I skied at Sunapee when I had a MAX pass and enjoyed it; it has a more low-key vibe than Okemo, though it can get pretty crowded on weekends. As opposed to Ludlow there's not much around Sunapee if you're visiting from out of town.
If you
are visiting and want to check out both mountains, there are nice B&Bs in Windsor, VT as well as resort-style lodging in Brownsville. That would put you an easy 30 minutes from Okemo and about 45 from Sunapee.
I'm willing to bet there are quite a few AirBnB rentals available at the condos around Mt. Ascutney as well. The Holiday Inn Vacations Resort in Brownsville is right at the base of Mt. Ascutney, which has a very cool rope tow and this year will have a T-bar (all free and open to the public) and tubing lanes (not sure if those will be free). They have a groomer but not snowmaking, so it's weather-dependent. But if you have kids just learning to ski, it could be a fun, unique option.
You can also hike or skin up to the top of Mt. Ascutney and access all of the old resort's trails. The resort's fitness center rents snowshoes, and there's also a huge MTB trail system that's open for fat-biking in the winter. I think that bike rentals are in the works via Paradise Sports in Windsor, which I believe will have an outpost at the new Ascutney base lodge (yes, someone donated a
building frame, which volunteers are now turning into a gorgeous lodge with stone floors and bead-board ceilings!).
(Can you tell I love my new home, which is right on the mountain?
)
Information on all of the activities can be found
here at the Ascutney Outdoors web site. Of course, feel free to PM me any time about conditions and details; I work with the volunteer organization and am an enthusiastic ambassador.