Resort for two adults in March, ideally Epic?

[Sarabeth]

I'm trying to actually plan our trips for next year early enough that I can get reasonable lodging. My husband and I are planning a trip for just the two of us in the middle of March. We're in the mid-Atlantic, so it'll either be a flight or a long drive, since the whole point is to get a chance to go somewhere better anything local to us. If we stay East Coast, Stowe would be the obvious choice. We want to stick to Epic because we're locked in to season passes there for our local mountain, but open to other options if there's no decent choice on Epic.

Basically, I'm wondering if there's anywhere that (1) has good tree skiing and (2) is not going to be totally overwhelmed by spring break crowds. Unfortunately, even though we're not taking our kids, I'm a college professor so we need to go during my spring break. Hoping not to buy day passes when we already have Epic passes, but will do so if it's absolutely necessary to avoid crazy crowds.

Would love feedback, especially if any of y'all had a good experience at a resort during that time period this year.

 

[Christy]

In terms of less crowds, I'd head to the resorts that are furthest from population centers and major airports. So, Telluride, Crested Butte, Kicking Horse, Kimberly, Fernie (I'm including Epic partners). I can't comment on the tree skiing.

I've never skied Europe though I know people say it's a much better value than North Americans resorts, and there are Epic resorts and partners there.

 

[santacruz skier]

I spent 9 days at Heavenly March 7-15 and skied 8 of those days with few crowds. I know, hard to believe, but it's such a huge resort that the crowds spread out. Of course, I know the mountain very well so I know how to avoid the crowds. It snowed A LOT and that sometimes keeps the skiers away as the gondola shut down 3 days while I was there. That just means you walk a half block to the transit center and take a shuttle. The weather often discourages traveling skiers from going out on a blizzard like day.

 

[marzNC]

Welcome!

That's easy to answer . . . Crested Butte. Was there last March the week before Easter. Had good snow and really didn't feel it was that crowded.

I fly out of RDU in NC. Last season was the first time I had an Epic pass of any sort. I got it for a trip to CB. I usually go to Ikon resorts for trips out west. Since I had Epic Local, I used it to check out Vail and Beaver Creek during early season, and then Keystone and Breck in March. Only a day or two each, but enough to get a pretty good sense of the vibe and terrain. My favorite mountain out west is Alta. Massanutten has been my home hill for about 20 years.

For the trip to CB last season the crew included my advanced ski buddy, Bill (male schoolmate, over 70), who drives to ski from Albuquerque and an intermediate Diva who is from the mid-Atlantic. We used the Gunnison airport. Gunnison is tiny but is served by two major airlines.

I'm an older advanced skier who has learned to enjoy soft bumps and powder in trees on increasingly steep terrain in the last decade. My ski buddy really likes CB, the mountain and the town. We had a very good full-day lesson with a long-time instructor that included "adventure skiing" off the T-bars. After a couple days, I agreed with him that going back to CB was of far more interest than any of the Epic resorts close to I-70.

I started looking for CB lodging in May. Found a 2BR/2BA bath condo on VRBO I liked that was right across the road from a bus stop. The bus to the CB base ran every 15 minutes most of the morning and starting around 3pm. Could also walk, which took 10-15 minutes. I booked in June. The trip was originally planned for my friend's son's spring break (high school junior). But he opted out in late summer, so I shifted the dates to avoid Easter weekend and invited the other Diva.

Paging @Briski .

 

[santacruz skier]

My friend just returned from two weeks at Crested Butte staying at the Elevation Resort slope side. I was thinking about joining her except her niece from Cornwall, England decided to go...
She used to own a condo in CB and still goes every year and stays at the Elevation. She always comments on the lack of crowds except the week the Texas students are off (which is usually mid March).

 

[Sarabeth]

In terms of less crowds, I'd head to the resorts that are furthest from population centers and major airports. So, Telluride, Crested Butte, Kicking Horse, Kimberly, Fernie (I'm including Epic partners). I can't comment on the tree skiing.

I've never skied Europe though I know people say it's a much better value than North Americans resorts, and there are Epic resorts and partners there.

Would absolutely love to do the Alps, but I don't think I can justify the jet lag for just one week. Maybe the year after we'll feel like our kids are old enough that we can do two weeks in early January, when they go back to school but I haven't started teaching yet. Our beloved former nanny is going to stay with them for this spring break trip next year, they'll be fine, but one week still feels like the limit right now, at least for my younger kid.

 

[Sarabeth]

Crested Butte is a good idea though. And we wouldn't even have to upgrade to the full epic pass

 

[marzNC]

Crested Butte is a good idea though. And we wouldn't even have to upgrade to the full epic pass

Let me know if you want to know about the condo I found. Although for just a couple, would be more fun to stay at the Elevation Hotel run by the resort that is ski in/out.

Don't need a rental car for CB if flying in/out of Gunnison. The bus system at CB works well. Can get to the town using the bus too.

 

[Ski Sine Fine]

Elevation hotel would be my preference. Slope side, ski valet, kitchenette, bath robes, transit center for bus to town.

 

[RachelV]

I can say for sure that you do NOT want Keystone or Breckenridge for spring break crowd avoidance.

CB is a great choice, esp given that you don't have to rent a car. Great town, too.

 

[Sarabeth]

Ok, I’m getting pretty sold on Crested Butte!

 

[marzNC]

Ok, I’m getting pretty sold on Crested Butte!

Here's a decent introduction to CB by someone who has done video introductions for assorted resorts in recent years.

November 2024

 

[Briski]

@Sarabeth Crested Butte is my home resort. The lines are not bad, but present, during Spring Break. The bus is fabulous and easy whether you are on the Mtn or down in town. If you fly, I suggest flying to Montrose over Gunnison, as Gunnison flights are often diverted. Hit me up if you come.
Edit to add: Both CB and Telluride are heavily steeped in costume culture, and they really start showing up in March. So bring something silly to wear if you like. So many gals and girls in tutus!

 

[Briski]

FYI, Elevation is being remodeled starting this summer through next season. It will have limited booking capacity and may be noisier with fewer amenities available. Grand Lodge isn’t quite as nice, but has little kitchens and larger rooms, and lots of pet friendly rooms. Lots of VRBO/AirBnB options on the mountain or in town too.

 

[ChilliHeeler]

MarzNC, I used those videos to prepare for my own trip this past year. Very helpful. Sarabeth, count me as another vote for CB. I was there four days during Spring Break (and our spring break in Kansas is the same as a lot of Texas school districts!) and CB was amazing. The terrain is really well laid out to minimize choke points. We had no problems with crowding except at the very base at like 9am one of the mornings. Also, such a beautiful town, shuttle is good, the vibe is positive. The lodging at the base (which we also got about a year in advance) was surprisingly reasonable compared to stuff in Summit County.

 

[Sarabeth]

FYI, Elevation is being remodeled starting this summer through next season. It will have limited booking capacity and may be noisier with fewer amenities available. Grand Lodge isn’t quite as nice, but has little kitchens and larger rooms, and lots of pet friendly rooms. Lots of VRBO/AirBnB options on the mountain or in town too.

I’ve looked rooms at Grand Lodge, we’ll likely book one there. We are not fancy people, so I’m sure it will be fine for us, and kitchen access of some kind is definitely a plus.

 

[skinnyfootskis]

MarzNC, I used those videos to prepare for my own trip this past year. Very helpful. Sarabeth, count me as another vote for CB. I was there four days during Spring Break (and our spring break in Kansas is the same as a lot of Texas school districts!) and CB was amazing. The terrain is really well laid out to minimize choke points. We had no problems with crowding except at the very base at like 9am one of the mornings. Also, such a beautiful town, shuttle is good, the vibe is positive. The lodging at the base (which we also got about a year in advance) was surprisingly reasonable compared to stuff in Summit County.

Here's a decent introduction to CB by someone who has done video introductions for assorted resorts in recent years.

November 2024

Great. I’d love the bnb info too.