Canada or USA

[littleripper]

Hello
We have never skied before. DH very keen, very fit and sporty, DD18 and DS22 also keen. We want to go to the US or Canada either early Jan or Feb half term and was looking for advice on resorts/hotels.
Do you have to buy all the ski clothing here before you go or can it all be hired?
Any advice much appreciated, I have been reading and reading but seem to be getting more not less confused!

If you have never skied before, why have you decided to try Canada/USA rather than somewhere closer (assuming you're in the UK) such as France, Austria or Italy? Not only will transport take longer and be far more expensive, but you'll be jet-lagged for the first couple of days, making the whole experience even more exhausting than it usually is.

If you instead go to France, Austria or Italy and use a ski travel company (Crystal, Inghams, Nielsen, Heidi and many others) the travel will be much shorter and you'll have everything organised for you such as travel, transfers, accommodation, ski hire, ski school, lift tickets etc. and you can concentrate on having fun on the slopes and at the apres ski. Wherever you go, ski lessons will be in English - just in case that was a reason why you've looked at Canada/USA.

It is not generally possible to hire ski clothing in resort - you'll need to buy in advance. Decathlon, Mountain Warehouse, Trespass, Dare2Be have perfectly good skiwear for reasonable prices. If you have money to burn, there are plenty of brands (Spyder, Schoffel, Kjus etc.) that make excellent, very expensive specialist gear that is totally over the top for a group of beginners. Go to a shop like Ellis Brigham and you can see the full range.

Thanks so much @Havanananana , the reason for USA/Canada is that DS is currently studying in Boston and we'd like him to come and meet with us, should have mentioned that :)

Thanks for advice

There are companies in USA you can hire the clothes through and they’ll send to your resort. Skiing in Canada was very cold (QC and BC) but we like tremblant. US we’ve only been to a small place in Colorado. Plenty of snow and much milder weather. (Wolf creek)

Example https://www.kitlender.com

I've skied both, and I found that because the resorts in the Rockies are generally higher than those in the Alps, European ski clothes weren't always warm enough. Also US ski clothes were less expensive. I hired boots and skis.

I preferred places like Tahoe to Whistler Blackcombe, because it was more of a real community and less 'manufactured'. The food & drink was less expensive. I guess it depends on your budget and if you prefer hotels to houses/eating out.

Thank you so much. Would you mind telling me who you booked with/flew with? @MintJulia @HerRoyalNotness

We booked direct - flew Heathrow-Dallas-Reno and then hired a car and drove up to Tahoe. I think we flew with American.

If you want to be close to Boston then look at Killington in Vermont, you can drive. I learnt to ski there a million years ago. It was freezing but brilliant! The good thing about North America is there’s no issue with a language barrier at ski school.

If you are skiing with someone who is already in Boston, then fly to Boston. You can have a couple of nights in the city (which has lots to see and do) then rent a car and drive to Stowe, Sunday River or Killington. All lovely resorts with plenty of places to stay. You can rent skits boots poles and helmets very easily at the resorts. I have no idea about renting clothing, but I would do that in the UK before you fly so that you know it fits properly. You will need proper winter boots (insulated, grippy soles, above the ankle).

All of the resorts have web sites which allow you to book lodging, tickets and rentals in a package (lessons too if you need them)

Flights are easy, look at BA, Jet Blue, Virgin Atlantic for direct, or you can go via Iceland for much less money (I think Norse and Play)

If you want more specific help on this you can PM me

I agree with the others - look at Killington for skiing from Boston.

As for the ski clothing rental - at the prices that the Kitlender guys are charging, you could buy some good ski clothing in the UK with the advantage that you know it would fit, you'll be certain to have it when you need it (and not be worrying if it turns up on time) and you'll have it for all your subsequent ski trips.

The trick to keeping warm is to layer up - merino base layers, a good thin fleece, perhaps a thicker fleece as well (or a gilet) and then the ski jacket. Good ski socks and gloves are also essential, as is a neck-warmer/Buff and a helmet.

If you have the choice, then Utah is the best skiing in the US in my experience. I grew up and learned to ski in the Alps, but I live in the US now. However, Salt Lake City is a long way from Boston.

I agree with the recommendation about Vermont. Also, you will not find the same apres ski type of experience in the US, resorts are pretty different here. I don't know about skiing in Canada.

I went skiing in Park City (Deer Valley) as a novice and had a great time many moons ago, can probably get closer to Boston mind!

Canada and the eastern US ski areas can be extremely cold and icy in January/February. For a first experience I would be tempted to head to Western US for a more enjoyable time with a bit of sunshine. In my opinion, if you really want a fun time with plenty of apres ski then Austria is the best place for beginners.

February in Canada can be really cold - slopes will close at -25.

Some areas aren’t hugely beginner friendly either. Few green runs.

Thanks so much, we are not at all bothered about being near Boston as he is there for 2 years. I fancied Whistler as the non skier in the group. DH has wanted to try for 30 years and we have never had the money. Exciting to research all of these.

On the basis that you are not too concerned about flying on from Boston, then the western side of the continent will be warmer than the eastern resorts.

Whistler is fantastic for first-time skiers, and there's enough to do for non-skiers. You could (should) also combine the trip with a few days in Vancouver. Whistler is extremely well-organised, but it comes at a price. If you want to do a combined city + snow break, you could consider staying in Vancouver and visiting the closer resorts at Grouse or Cypress Mountains.

Utah is supposed to be really good for skiing. We’re going to Alta in Feb. One tip is book it soon - all the accommodation was practically booked up already. There’s another resort called Snowbird that we looked at.

It’s short transfer (45 mins) from Salt Lake City. We found the flights were cheaper than flights to Europe but then accommodation is more expensive I’ve found.

DH want to go here as the powder is supposed to be amazing.

Having just got back from Killington (was there for a work thing) I would say be prepared to empty out your pockets to pay for the lift passes and take out a mortgage for dinner!

Lift passes were $179 a DAY for peak times - to give an idea how this compares, (and this is for pretty average samey hillside skiing) with no mountain huts for beers and hot chocolates, only a lodge (large echo-y self service canteen) for food. The entire Saalbach-Zell-Kaprun area is €72 a day, and Portes de Soleil is €68 a day, both infinitely nicer places with much more and better skiing. I made this comment on my work group chat and the reply I got was ‘think that’s expensive? You should see Whistler prices! Once you’ve added tax (not in the published prices) it’s $338 a day.’ Wtf?

We were there for 2 days, one night. Breakfast for 4 in the lodge (a bagel and a coffee each) was $82. Dinner for DH and I in a village steakhouse was $250 - we had 2 cocktails each, a steak each, a bowl of fries to share and also shared a pudding. That was it! We had fun and will worry about the credit card bill later. There is no ski-in, ski-out accommodation btw, so a hire car is generally necessary. I’ve skied in Banff too in the past and was surprised how far the villages are from the ski areas.

I was literally being paid to be there, but you couldn’t pay me to go back! Cannabis is legal in Vermont if that floats your boat though, and around 2pm the slopes start to stink of weed.

I would ship your DS back here - you could put him in business class and probably still have a cheaper trip to anywhere in the Alps!