Resorts with direct flights from New York and IKON pass

[jenniferm]

Greetings all--Planning a trip in mid-late March, having just dealt with the hell that is travel to Sun Valley, we are looking for a place that has easier access from NYC--ie, a nonstop flight and a not-too-long van shuttle ( or a commuter flight) on the other end. Reasonable but non-luxury budget. I have an IKON pass, so I'd like to stay in that network. We are "mature" skiers and it would be nice to have a cute town nearby but we certainly don't need or want a party scene.

Here is what I've come up with--would very much appreciate comments/other ideas from the group and any specific ideas on lodging in any ot these places that won't break the bank. Friend is a rusty intermediate, I'm a stronger skier generally but a disaster in powder--so we've taken Snowbird and Alta out of consideration. If there's reasonable intermediate terrain at either of these, I'd love to hear about it1

1. Flying into Salt Lake City--Deer Valley is our spirit animal, but the hotel prices there are insane. There do seem to be reasonable places in Park City--is there any way ( aside from renting a car) to get between the two?
,
2.Flying into Denver--Love Vail and Aspen, hotel prices for both seem up there with Deer Valley. If anyone has a less expensive work around (Snowmass? ), that'ssid worth considering.
/ot
Steamboat Springs reasonable hotel pricing, good intermediate terrain, but shuttle van is 4 1/2 hours Puddle jumper flight from Denver looks reasonable.

3. Flying into Reno--my experience with the Tahoe area resorts is limited but I have a clear recollection of skiing in "Sierra cement" and I'm not sure I'd pay to do again. Great flights from NYC though.

All comments/other ideas appreciated, TIA!

 

[RachelV]

I lived in NYC until 2011 and in my experience you can't beat Utah for direct flights + no car rental needed, especially if you're staying on the mountain up BCC or LCC.

Park City does have a fairly good bus system that will get you to Deer Valley, though:

Routes & Schedules | Park City, UT

ROUTES & SCHEDULES

parkcity.org

Steamboat and Aspen both are also easy to do with no car, but, as you say, harder to get to. Staying in Snowmass vs staying in the town of Aspen is definitely an option if the lodging is cheaper there. As cute and walkable a town as Aspen is, I actually prefer the vibe of Snowmass as Aspen has gotten wealthier and wealthier. There's plenty of dining options in Snowmass so that you wouldn't have to take the bus to town every evening. You could even stay up-valley a bit in Basalt and still take the bus to ski pretty easily if you keep bus stop location in mind when booking your lodging.

 

[RachelV]

Skiing Jackson Hole and staying the town of Jackson would also check most of your boxes, but you would need to transfer on the flights as far as I know. But then it's a very quick shuttle to town, the town of Jackson is very fun, and a lot of the lodging runs free shuttles to the mountain. You could ski a day at Snow King, too, just to mix it up.

 

[kmb5662]

New Yorker here and I second SLC area - you can usually get direct flights daily and take a shuttle to whichever resort of your choosing. No need to rent a car. If you catch an early AM flight you can be on snow by lunchtime with the time zone differential.

 

[marzNC]

Have you looked into flying to Hayden, the airport 20 min from Steamboat Springs? It's a short flight from Denver. In general, Steamboat doesn't require a car. There is a very good public bus system, so it's possible to stay a bit farther away from the base at a lower price point.

@Olesya Chornoguz has been in Steamboat in recent years.

As for SLC, staying at Solitude might be worth considering. Solitude has been updating stuff in the village in recent years. Can take the UTA bus up to Brighton for variety. Both have plenty of intermediate terrain.

Agree that Snowbird is not the place for cautious intermediates. However, Alta on a regular day that isn't a powder day is great fun for intermediates. There are blues that are always groomed. Except perhaps when it snows 6+ inches after midnight and it's still dumping in the morning. That's pretty rare. Skiing in 3-4 inches of fresh snow over a groomed surface at Alta . . . is great fun!

I started skiing Alta as an intermediate long ago. Was still skiing 90% on groomers 15 years ago before I was skiing enough to invest time and money in lessons more regularly. My friend who learned to ski when her kids started ski school loves Alta. As does a Ski Diva over 70 who has joined us at Alta Lodge. Staying at one of the lodges in the Town of Alta is pricey but given that meals are included, it can be worth it for a very relaxing ski vacation.

 

[marzNC]

1. Flying into Salt Lake City--Deer Valley is our spirit animal, but the hotel prices there are insane. There do seem to be reasonable places in Park City--is there any way ( aside from renting a car) to get between the two?

The public bus system in Park City is very good. Locals who live in condos/houses in Park City often wear their ski boots on the bus when they go skiing. So staying farther away from Deer Valley and taking the bus is a perfectly reasonable approach.

 

[Jilly]

Have you thought about Tremblant?

 

[jenniferm]

Thank you ladies, this is such a great group!
Keep those suggestions coming!

 

[jenniferm]

I love Tremblant, I believe it’s epic rather than ikon?

It was 10 degrees last time I skiied Tremblant, friend has only skiied out west, I’ve warned her as best I can about the “ice coast” but she could end up a very unhappy camper!

 

[diymom]

Tremblant is Ikon

 

[Jilly]

Fly from NYC or Newark to Montreal. There is transportation to your hotel even. 30% off on your buck. Nice resort town and 2 other villages to look at on the free bus system.

And if you pick you days right a couple of Ski Diva's to tour you around.

The only "epic" resort in Canada is Whistler.

 

[Soujan]

I've done the trip from JFK to Reno twice to go skiing. We took the shuttle from the airport to Heavenly and to Palisades Tahoe. Shuttle ride is about an hour but you have to wait around for the shuttle depending on it's schedule. The Reno airport is small and not crowded at all and by the time you get to the luggage carousel, your bags are already there.

I'm planning on going to Banff in April. We'll fly to Calgary and take a shuttle to Banff. I'm staying in town and there are free shuttles to Sunshine Village and Lake Louise.

 

[santacruz skier]

Fly from NYC or Newark to Montreal. There is transportation to your hotel even. 30% off on your buck. Nice resort town and 2 other villages to look at on the free bus system.

And if you pick you days right a couple of Ski Diva's to tour you around.

The only "epic" resort in Canada is Whistler.

Which is a very fun place (WB) .. think I’ve been there 6-7 times! Highly recommend!

 

[snoWYmonkey]

Jackson Hole has direct flights from Newark this winter and is on the Ikon pass. Not sure if it daily flights.
There can be powder, but that's the case anywhere when it snows as I learned on my east coast ski trip.
The rusty intermediate may be limited if they are timid, but most instructors can help with exploring appropriate blue terrain if they think it is appropriate for your travel companion.

 

[Chuyi]

If you have a full ikon pass 6 ski resorts are 40mn-1hr from SLC.

 

[teppaz]

Greetings all--Planning a trip in mid-late March, having just dealt with the hell that is travel to Sun Valley, we are looking for a place that has easier access from NYC--ie, a nonstop flight and a not-too-long van shuttle ( or a commuter flight) on the other end. Reasonable but non-luxury budget. I have an IKON pass, so I'd like to stay in that network. We are "mature" skiers and it would be nice to have a cute town nearby but we certainly don't need or want a party scene.

Here is what I've come up with--would very much appreciate comments/other ideas from the group and any specific ideas on lodging in any ot these places that won't break the bank. Friend is a rusty intermediate, I'm a stronger skier generally but a disaster in powder--so we've taken Snowbird and Alta out of consideration. If there's reasonable intermediate terrain at either of these, I'd love to hear about it1

1. Flying into Salt Lake City--Deer Valley is our spirit animal, but the hotel prices there are insane. There do seem to be reasonable places in Park City--is there any way ( aside from renting a car) to get between the two?
,
2.Flying into Denver--Love Vail and Aspen, hotel prices for both seem up there with Deer Valley. If anyone has a less expensive work around (Snowmass? ), that'ssid worth considering.
/ot
Steamboat Springs reasonable hotel pricing, good intermediate terrain, but shuttle van is 4 1/2 hours Puddle jumper flight from Denver looks reasonable.

3. Flying into Reno--my experience with the Tahoe area resorts is limited but I have a clear recollection of skiing in "Sierra cement" and I'm not sure I'd pay to do again. Great flights from NYC though.

All comments/other ideas appreciated, TIA!

Brooklynite here. I'm going to Sun Valley late January and your "hell" mention did not reassure me! I'm going through Denver. Ah well, it's always a crapshoot in winter.

I second all the mentions of SLC. I flew to Eagle County airport, near Vail/Beaver Creek, once and took a shuttle from there, and it went well in both directions (which I hear is not a given).

 

[Christy]

I'm going to Sun Valley late January and your "hell" mention did not reassure me! I'm going through Denver. Ah well, it's always a crapshoot in winter.

SUN is a little tricky as it's essentially a fog bank in a mountain valley. Diverting to Boise or Twin Falls then getting bused up used to be common, and a real drag. You always had to call a special number 6 hours before your outbound flight to see if you were flying out of SUN or going to the airport then getting on a bus to Boise, and you had to be ready to leave 3 hours earlier if the latter. BUT--things have gotten so much better in recent years with some new technology. From the airport's website:

In the past two years, the new LPV approach at SUN has “saved” over 180 United and Delta flights from having to divert, with only a few diverting due to extreme weather conditions. And Alaska Airlines has had very few winter flights disrupted by weather over the years since it has been using its proprietary RNP approach at SUN.

Airline officials noted that in the event that an unexpected flight disruption occurs, passengers will be assisted by the airlines via their service recovery protocol for flights affected by weather. If a carrier cannot complete a flight to SUN due to bad weather, the carrier will delay the departure of the flight or, if an aircraft is already in flight, divert to a nearby airport and wait until conditions improve, or the flight may be cancelled. In certain cases, carriers will add extra flights to reaccommodate passengers when conditions improve.

 

[jenniferm]

Brooklynite here. I'm going to Sun Valley late January and your "hell" mention did not reassure me! I'm going through Denver. Ah well, it's always a crapshoot in winter.

I second all the mentions of SLC. I flew to Eagle County airport, near Vail/Beaver Creek, once and took a shuttle from there, and it went well in both directions (which I hear is not a given).

I m going through Denver too, best of a very expensive bunch. Not just the weather issue, but that airport is huge and I’ve missed connections there before. I do like that crazy blue horse though!

 

[jenniferm]

Worst case scenario—pay $$$ to fly straight into sun Valley, get diverted to Boise or Twin Falls. Thing I really really hope won’t happen!

 

[teppaz]

I’m only going for 2 days of skiing on my way to Tahoe so time will be at a premium!