Carving + Extreme Ski terrain + Luxury =Which resort ???

[John Gilmour]

Looking for the best place to spend a week. USA has the economy advantage.... but Europe, Japan, are also possible. (feedback needed on Courchevel, Zinal, Japan, Les Arcs and Killy snow space)

Where is the best place you have gone?

Keep in mind if you only know Sawkill ski area in Kingston NY with its 70 ft. vertical drop... let others comment instead... I never carved Maple Valley.. but should have.

I'm trying to pick a place for March.

East Coast loses to Colorado despite the Easts Beastly snowfall.
Minimum vertical drop is 2200 but I'd like to see places 2500+

Aspen.... been there.. done that.. will go anyway this year... did Mammoth already. might revisit Mt. Bachelor.
Smoking is a neg. but tolerated if it is an amazing place.
__________________________________________________ _____________

BTW... not to be a snob since some of my best memories are from Magic MT. the least expensive place you could ski... for those looking for deals... Magic Mountain in Southern VT (READ NOT COLD and lower elevation than Stratton so rarely is in the clouds)

MIDWEEK – Double occupancy
Stay 1 night, Ski 1 day
$55.00 per person, double occupancy, includes lodging, breakfast, and lift ticket.
Stay one midweek night Sunday thru Thursday and ski one day Mon. – Fr.
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WEEKEND – Double Occupancy
Stay Friday & Saturday - Ski Saturday & Sunday
$100.00 per person, per night, double occupancy, includes lodging, breakfast, and lift ticket.
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MIDWEEK – Single occupancy (small room)
Stay 1 night, Ski 1 day
$85.00 Includes lodging, breakfast and lift ticket for 1 person.
Stay one midweek night Sunday thru Thursday and ski one day Mon. – Fr.

[Bora20]

How about Canada? Lots of snow and drop up here

[tex1230]

I hear Hokkaido Japan is having an epic powdeer year...
If you're storm chasing?

[bobdea]

how about black mountain NH?
joking


jackson hole is about the best it gets. never been out of north america though.

[Surf Quebec]

I've lived 6 years in France, I have very good memories of Val Thorens and Tignes. I was a snowboarder at Val Thorens and a skier at Tignes.

When at Val Thorens, you can also go to Meribel, Courchevel and Les Menuires.
When at Tignes you can also go to Val d'Isere.

Wide open space and a lot of snow.

But it was a long time ago.

[C5 Golfer]

Go West Young Man!

Whistler Blackdomb... March is a great time... I am there this week and first part of March.. Anyway

You want vertical?
They have the highest vertical; ..5280 feet straight down...or an equivalent 7 mile run... yes 7 miles.. 2 mountains to ride.. both are great and are connected at the top by a world record 26 person Gondola - that spans over a 1.88 miles un-supported between towers and thru the glass bottom you see the valley floor 1430 feet below you.. WOWOWOWOW!

Bigger than Vail by quite a bit. Grreat food on mountain and in the village.

It doesn't get any better...leaving tomorrow...

http://media.intrawest.com/whistler/...p/compare.html

[newcarver]

Try Telluride. If you like hiking in bounds, there is a ton of world class extreme terrain. Lots of luxury hotels to choose from. We have a bunch of winched black runs that are very steep and great for carving. The World Cup event here was held on an easy blue for both the BX and PGS if that is any indication of the steepness. We just need a little more snow, but conditions are still pretty good overall right now.

[BlueB]

+1 on Val Thorens. All above tree line. Enormous. 4 connected resorts.
Whistler doesn't even come close... Ok, Whistler village is prettier.

[bobdea]

Try Telluride. If you like hiking in bounds, there is a ton of world class extreme terrain. Lots of luxury hotels to choose from. We have a bunch of winched black runs that are very steep and great for carving. The World Cup event here was held on an easy blue for both the BX and PGS if that is any indication of the steepness. We just need a little more snow, but conditions are still pretty good overall right now.

ahh, one of my favorites. if I had to live in CO I think I'd be there.

[caspercarver]

We have had 27' this year, so if your looking for extreme and powder maybe Jackson Hole. Carving not so much, maybe 10 good days so so far. see linky for snow stats
http://www.jacksonhole.com/mountain-...ow-report.html

[martyagt4]

We have had 27' this year, so if your looking for extreme and powder maybe Jackson Hole. Carving not so much, maybe 10 good days so so far. see linky for snow stats
http://www.jacksonhole.com/mountain-...ow-report.html

Heading there in 20 days, sure hope it firms up a bit..

[bobdea]

Heading there in 20 days, sure hope it firms up a bit..

you're gonna go to JH for groom?
really?

it has good groom but what you just said akin to saying you're going to stratton for the sick powder.

[martyagt4]

you're gonna go to JH for groom?
really?

it has good groom but what you just said akin to saying you're going to stratton for the sick powder.

No. Going for fun. Regardless.

[utahdeafcarver]

It has everything you're asking for. Total luxury facilities, no joke! No on-site lodging, but plenty of hotels in Ogden, only 20 minutes away.

[groovastic]

Val Thorens, Chamonix and Val d'Isere in France if you ask me, maybe even Ischgl and Soelden in Austria. But I've been told (by people that really know!) that Zermatt (Matterhorn) in Switzerland is the best and most beautiful resort in Europe!

[GAK]

Hit up Cervinia / Zermatt last year --- Most beautiful place I've ever seen.

Fantastic terrain if you are into groomers. The trails are long and wide, wide, wide! There is some awesome off piste too, but you'll need a guide to make sure you don't end up in a crevasse.

Want to keep the budget in check? Stay in Cervinia or Valtournenche. They are the ski towns on the Italian side of the Matterhorn. Same terrain, cheaper than Zermatt.

[stevo]

loon is going off this year.......

[scrutton]

Tough to fit all that into one place. I've heard good things about Zermatt.

La Grave and Les Deux Alpes combines a seperate extreme ski terrain area and an inbound ski area. I've personally been humbled by La Grave. Serre Chevalier was fun also, don't recall the grooming quality, but I'm sure you can research it.

http://www.2alpes.com/pages/en/20/la-grave.html

http://www.la-grave.com/winter/index.php

http://www.serrechevalier.com/

[terekhov]

stay at Chamonix (good people oriented), rent a car and ride around: Chamonix valley (extreme terrain oriented! some local guide + good snow cover can make it accessible on another level!), Verbier, Courmayor, Aosta (carve oriented). if 200+km car ride is not a problem - you can visit Val'd'Isere and all of espace killy - huge different terrain, night life & luxury oriented )

[Jack Michaud]

see my pics here:

http://www.bomberonline.com/vbulleti...t=jackson+hole

I found lots of carving there, and you know there's extreme terrain. The Alpenhof was a perfect place to stay, but for "luxury" you probably want the Snake River Club right next door.

[GeoffV]

Kitzbühl, Austria
You've got 3 resorts that are all converge in the town valley.
Nightlife is off the hook there, Europeans really know how to party.
Oh and the famous Hahnenkamm.

[Big D]

I had a blast at Whistler. Went quite a few years back and at the time a dollar American was worth 1.50 Canadian. We lived like kings! If you hit it right it is fantastic. The trick is the weather can be sketchy and can get wet and foggy at times. If you are lucky enough to be there when it is good you will really enjoy it. It is massive for one, and there are some areas that they do not groom that will challenge most folks. Meandering pedestrian village, helicopter options and the people are fantastic. The ride to the resort is impressive as well. If you go spend a little time in Vancouver, beautiful city.

[P06781]

Kicking horse and Revelstoke up in BC ! They are close so you can try both !
Super areas and good prices ....Not the hype of whistler but real cool people... Heli and cat options nearby . Not a marine climate (like WB)

Also Revy does have the most vert in NA ... http://verticalfeet.com/

Jim

[Neil Gendzwill]

Kicking Horse has awesome extreme terrain for sure, but I don't see it as a carving destination at all. As in, bring your all-mountain or freeride board along, leave the groomer-specialized equipment home. I don't think it can compete for scale, luxury or terrain with the big European resorts.

[Flywalker]

l'll throw my votes in for Niseko Hokkaido and for Tignes/Val d'Isere. Both offer awesome terrain, luxury amenities and more of an adventure than you'd get by staying in N. America.

Tpalka and Mats.. both BOL'ers... just wrapped up a 10 day trip based in Niseko. There's a small thread below this one on Rusutsu which is about 45 mins away from Niseko. They had an absolute ball while they were here. Send them a PM if you want up to the minute details of their experience in Japan.

Tignes/Val d'Isere is a huge area and if the snow is in abundance it is truly a top, world class venue. There are over 300 kms of groomed runs and more off piste than you can discover in a full season, let alone a 2 week holiday.

[RDY_2_Carve]

For extreme terrain I would say Silverton Mountain, Colorado.

Then you can go carve at Telluride or Durango and also get the Luxury part there.

[RDY_2_Carve]

Here's some stats from Silverton's website:

There are loads of bowls, chutes, cliffs and wonderful natural terrain features to be discovered during a visit to Silverton Mountain. It is the highest Ski Area in North America with a peak of 13,487’ and it is also the steepest with no easy way down. The mountain is left in it’s natural state with the exception of the avalanche reduction work which occurs. The chairlift unloads at the top of a beautiful cirque which provides easy hiking along a ridge to access up to 1,819 acres of snow fields. Silverton Mountain is almost always venturing into new terrain on a daily basis providing new skiing and usually new powder opportunities for weeks after the most recent snowfall. Although we cap the amount of unguided skiers to less than 475 a day, most days have less than 80 skiers on the mountain.
There are a team of ski patrollers doing avalanche reduction work for our guests. Our base lies at 10,400’ with a peak lift served elevation of 12,300’. There is hiking to 13,487’, which means with a little effort you can get around 3,000’ vertical drop. Our elevation ensures an early and long season.

Chairs: 1

Peak of elevation: 13,487’

Peak of Chair: 12,300’

Base elevation: 10,400’

Annual snowfall: 400”+

Skiable acres: 1,819. Plus 22,000+acres heli & hike to

Lift Serviced Vertical Drop: 1,900’

Hike-To & Helicopter Accessible Vertical Drop: 3,087’

Trail Classifications: Beginner & Intermediate: 0% Advanced & Expert 100%

Guided group size: 8 or less per guide. Private guides available. Guides can take you beyond the unguided boundaries.

Need: Liability releases are mandatory for anyone who wishes to participate (contact us for copy in advance). You will need your avalanche beacon, probe pole, and shovel(rentals available). YOU DO NOT NEED ANY AVALANCHE TRAINING.

Season: November through May? (Check for dates and times in April and May).

Easiest Run: 35 degrees; (30 degrees is a steep run at your average ski area)

Contact: info@silvertonmountain.com or call (970) 387-5706.

Closest town: Silverton, CO (6 miles)

Closest super store: Durango

Where to stay: click here for Silverton Lodging options.

Closest Airport: Durango (52 miles), Montrose (50 miles), Telluride (110 miles), or Grand Junction (100 miles)

Transportation: Renting a car from the airport is the way most of our guests travel.

[newcarver]

Thanks for mentioning Silverton Ready! Forgot all about that. Telluride also has heli skiing but it's not that steep and its expensive. Also look at San Juan Cat Skiing. They are awesome and you will log at least 8000' vertical in a day for $300. They are based out of Durango Mountain Resort. As far as carving goes Telluride has a lot more steep groomed than DMR but there are plenty of cruiser runs there. Forgot to mention that Silverton can be shut off from the rest of the world during a storm. Steep mountain passes in either direction are the only access and they get closed during storms pretty frequently. The highway there is the most avalanch prone in the US.

[Zone]

I'm told France and Switzerland have less snow than usual this year, eg 70cm or so base at Zinal.

[Rob Stevens]

If you don't like smoking, I'd skip Europe and Asia all together.
If you can handle others enjoying their personal freedom to do so, give St. Anton a go.
If you want good groomers that nobody rides and get into some steep freeride terrain, go to Revelstoke.