Ski Vacations

[PharCyDe]

I LOVE the winter! I love the way it feels, the way the snow looks, and the way a warm fire feels after a snow fight. I have yet to ski though! I would love to give it a shot. Are there any famous places to go ski at? I obviously want a place that would be "learner friendly" rather than an expert mountain lol. Any input would be much appreciated.
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- Ryan -

[Jonathan]

LOL... you'll have to get your advice from someone else... I *HATE* cold/winter/snow.

[cocodrilo]

I hate the cold, but LOVE to ski! Now that I have my new BOARDS (parabolics), you GLIDE over 4 feet of powder, not ski through it !!!

My skiing spot recommendations are:

In California- Heavenly Valley. You can ski 2 STATES in one day- California AND Nevada. Afterwards, retire to the Nevada side and hit the casinos. Notj ust gambling but some fun shows, music, grub, etc.

Squaw Valley- Hey, they had the Olympics here! GREAT skiing!

Kirkwood is good, too!

Skied Bad Gastein's finest(Austria) and ALL the places there were fun. Party starts at noon, apres ski is WILD fun!

I've skied many places in Japan but the best are in Nagano(again, Olympics were held there!) and Hokkaido. My Hokkaido recommendation is Niseko. Not only is there powder galore(why ski on the boring runs? Off-piste is BEST!!!) but there are hot springs in town (I like the town of Hirafu) as well as local delicacies and LOTS of sake! Japan is very expensive, but skiing in this incredible powder is totally worth it. If you get a week pass, you can ski at night, too. The week passes also allow you to ski at three different ski resorts along the mountain range. VERRRRY cool!

[Laura]

I second the recommendation for Heavenly Valley. The views of Lake Tahoe are amazing, and the ski school staff seem very nice. I learned to ski when I was 4 years old, but recently took some snowboarding lessons at Heavenly. Mix the views with the great snow and the fact that you can cross over into Nevada for some casino action, and it's a great place to visit.

I also like Snowbird in Utah. It's very convenient to the Salt Lake City airport, and there are all sorts of rentals and hotels in the SLC suburbs, so it's can be a quite affordable ski vacation. And you can also drive up to Park City and go on the Olympic bobsled run there! I haven't skiied at Park City, though, so I can't say anything about that.

[squirrel]

I love winter, and the mountains, but I've never skiied in my life!
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Raluca
Salsa es mi vida!
www.salsagalaxy.com

[staticfate]

I live in Canada and we have some of the best Skiing in the world... i can be in the mountains in two hours!!!! nothing better at the end of a day boarding than to soak your sore muscles in the natural hotsprings some great places for skiing in Western Canada are...

Whistler/Blackcomb, Whistler BC
Fernie Alpine Resort, BC
Marmot Basin, Jasper AB
Lake Louise, Banff AB
Sunshine Village/Goats Eye Mountain, Banff AB
Nakiska Resort, Kananaskis AB
Big White, Kelowna BC
Panorama Mountain Village, Invermere BC

[cocodrilo]

In today's paper there was an article about a recent influx of Australians who are flying to Hokkaido for ski trips. They say the snow is much better than in Canada or Europe. (In Europe the snow quality was decent. I have never skied Canada so I cannot comment but I've been to Hokkaido twice and it is pure, dry POWDER! ) Check it out!

[Laura]

Mmm, skiing in a land where hot sake is sold through vending machines. How could ANYONE go wrong?

[cocodrilo]

Just another reason to ski Hokkaido- that and the onsens(hot springs) and seafood(crab, scallops, salmon eggs, sea urchin, etc) are two more valid reasons!

[Laura]

Stop! I gave up skiing so I wouldn't blow out a knee during my competitive dancing career! I feel the lure...I first learned when I was under 5 years old, and used to go nearly every day when I was in elementary and middle school, but it's been decades since I've gone regularly. You are tempting me

[Zack]

I'm not a big skiier. if I go at all, I go cross country skiing at the golf course near my house. I'm not into the goig incredibly fast skiing.

[Laura]

I started doing cross-country a number of years ago because my husband prefers it to downhill. My first time ever was at Kirkwood in the California Sierras. I've only been two times since, once at Solitude in Utah, and once at Royal Gorge in California. Royal Gorge is great -- it's a whole huge area totally dedicated to cross-country skiiers. They have this great little inn tucked into the woods -- a horse-drawn sleigh picks you up at the parking lot, and takes you to the inn. They have a french chef, and you can ski right out the front door. We've never done this, although we talk about it every year.

[cocodrilo]

I used to ski Kirkwood, Northstar, Heavenly Valley & Squaw Valley. Skiing in California is great because it gets so hot during the day that you don't even need gloves or a jacket! I never needed gogles until I started skiing in Japan(different climate. glasses fog up/ it snows often here). In California, the snow condition leaves something to be desired, though. It's icy in the mornings and gets slushy after 2pm, but if there's a fresh snow, it's pretty good! Scenery is fantastic(you can see a great view of Lake Tahoe from the Nevada side of Heavenly!) and there are some cool lodges for schmoozing!

[Laura]

I love to hear people complain about California snow conditions. Those West Coast skiiers don't know how good they've got it. I grew up and learned to ski in New Hampshire in the days when snowmaking was considered an expensive novelty, and glare ice + bare spots was considered normal. So, to me, even a bad day at Heavenly is better than what I grew up with. Same thing happened the one time Hubby-san and I went to Vail: everyone was going around all disappointed, and I was like "WHAT! I'm not spending entire runs on ice and ice chunks!!"

(I also used to walk uphill both ways in the snow to school. Or something like that )

[cocodrilo]

Ha ha! The partying, close proximity of the casinos and just plain gorgeous scenery makes up for the crappy snow conditions. While we're used to blizzard conditions here in Japan on the slopes, I reminisce about the days skiing in tank tops and getting so sunburned that I couldn't sleep at night!