The Best Easy-To-Plan Ski Trips
from Atlanta
I like a good ski vacation because it’s easy to plan. Usually, I spend a lot of time thinking about my family’s trips. I pour over maps and read hours’ worth of guides, blogs, and trip reviews so we can stay at the best place for our money and see the sights we most want to see. But sometimes I want an easy trip where I already know the drill. For us, that means skiing.
Family ski vacations are great because you know what you’re going to do on your trip. You’re going to ski (or snowboard), and depending on your skill level, you might take a lesson or two. Maybe you’ll spend a morning or afternoon snowshoeing or snowmobiling or riding in a horse-drawn sleigh. At the end of the day, you’ll sit by a fire or in a hot tub. Then you’ll go out to dinner or make a quick meal in your condo before you crash for the night. And that’s about it. Easy.
But what can be tricky about planning a ski vacation is choosing where to go. I’ve wasted time trying to figure out how to get to a ski resort only to decide I’m unwilling to pay the exorbitant cost of flying into the closest regional airport. If cost is no object for you, then Godspeed. But for those interested in the best skiing near Atlanta that won’t break the bank, read on.
Best Ski Resorts Convenient to Atlanta
Colorado Rockies – Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, and Vail Resorts
There’s a reason so many people you meet on the ski lifts outside of Denver are from Atlanta. It’s because it’s easy to get there. Delta, United, Southwest, and Frontier all fly direct to Denver and the cost is low, even during peak ski season. That said, you’ll have to drive between an hour to two-and-a-half hours from the airport to your chosen ski resort. But the drive through the mountains is beautiful, and the number of resorts in the area cannot be beat. In fact, there are so many resorts along Interstate 70—many of them owned by the same company, Vail Resorts—that you can ski a different resort every day of your trip if you choose.
My family has been to all the resorts mentioned above, but there are plenty of others to choose from, including Arapahoe Basin, Copper Mountain, Loveland, Winter Park, and more. Of those I’ve skied, my favorite is Beaver Creek. About eight years ago, we stayed at one of the many ski-in condos there and fell in love with the area. I also like to take it easy with skiing, and Beaver Creek perfectly met my needs, with 38 percent of its more than 1,800 acres geared for beginners and 30 percent for intermediate skiers. Whatever your ski tastes, there’s likely a ski resort outside of Denver that’s right for you.
If you have young skiers or snowboarders accompanying you, be sure to check out Colorado resorts with kids ski free programs. We’ve personally taken advantage of Keystone’s kids ski free program, which allows children 12 and under to ski free with the purchase of two or more nights of lodging. Also look for ski rental deals in which kids get free ski or snowboard rentals with the purchase of certain adult ski rental packages.
Utah’s Wasatch Range – Park City Resort
Another convenient ski destination from Atlanta is just outside Salt Lake City, Utah. As with Denver, you can usually find direct flights with well-priced tickets. Salt Lake City is a slightly longer flight, but your journey is shorter once you land. The largest resort in the area, Park City, is a mere 45-minute drive from the airport.
In 2015, Park City Resort merged with the former Canyons Resort, bringing the skiable terrain to a whopping 7,300 acres and the number of runs to 341, making it the second largest ski resort in North America after Whistler in Canada. Visitors can choose to stay at either of the resort bases and can access the other ski area by high-speed gondola.
From personal experience, if you’re going to Park City, I recommend choosing your lodging based on what types of runs you prefer. Trails near the Canyons base area tend to be more advanced, while trails near the Park City base are more intermediate. Although the Quicksilver gondola is only a 10-minute ride between the two areas, actually getting from the Canyons ski village to the Park City village on skis, and vice versa, is a good two-hour endeavor.
Another consideration for your Park City lodging is how much you value easy access to the slopes and what you’re looking for in après-ski options. The numerous condos within walking distance of the Red Pine gondola in the Canyons makes getting to the slopes a breeze. But the Canyons village lacks the shops, restaurants, and nightlife that give Historic Park City so much charm. If you’re not sure of your preference, the good news is that the two areas are only a 10-minute drive apart.
West Virginia’s Allegheny Mountains – Snowshoe Resort
If you’d rather drive than fly to your ski vacation, do yourself a favor and head to West Virginia’s Snowshoe Resort. While north Georgia and North Carolina have several ski destinations within driving distance of metro Atlanta, Snowshoe Resort feels more like a western ski resort, with longer runs, consistent snow, and a central ski village with shops, restaurants, and lodging. Snowshoe offers 41 trails with seven lifts and gets an average annual snowfall of 180 inches.
One reason Snowshoe may feel so much like the resorts out west is because it’s owned by Alterra Mountain Company, the same company that owns resorts like Steamboat, Squaw Valley, Solitude, and Deer Valley. But Snowshoe costs far less than its Western counterparts. You’ll not only be saving money on plane tickets; lift tickets are cheaper too.
As to the ease of getting there, the drive is not exactly short. It takes about nine hours from Atlanta, but to me, bypassing the closer Southeastern resorts is the best value for your time and money. When my family took this trip, we broke up the drive with a stop in Charlotte, North Carolina. My sons enjoyed our afternoon at the NASCAR Hall of Fame before we made the rest of the drive the following morning.
If you’re looking for the best ski trips from Atlanta, you’ve got several great choices, thanks to convenient and inexpensive direct flights to Denver and Salt Lake City and commendable ski terrain in not-too-distant Snowshoe. Now if only I found the skiing as easy as the planning—but that’s a topic for another winter’s day.
Do you have a favorite ski resort near Atlanta? Let us know in the comments!
