reputed luxury resort this winter: Northstar on Lake Tahoe.
What other resorts do you think fall into this category and do you think they are worth visiting? Is it simply the availability upscale food and lodging or is there something more to it? Your thoughts? Thank you
Northstar is considered the poshest resort in Tahoe! Some nickname it "Flatstar", but what it lacks in steeps, it makes up for in fast groomers, great trees, helpful staff, and rare closures.
To me, luxury is the ability to pay for convenience:
- Platinum lift passes to access much shorter lift lines. I haven't seen that at any other resort.
- Ritz Carlton with its fancy rooms, spa, and restaurants and direct access to slopes with ski valets.
- On-mountain dining is decent (Asian bowls at Zephyr lodge!) but pricey.
- First tracks program for those powder days, but other mountains have that too.
- Free overnight ski storage.
Apres-ski is a big part of luxury! The Northstar Village is small, but they have a skating rink, several restaurants (including a new Michael Minna establishment), complimentary S'mores, movie theater, and candle making for the kids. They don't have as much shopping as other resorts though ;(
All of this comes at a cost as it's the priciest resort in Tahoe. They even started charging for parking that was once free.
It'd be nice if they had some more dining options. No Asian restaurants. Also, no free sunscreen is a travesty. Whistler offers a concierge to help arrange lessons, restaurant reservations, activities, etc.