wanting to drive every day from Denver, though?

 

[marzNC]

For such a short trip, you might take altitude into consideration. Looks like the base at Copper is higher than Winter Park. Both are over 9000, which is around where it can make a noticeable difference. Especially if sleeping at that altitude.

 

[abc]

Fair point. Neither Loveland nor A-basin has slope-side lodging. (though there're lodging options nearby...)

I was thinking she might be interested in doing the first day at either Loveland or A-basin before settling down at either Copper or WP. But I failed to make that point clear. My bad.

 

[Jilly]

Just to let you know that the timing for this trip is possible. I've done 2 of the Mother's Day A-Basin trips. Got to Denver on Thursday PM and left Monday AM. No red eye to Canada. But RachelV did the late night back to NY one year.

As for A-Basin you could stay lower in Dillon. I found the altitude a problem.

 

[pinto]

NESkier, have you skied in CO before? or UT?

 

[Kimmyt]

I would say WP. My reasons:

1)the drive is way better from Denver (unless there's weather and you don't like driving over mountain passes, in which case uhm, nevermind)
2)lodging is probably cheaper. If you stay at Copper itself there is only limited lodging and it is therefore fairly spendy. It's cheaper if you stay in Frisco or Dillon, but then you're driving or bussing it every day for 15-30 minutes. Winter Park town is not directly at the base but it's pretty close, and you can either drive or (I'm assuming) take a bus. If you really wanted to save money there's other towns near WP that are pretty cheap for condo rentals, etc but then you also have a bit of a drive.
3)WP side of things has a large variety of groomed intermediate runs. In fact, I'm pretty sure all of WP itself is a groomed blue or black or green run. I kid, there are probably some ungroomed runs but I've found that the majority of that type of terrain is situated towards Mary Jane so you don't have to worry as much about ending up on some long bump run if you stay on the WP side of things.

If you were looking more for the summit county vibe, but didn't want to ski breck or keystone then yes maybe Copper would be in consideration since its in that area. I think Copper has good terrain for what you're looking for but I think it's better for those beginning to explore off-piste terrain since there seems to me to be more of that terrain available.

 

[NewEnglandSkier]

Thanks all--- yes I've skied CO for the past 7 years or so but not Summit County area (I've skied Steamboat, Aspen, Telluride). Though those areas are lower than summit, I find that during the day the altitude doesn't bother me at all--it's the sleeping that I find difficult. That was my one concern with either WP or Copper-- the much higher altitude.
I'm not renting a car but will do a shuttle service from the airport, so want to pick a place that has lodging convenient to the mountain.
I checked further into Copper today and think it won't work for me due to the fact it's all condos and they have a central check in location for all of them--hence no place to leave luggage on my last day while I ski; and many of the places I was interested in staying in Frisco require a 4 night min stay. So I think Copper is out this trip.
Still considering WP though since it would be fun to try a new place. Still kicking other ideas around too-- briefly considered Beaver Creek but everything there is frightfully expensive and the places that wern't don't get the greatest reviews re: cleanliness. I've gotten really spoiled at Steamboat being able to get nice slopeside lodging for a reasonable price. I might just end up extending the trip by a day and taking the extra day off of work which I didn't want to do, but it would allow me more options to go further afield and just do Aspen again or give Utah a try for something new.

 

[marzNC]

Thanks all--- yes I've skied CO for the past 7 years or so but not Summit County area (I've skied Steamboat, Aspen, Telluride)
[snip]
or give Utah a try for something new.

Never been to Utah. Snow is good pretty much anywhere in early March. Take your pick of the three areas: Alta/Snowbird, Solitude/Brighton, or Park City with Canyons/PCMR/Deer Valley. Lots of ski in/out or free shuttle lodging options. Easy shuttle from the SLC airport. Less chance of flight delays due to weather. Airfares are little higher, but total cost might not be that different depending on where you stay.

Given that you like Steamboat, Park City may be the best fit for a first trip to Utah. I think you would like the skiing at Brighton or Alta. But lodging options are more limited.

 

[abc]

I'm not renting a car but will do a shuttle service from the airport, so want to pick a place that has lodging convenient to the mountain..

no place to leave luggage on my last day while I ski;

If I were honest, I'd say it's not going to work all that well without renting a car.

1) you'll be staying at the airport the night of arrival and taking the shuttle to the mountain in the morning. So you need a place to drop your luggage before your room (at WP or Copper) is ready for check in. That "place", if it's not exactly at the base lodge, you'll have to wait for the resort shuttle to go back.

2) on last day, you need a place to drop your luggage after you check out. Same logistic challenge. Can be done, but you'll waste time doing that.

If you were to use the shuttle, I think you'll have to trust your luggage to either bag check, or just leave it at the base lodge. If you don't feel comfortable to do that, you're way better off renting a car.

Renting a car is the easiest way to go. Just leave the luggage in the car while you ski. Also, with a car, you have the option to stay off mountain which will cost less than slopeside. Probably more than make up for the rental car cost. With a car, I also sneak into a hotel with a pool to use their shower on the last day after skiing. I'm going straight to work right out of the plane without having to go home and shower!

Being a weekend, rental car will be quite cheap. I've never done it without.

Couple that with the elevation issue, I think you're better off re-think about Summit County. I think the suggestion of Park City might be worth considering. For one thing, the shuttle are a whole lot cheaper than the Summit Stage! Probably partially offset the higher air fare. And as mentioned, less affected by weather, both the airport and the road.

Last but not least, the flights to SLC is slightly longer and guess what? You might actually get a more restful sleep on the flight!!! (yes, I've done both million times, that's how I feel. In fact, I prefer doing the west coast on red eye because the flights are so long I get a "good night" of sleep!)

 

[pinto]

Are you sure you can't leave your luggage at the Copper check in? I mean, that's really not your only consideration, but I would ask . Everywhere I've ever been for skiing, they accommodate things like this because it's very common.

WP should be great for you, though...

 

[NewEnglandSkier]

Still thinking about either WP or Copper, but have now decided to do what I normally do and just take 2 days off of work so no need to do the red eye! Now that I have that extra travel day I'm now also seriously considering Park City area or possibly Alta since I've never skied in UT at all. Or I might just go back to Aspen---I find that the more I ski an area the better I like it, so while it is tempting to try something new, I know if I do I'll spend most of the time having no idea where I'm going or how to best maximize my time on the mountain. There are so many places I want to go though, it's hard to focus on just one.

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Be adventurous! Go someplace new. You won't regret it.

 

[abc]

Still thinking about either WP or Copper, but have now decided to do what I normally do and just take 2 days off of work so no need to do the red eye! Now that I have that extra travel day I'm now also seriously considering Park City area or possibly Alta since I've never skied in UT at all.

If I have an extra day off, I'd ski 4 days instead of 3!

Viva red eye flights! But that's just me...

 

[NewEnglandSkier]

If they had red eyes from SLC to BOS I'd probably take it, but they don't offer one. In fact non stop flights SLC/BOS are pretty limited with only 2 per day on one airline (delta).
Anyway--I'm pretty sure now I'm going to try Utah for this trip. It will be fun to try something new. I'm sure I'll be starting a new thread on things I think up to ask about Utah.

 

[abc]

If they had red eyes from SLC to BOS I'd probably take it, but they don't offer one. In fact non stop flights SLC/BOS are pretty limited with only 2 per day on one airline (delta).
Anyway--I'm pretty sure now I'm going to try Utah for this trip.

The mountains in SLC is so close to the airport (45 min), you can also just ski a 1/2 day (quit at 1pm), jump on a plane and be home before bed time.

You need to rent a car to do that though. The shuttle are a lot less frequent, and you may need transfer... All that it eat up too much time to make the late-after/eveninng flight. P robably not practical

(I no longer do red eyes any more. I always just ski 1/2 day on the last day, fly out on an evening flight and be home before bed time)

 

[Moonrocket]

I just saw this and thought I'd shout out for Winter Park as it's where I ski most. If you're not into fancy lodging we really like the vintage inn. It's older, but the people are awesome. They always let us check in early/ leave late. It's a short gondola ride from the door to the mountain. There are a few restaurants/ bars at the base and one in the hotel. The free buses at Winter Park are awesome. You can take them to town for restaurants or the grocery store.

There is a pretty good mix of blue trails. The views are awesome. It's much more laid back than Copper or other Summit County areas (well, the basin is pretty laid back too). It's definitely not known for nightlife so you will be disappointed if you go there to party.

 

[bounceswoosh]

I stayed at the Vintage at WP last summer for a mountain bike clinic, and was shocked to find there was an actual *room key*. Not a card, a key! It was retro-cool ;-)

I like both Winter Park and Copper. I also like skiing in Utah, even though the one time I skied there in the last 15 years, the weather was obnoxious and it was 48 degrees at the top of Alta. I generally get the feeling Copper is less crowded than WP, but that may be an artifact of the days I've skied there - I've always gotten the Vail borg collective pass, so I only have a few days at other places.