Colorado vs. Utah: Which Is BETTER for a Ski Vacation?
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- čas přidán 16. 06. 2024
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An in-depth comparison of the ski scenes in Colorado and Utah, two of the most popular destinations for skiing in the world.
Read this article in written form: www.peakrankings.com/content/...
0:00 Intro
1:19 Snow
2:20 Resort Reliability
3:20 Beginner Terrain
4:04 Intermediate Terrain
4:34 Advanced Terrain
5:04 Expert and Extreme Terrain
5:52 Resort Size
7:20 Proximity to Other Resorts
8:08 Differences in Terrain Features
8:51 Getting There
11:15 Resort Towns and Aprés Ski
12:19 Crowds
13:01 Epic Pass Offerings
13:31 Ikon Pass Offerings
14:21 Snowboarder Friendliness
14:39 Lodging and Ticket Costs
15:52 Final Thoughts
More info on skiable acres vs. boundary-to-boundary footprints: www.peakrankings.com/content/...
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I had an appointment with my urologist the other day and he asked out of the blue if I skied little cottonwood canyon. I asked how he knew and he said there was a noticeable shrinkage. Apparently the microclimate of the cottonwoods also causes everyone to get a micro peen. So stay away from there.
💀
Lmao
Yeah and the skiing is terrible!!!
Funny how y’all take skiing so seriously to the point you lie in order to prevent others from experiencing a certain place. Yes, it is a great past time but if you are that bothered go somewhere that isn’t an hour away from a crowded cityscape.
Everyone is definitely joking. No one is serious
Wow, Colorado wins at every category! Quick, buy your tickets everybody!
absolutely! stay out of utah
Yes, Colorado is so much better! Definitely go there. Everybody should go to Colorado, not here, it totally sucks here, our snow is the worst. 😭 Don't even bother.
Nah it sucks here in Colorado, don’t believe them
you guys actually need to stop with this it's making the traffic in the cottonwoods worse
Utah is for skiers. Colorado is for tourists
I grew up skiing in Colorado. At the ripe age of 51 finally trekked to Utah. I’m all in for Utah now.
1:56 where is that?
In 1988, I could buy gas, a lift pass, and a bag of weed for $45. ParkWest was rad.
SHHHHH!
As a Colorado local I would like to take one for the team and tell everyone to go to Utah. hehe hehe
As a local to Utah I'd tell people back East that skiing sucks and isn't worth trying at all ;)
Tell them to go east, Utah and Colorado suck!!! 😉
To late I love it lol
I've skied both. The drive out I-70 can be pretty awful. I love landing in SLC and being at the slopes in 40 minutes. Colorado is prettier, but you can't beat Utah for convenience
I'd have to disagree. I recently went to Utah and couldn't make it to Brighton at 7 am on a Saturday. I live in Colorado and have never experienced traffic as bad as the little and big cottonwood canyons.
@@justinkoeckritz8273 I think the traffic and parking situation in UT has gotten dramatically worse in the last few years. And the roads to the Cottonwoods Canyons resorts are prone to closure and delays for avalanche mitigation. It's been several years (pre-pandemic) we'd stay in PC and would drive over to Alta at least a couple of times. Was usually only about an hour if the weather was cooperating. And they've apparently reduced the number of buses going up. There's lots of contention over building a gondola that would up Little Cottonwood Canyon to help alleviate the congestion. We went earlier this year and the whole experience was completely different.
I actually find the Park City area to be among the most unconventionally beautiful places I’ve ever been, but maybe that’s just me…
So happy my CZcams algorithm started reccomending me all of your videos. Excellent work as usual PeakRankings !
Idk how I came across this but it makes me wanna go skiing so bad. Literally yearning for something I've never done before
New Hampshire vs Vermont, Canada vs USA, and North America vs Europe, all vids we’ve gotta see!
And northern vs Southern Hemisphere
@behind the slopes NH vs vt would be good
I’m from NH and I’ve skied just about every mountain in NH, VT, and ME, sadly NH cannot hold a candle to VT and ME, VT is the best if the 3 by far, killington is by far the best mountain out here, I’d say the only mountain that really comes close to killington is sugarloaf, Sunday river is pretty nice too, way more casual tho
Vermont crushes NH. I’ve been to most of the major resorts in both
Maybe NH vs Maine would be more fair
@@alexconrad2904 i think you’re right
awesome video. Grew up in vegas, so my typically weekend trip as a kid was up to Brian Head - personally agree with your characterization of beginner/intermediate terrain. Can't wait to get a trip out to the Rockies soon!
This video is 100%% dead on correct! I've skied almost all of the resorts mentioned and some great points were made here.
Great topic for a ski video!
This makes me feel so proud of being a Utah skier! But Colorado also offers good skiing too as well!
Fantastic review. I’m a park city local and I think you’re spot on
Love the videos! Only recommendation I have is to add a label for what resort each clip is recorded at. Some of these clips are amazing! I wanna know where is where.
This video is very spot-on. Something else to touch on: Utah resorts have much more distinct vibes than Colorado resorts. I like in Salt Lake City at the base of the Cottonwood Canyons and primarily ski Alta/Snowbird.
Vail Resorts Inc has homogenized the experience among their resorts. The company also largely caters to tourists traveling to Colorado for a week or two of skiing. So, their product is much more tourist-friendly. They also squeeze every ounce of character out of their resorts as well. Many people have told me that Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, and Keystone all feel the same. Crested Butte is the exception with more extreme terrain, but its far removed. Telluride is also on the Epic pass, but it is not owned by VR so it still has some character. Even Park City Mountain Resort, owned by VR, feels homogenized like their Coloardo counterparts. People joke that Vail Resorts destinations are like Walmart, everywhere it's kind of the same. If you want a predictable experience, go to one of the Vail resorts.
Alterra (Ikon) has a completely different model, and their resorts are primarily based in Utah. They let each resort have more autonomy, attempting to keep their character intact. Snowbird is for the extreme skiers, and frankly, if I was an east coast skier with children I would not come here. Alta has a mix of extreme terrain and local family-friendly vibes. But, there are minimal accommodations on the mountain. It's also skiiers only so it feels somewhat country-club-y. Solitude is deceivingly challenging for people learning and has become a locals mountain since it offers unlimited days on the Ikon pass. Brighton has a vibe that I can only describe with the name of a beer brand: PBR, attempting to be family-friendly, but also punk rock at the same time.
Deer Valley is a tourist mountain with its wide blue groomers, but locals still ski this mountain because they might have the best glade runs in the state and the bowls off Empire don't get tracked out as quickly. Snowbasin is still developing its character since joining the Ikon pass. I'm sensing that Snowbasin is a mix of Deer Valley with excellent food as well as Alta with it's relatively intense off-piste terrain in the John Paul area.
If you're a groomed blue-run skier, you'll like Coloarodo a lot more. If you're into off-piste terrain, waist-deep in powder, pretending you're starring in a Warren Miller film then go to Utah. If you're with a family of younger children, go to Colorado. If you're with a pack of 20 or 30-year-olds who are looking to push their limits, go to Utah. If you want a town vibe with Gourches and Christy's along with the skiing, go to Coloardo. If you want skiing first and maybe a beer at the local watering hole, go to Utah. If you want a predictable ski-in-ski-out experience with accommodations at your fingertips, go to Colorado. If you want to wait in your car for an hour or two waiting for avalanche patrol to bomb the canyons, right before you hit the best powder runs of your life, go to Utah.
I live in Denver and shoot up 70 for over nights in Dillon. I have Epic so go to Keystone, Breck and Vail. I prefer Keystone. Plenty of terrain for my 71 year old knees, easy to navigate around, free parking (for now) and a friendly vibe. Sometimes the tourists at Vail can ski a bit wild but the terrain is so massive its worth it from time to time. In my third season so still learning my way around Breck which has an awkward layout to my eye.
Don't ride utah, it sucks
I grew up on Wasatch BLVD just south of Little Cottonwood. Spent a lot of time in all of the local resorts, mostly Snowbird, and I believe your comment summed up my thoughts perfectly. Utah is more for the hard core runs and Colorado is more for the vacation and experience. Both can offer what the other exceeds in, but its not quite to that next level.
I might add that Vail village itself has quite a bit of history and culture. There's lots of references to the 10th Mountain Division, even a snowsports museum in Vail. Further, one may learn about Vail's founders who were mostly WWII vets and these gentlemen helped bring skiing (mainstream resorts) to North America. Not sure if the average tourist would pick up on this history? Anyway, the other interesting thing about Vail itself is that many visitors come from Latin America and Europe. Lots and lots of appreciative, friendly and fascinating skiiers/riders spend time in the winter at Vail and I believe it adds to the culture and overall value of Vail Village. Whereas many of the local resorts like Keystone, Breck, etc. are excellent in their own way Vail & Beaver Creek (plus Aspen) are more cosmopolitan. Hey- it's a sport, right, if you're on the snow they are all good.
Agree with your summary of each resort in Utah, haha, especially Snowbird. Sometimes you see people saying it's fine for low intermediates or even beginners (!!!) -- and I think they just forget how Snowbird is extremely intimidating for basically anyone who isn't a very strong intermediate or better.
Another thing to add to this mix is lodging. Colorado Ski Mountain lodging, such as hotels, VRBO’s Airbnb’s are significantly more expensive and typically much longer drives (must add transportation costs) to the resort mountains, while most lodging Airbnb or others anywhere in the Utah Salt Lake City area are generally a max of 45 minutes to get to most of the major ski areas and the costs are dramatically lower as are local transportation costs.
Like them all and just had an amazing POW trip to Steamboat. With that said, having skied CO 3-4 years straight then switched over to Utah for the last 4-5 years straight, the chance of a nice dump of snow is just much more consistent in UT (Cottonwoods). The ski towns of CO definitely win but I'm one of those "there to ski" folks so I don't care so much about that...stayed at base of Alta...loads of snow, no nightlife. Fine by me!
Yep, I learned to ski in the PNW and then lived in Utah for a few years and have been here in Colorado for the last few.
Overall Utah has better snow dumps in the main part of the year, the ease of getting to the mountains, and the terrain is really nice. I board and ski both and I really want to board at Alta but Snowbird is my main Utah resort while I switch between Breckenridge for boarding, Vail and Winterpark for skiing with occasional visits to the other CO resorts.
Both are worth visiting for sure, I would be tempted to go to CO with a famil as everyone will be able to find something to do but for pure skiers, Utah is slightly better.
As someone who grew up in Colorado and now lives in Utah, I'd say this is all very accurate. At the end of the day, I think it comes down to whether you (or people travelling with you) want to have an overall experience at the mountain towns (including bars, restaurants, shopping, and other activities) or if the trip is more narrowly focused on skiing. Colorado is the clear winner, it seems to me, in the mountain town category, as the video indicated. But, if you want cheap, staying in the SLC metro area or Ogden and heading up in the morning would be the way to go. In either case, I think it's hard to go wrong with either state.
The slogan at Alta has been “ Alta is for skiers”. This is not an insult to snowboarders. The idea is that Alta is for skiers that are looking for the steep and deep powder terrain. If you want groomers and after ski parties Alta the ski area you want. Go to Park City or one of the many great resorts in Colorado.
Colorado resorts are minimum 2 hours away from Denver Airport. Utah....30 minutes from Salt Lake and car rental is right outside baggage claim in Salt Lake. Denver Airport you need to hop on the train. A serious time suck, especially if you are traveling with little kids. Utah is a little bit longer flight but easier once you land. The mountains are great in both states! My 2 cents.
@@douglaslegnola2266 When i was growing up in CO, my parents had a timeshare up in Silverthorne in Summit County that we could use 1/8 of the year. From that condo, it was roughly 15-20 minutes to Keystone, 25 to A-Basin, 25 to Brek or Copper, 45 to Vail …etc. Then, living in Draper, Utah (in just a regular middle class townhome) it took me 35 minutes to Alta/Snowbird, an hour to Brighton/Solitude (without traffic). I now live in Cache Valley and it’s just 45 minutes to Beaver or 30 to Cherry Peak, a local hill.
In other words, it dawned on me that most of the people in Utah live in proximity to skiing that people in CO have to pay several hundred per night in luxury lodging, or buy houses for several million dollars 😂
@@thomasmedeiros5722 alta is for snobs lol. any place that has a base mentality of keeping people out is fucked from the start. i've skied there, the attitude was wack and corporate. i'll ride brighton all day.
I’d agree completely.
Colorado is much better everyone should go there. Avoid little cottonwood canyon terrible skiing and road always has traffic.
Oh yeah Utah sucks, everybody should go to Colorado! 😉
LOL!!🤣
Nice, thanks!!
FYI: "The Cottonwoods" are 2 canyons accessable on the east-side of the Salt Lake valley. Their 4 resorts and SnowBird, Alta, Brighton and Solitude.
(I'm sure most already know.)
If you’re looking for Powder and challenging terrain Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons provide both. Both have requirements for four wheel drive and property tires or chains on Powder days. Expect delays when they’re doing Avalanche control in the Canyons. Also lift opening and operation can be affected by Avalanche control on Powder days. Up at Alta/ Snowbird it’s common to see Ski Patrol with Avalanche beacons, shovel and probes when they are working.
Love the video, but it would have been nice to have accompanying graphics to show the Cottonwood & non-Cottenwood resorts as well as which resorts are on the Epic & the Icon passes
Worked in both canyons of the cottonwood for years, currently working in BCC. Some of these comments about convenience and how close to the airport it is and quick to get to resorts etc... sure that's true some days and parts of some days but good luck finding parking if you come late. Also any weekends, holidays powder days if your staying in the valley you better be leaving 2 to 3 hours early. Complaints about traffic, missing most, if not all of your ski day, giving up cause they can't find parking is almost a daily conversation for me with my tourist guests. You can easily spend 4 hours of your day getting to and from the resorts even if you stay right near the mouth of the canyons. I would describe the canyons on any weekends (minus super late and early season), any powder day, and holiday period as absolutely beyond capacity.
Sounds like this is a newer development in Utah and is catching people off guard, whereas i70 has been a disaster for a long time so people expect it
My first world class resort I ever visited is Snowbird ... and it is up till now, still No.1 in my opinion (followed by Alta, Copper, Brighton, Mammoth, Kirkwood, Breckenridge, A-basin, Aspen, Winter Park, Vail ...)
Alta is better than Snowbird by far... mainly due to Snowbird being overrun by snowboarders.
@elbarbero399 ....face the facts. Alta has double the skiing area and vertical drop than almost any other resort. It also has dry powder most of the year.
I visited Utah first time in 1991. It was not crowded and the little cottonwood canyon did not close after a snowfall. Now I have skied here one and half seasons. Snow is still good. Mountains are great but traffic is awful. Lots of skiers. A lot more than 1991. Everything gets skied out in an hour or two. I live in Sandy. 30 minutes away from Alta or 35 from Solitude. I wake up 6 Am, start driving 6:45. Takes about an hour. Then wait 30 minutes in the lift line waiting to be opened. Get one or two perfect runs. After that need to start traversing or climbing. It was much better in 1991.
That's everywhere tho. The population in 1991 was 253m, now it's 334m. Every ski resort is more crowded because skiing has become more popular and there are just significantly more people around.
Sad to see an incredible mountain ruined by the Mega pass
@@je5406 population goes up but ski area stays the same size, you tell me what's going to happen?
Is it this bad on weekdays aswell, or just on weekends/holidays?
@@spolarn It does not really matter. If we get new snow you need to be there 30 minutes before the lifts open.
I wanna see a Canada vs USA, that would be epic!
Im Canadian, and American resorts (aside from Whistler Blackomb, and a couple Banff resorts) are all around just better experiences, have better infrastructure, guest experience, and far more variety in terms of destination resorts. Lines tend to be worse in most major Canadian resorts compared to the American counterparts.
@@johnsmeith3913 lines worse at Canadian ski resorts? Really? I’ve been skiing out west in Canada for years and have never encountered bad lift lines. I’ve been to panorama and Silverstar and none have had bad lift lines even in the weekends, granted I don’t go during holiday times, usually January of February. I’ve been to Whistler too and it was a bit more busy but not that bad. But I heard major USA ski resorts can be packed, especially during holidays. Also it’s so much cheaper to ski in Canada especially when comparing lift tickets.
It’s good to get a fresh perspective though, you’re the first person who’s told me the USA is a better experience. I really wanna go to Utah and Colorado one day but if I go I’m making sure to not go on a holiday. I would have gone already but it’s so darn expensive. :(
I once spent 90 minutes waiting to get rental equipment for my son at Lake Louise. Painful. But the views there are unmatched.
@@johnb5482 lake Louise is absolutely gorgeous, but as you said, the lines can get horrendous. But compared to Tremblant, where it’s basically standard to have 30-45 minute lift lines every weekend, it could be a lot worse
@El Barbero it’s cheaper for Americans because of our terrible economy and currency, that makes the exchange rate a huge discount for Americans, but when your paid in CAD, and the average Canadian makes around $10 thousand less income a year than Americans, then it’s just as expensive if not more for Canadians to ski in Canada, than it is for Americans to ski in the US.
Really great video i would only say that the colorado ski resorts are as far apart as this video says denver to winter park or copper mountain is about 1.5 hours maybe 2 with bad weather and ketstone abasin and loveland are on the way to copper and eldora is about an hour from denver but steam boat is about 3 from north denver with no traffic and good weather still not as close as utah but very duable keep up the great content :)
Colorado ski resorts are not just for skiing. There is a lot fun in all seasons. Those such as Aspen, Crested Butt, and Telluride offer stunning view of fall colors. While Breck and Vail provide great bike trails for summer activities.
I’ve done trips to both, and I think the winner is Tahoe! 😂 But honestly, Lake Tahoe makes for an incredible ski trip
As a lifetime local of the Tahoe region I would agree with the exception of snow quality which of course is rarely as good as CO or UT. That said the scenery, terrain and general ski scene is overall much better
Here in Salt Lake City we also have ski busses, so you could conceivably have a ski trip without renting a car. Take the light rail a few short minutes from the airport to downtown SLC, stay at less expensive, albeit non-Moutain Resort-type lodging near a light rail station (either the Great America or the much fancier Grand America hotels, for example), then hop on the train in the morning, zip down the valley a few more stops, transfer to a ski bus, and let a pro deal with the winding canyon roads. Alta, Snowbird, Brighton, and Solitude are all accessible by bus. I prefer those resorts over Park City's offerings anyway. But if you did want the whole Mountain-Lodge-and-hoity-toity-amenities ski trip (overpriced lodging and restaurants), Park City is only ~40 minutes by car from the airport (in clear conditions). There are several shuttle services from the airport as well, from econovans to fancy SUV limousines, depending on your budget.
This year ('22/'23) has been literally record breaking AND IT'S STILL SNOWING! Alta got well over two feet last night and it's supposed to snow all day. (It's April 4th, btw.)
Wherever you go, have fun! I've worked in tourism since 1993 and I still get so excited for guests during epic snowpack years. ✌️
@MikeP, thanks for the excellent points about public transit options.
Love powder mountain, very underrated.
Since this is a comparison of many resorts in both Utah and Colorado it would be a nice addition to the video if you could super-impose the name of the resort, State, and the Run being shown during your narration, perhaps in the bottom right hand corner. Not a nit-pick, just some helpful information for those of us who haven't been to some of the resorts you're showing.
A day on the mountain is the best of days no matter where.
If you’re watching this and are a green/blue skier or at lesson level, please just go to your local ski resort instead. It will be much cheaper, and you’ll have a better time.
Utah has a ton of serious locals pretty much the entire pro community is there. Thinking you can roll into town on a Saturday at 9 am at the airport and get a half day in at the resorts probably won’t happen. Everybody here has a plan and is smart. Compared to mountain town resorts like Jackson hole for example, where it’s more vacationers who are more laid back.
Very good point!
Jackson is laid back?!? 😂😂😂 maybe the most aggro vibe I’ve ever seen, and people get in the tram line at the crack of dawn. Good luck….
I'd love to see a video primarily focused on ski resorts for new/beginner skiers. Things like number and quality of green runs, how "hard" those greens are, number/quality of the learning areas, ability to ski down from the top on a green, and ski school experience. I'm just getting back into skiing after several decades off and now with a family - I need a place they can feel comfortable learning to ski. We tried Keystone last year and while they have a couple great learning areas and renowned instructor talent - the jump from bunny slopes to green is, well, rather steep. I asked someone about this later on and they basically said Keystone is an intermediate mountain - even the greens are hard.
At Keystone the main Green run, I forget the name, is quite difficult for novice skiers, and they have tons of injuries. The best resort for beginners I can think of is Copper Mountain. It has a whole section that is almost all Green, plus a very nice fairly long easy green to practice on.
Steamboat has an excellent beginner area. Loveland has a green mountain. Buttermilk in Aspen is a whole mountain catering to less experienced skiers. Winter Park has a lot of green runs, but a lot of traversing.
In Utah, Canyons has the most beautiful spot I’ve seen for beginners, but it’s small. Park City has the ingest Green run I’ve seen, 3 miles I think, from the Bonanza lift down. It’s also quite pretty. Park City has over 350 trails, Mano I’d which are Green. The old side is particularly amenable to beginners. The Wasatch resorts aren’t as good for beginners, although Alta has a nice area for beginners, and is also beautiful, but has less than a tenth of the Greens that Park City has.
To summarize, in CO, Copper can’t be beat, and in UT Park City, if you want Green runs.
I forgot about Breck. It’s got a nice area with lots of Greens as well, so that’s another good choice.
@@ewallt Keystone's main green is Schoolmarm (3.5 miles) - but it really feels like a blue anywhere else I've been. I managed to make it down twice but it was a struggle - too way longer than it should have. My daughter wanted something besides the bunny slope so she tried to ski down part of it but had to be taken off the mountain. I looked at other greens they have but they are just as difficult as Schoolmarm and everything else is a blue or black. Keystone is one of the few resorts where you can ski down from the top on their green if you can handle it whereas most other resorts keep you closer to the base. We're doing Breck this year but may check out Copper Mountain next time or try Utah. Thanks for the recommendations.
@@JasonTaylor-po5xc Schoolmarm is it. It has a quite difficult section, easily Blue, if you go all the way down.
Brighton in Utah (Big Cottonwood Canyon) has green runs that are very beginner friendly. Even the small blue connector run between the top of Majestic and Snake Creek is very easy and doable by just wedging your way down, allowing you to access more easy and fun green runs.
@@chrisbecerra2659 Even some Green trees!
I have been to Colorado way more times than Utah. The Epic pass is really great for Colorado. Things have changed slightly for Ikon now that ABasin is on Ikon, but if you aren't making your way out to Steamboat or Aspen (never been to Aspen) then Winter Park and Copper are kind of lacking when having access to Vail, Beaver Creek and Breckenridge (Keystone isn't my favorite) with Epic. Honestly you cant go wrong with either Utah or Colorado, and if you are an avid skier you should probably do both at some point anyways.
Winter Park and Copper are better than Breckenridge, Beaver Creek, and Keystone, and only barely worse than Vail!
@@blarbkanopcious4243 this is just not true
@@jackdubois1364 In fact, it is. I’ve been to all of them.
@@blarbkanopcious4243 hell nah winter park is too crowded and there is zero lines at beaver creek. Also the skiing is better at breck and beaver creek. I too have been to all of them
@@averagejojofan8649 Beaver Creek may be less crowded than Winter Park, but with no above timberline terrain, it simply isn’t better.
Breckenridge is more crowded than Winter Park. But what makes you say the skiing is better? There’s definitely less of it, because if you want to ski different things (which you probably will), you have to spend all your time traversing across the peaks.
We need a all major Colorado ski resorts ranked video
Please do a SunValley Idaho vs. Aspen mountain
Great comparison. Any future videos comparing ski regions in general? East/West Coast comparisons are too limiting. For example, I would love to know how two regions I have never skied, WV/Virginia and Midwest, would compare to skiing in the Northeast. Similar/different (aside from total snowfall) conditions? Even among Northeast resorts, Vermont is different than the Catskills, which are different than the White Mountains, which are different than the Berkshires. Thanks!
Excellent suggestions! As we continue to get more footage, we will be weighing these ideas.
You missed a couple of items on the measure. The Utah mountains, because SLC metro (and realistically, the other two metro areas hugging either side) puts two million people within the hour of any of the 10 Wasatch resorts. That means it's no longer packed just holidays and weekends, but realistically every day. You won't get empty cruisers simply because you're staying all week. ESPECIALLY if there's fresh powder. Denver has more people, but they're further away and nowhere near as likely to just run up for half day, midweeks.
Second, Ogden. You mentioned SLC repeatedly and the costs of staying in places like PC and the CO mountain towns. What you didn't mention is the absolute steal it is for people to base out of Ogden with the 4 resorts snugged right above it. Plenty of restaurants, loads of lodging and no "resort surcharging" happening or getting caught by a surprise convention weekend or similar like you might in SLC. That opens the door for reasonable Powder Mountain, Snowbasin, Nordic Valley and Wolf Mountain vacations with a mid sized city's apres options, as long as you have a transportation plan. It's also close enough to grab a day or two in the crazy Cottonwoods, including with train/bus service between the two cities.
The megapasses let you spread out, so do it!
I'm a Mary Jane kind of guy. Been skiing there for decades, and on a good powder day, it's really hard to beat. But because I live in Denver, I've never had the need to trek all the way to Utah, so I can't do a true comparison.
To be fair.. It didnt snow 903 inches anywhere in Colorado, last winter.
Pretty good video. One thing I noticed that was left out is that Colorado is colder than Utah. I think it mentioned the runs are longer in Colorado. I really noticed that after starting skiing in CO, going to UT, and then back to CO.
Although UT is a lot more convenient, being closer to a major airport, it can be a real pain getting to the Little Cottonwood resorts (Alta, and Snowbird). There’s also a danger of road closures due to avalanches, or not being allowed onto the slopes, again mostly in the Little Cottonwood resorts.
4 world class ski resorts are within 20 miles of Salt Lake City up Big and Little Cottonwood canyons. The only pain in the ass in getting to any of these ski areas, is waiting for UDOT to open the road after an epic dump. The Cottonwood canyon resorts received a record 903" of snowfall last season BTW.
@@evhbombastic Big Cottonwood has a lot fewer problems staying open, but when Little Cottonwood closes, that sends a lot more traffic that way. This year both Solitude (an ironic name) and Brighton will be charging for parking, $28 for Brighton I heard, so it will be interesting to see how that impacts things.
@@ewallt That parking situation is total BS. No doubt inspired by last seasons record snow totals (Alta got 903")! It could be worse. You cannot even park your car at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, unless you carpool or pay for a room at Teton Village. The Utah Transit Authority's ski bus service is very good for both Cottonwood canyons and UDOT gives buses priority status on slide closure days. Little Cottonwood is steeper but shorter with more than 40 potentially road hitting slide paths. Snowbird is only about 8 miles from the mouth. There is lots of parking at multiple park and ride lots. I grew up less than 2 miles from the bottom of Big Cottonwood and could get to Brighton, Solitude, Snowbird or Alta (our crown jewel) in less than 20 minutes on most days of the year.
@@evhbombastic Alta actually got more than that, because they only counted what they got when they were open. If they stayed open as long as Snowbird, they might have hit a thousand. I live in PC, but like to ski in the SLC resorts from time to time, but if I have to pay $28 for parking, or it takes two hours to get there, because I have to take a bus, that’s a bit much. For the time being, there’s still LCC.
@@ewallt I'm still in SLC, but only ski a handful of times a season. I can walk 1 block to the Trax and transfer to the ski bus very easily. I can usually get from my apartment to the lift lines in less than a couple of hours. Driving and parking is a headache for me and just not worth it with ticket prices as high as they've gotten. No one believes me when I tell them that I could ski at Solitude for $8 when I would ditch high school on weekdays. Jackson Hole is my all around favorite resort for the challenges and variety, but Utah powder really cannot be beaten.
Colorado in my opinion is so much better than Utah! Thank you for this content peak rankings! Keep up the good work!
Would love to see a breakdown of the best spring-skiing mountains!
Great suggestion!
A basin can’t be beat, because of its high base (over 10,000 ft.) It has consistently great skiing through the middle of May, and some years beyond.
In Utah, the Wasatch resorts all have good spring skiing (Brighton, Snowbird, Solitude, Snowbird). I particularly like Brighton for spring skiing. It gets 500” of snow, and is very uncrowded after spring break is over.
Avoid areas with lower elevation. Bad choices: Beaver Creek, Snow Basin come to mind. Steamboat is also very bad, unless it’s snowing, in which case it’s amazing.
Mammoth Mountain is THE spring skiing resort
@@ComsiCaterpillar Nah Mammoth's summit is below the base of most resorts in the Rockies. No good once it warms up
@@johncarnahan867 they stay open till august...
Kicking Horse is absolutely brutal, in tie best way. A real leg day.
I live in Colorado. Ski every weekend. I've skied MT, WY, UT, CO, VT, IA, MN. Colorado is much better for an overall experience. Utah is great if all you're there for is the skiing. It's gotten better since the Olympics in 2012, but the nighttime vibe in Utah is still "weird". The upside to the LDS-dominance in Utah is smaller crowds on Sundays😎
utahs nightlife is better than colorado. denver is just all dabbed out wooks. utah has strong counter culture because of lds. ive been to warehouse raves that got busted at 4am in slc in the last month
@@purplism4857 be so for real… Denver vs Salt Lake City denver wins no contest, and also has warehouse raves
1:56 where is that?
@@designertonio5801 my guess is one of the Aspen mountains
Sorry. Olympics were 2002
Depends on what you like? Colorado is way better for partying, Utah has amazing powder and terrain. And Alta is still free of snowboards, amazing!
Park City has amazing nightlife- worked for me, anyway!
Impossible to compare due to the multiple variables for your vacation. It also depends on the time of year and where you currently live to determine the drive or flight comparisons. Do you have a family or flying solo? Drive or shuttle, slope side or 'down valley' motel for example. Neither is better pr worse than the other.
You can’t go wrong either way. Utah is great because on your last day you can ski until four and still make an early evening flight back home. Staying in Sandy or SL is fine and I have many times but you definitely lose the ski vibe some. What I prefer about Colorado is the true ski town vibe,
you can get real beer and weed is legal. I will say what for some reason he will not say, the Mormon church controls Utah and that is a factor when it comes to after ski fun. I ski both states often and they are both great. I think Utah offers a better value. I have gotten great deals staying in the Sandy areas, not only for lodging but dining. You are correct I 70 can be a true nightmare and it only takes a few inches or less for the nightmare to happen. If you get good snow you will love both.
Colorado is way better!! Go there! Poor me will be in Utah working the lifts. So definitely go to Colorado and enjoy it for me!
was skiing in austria and asked by a man from france and his friend from austria why, if i was from the usa, was i skiing austria instead of utah or colorado. i ended up wondering too! but don't forget squaw valley, ca or taos nm. as awesome as teluride, and ajax (aspen) and snowbird/alta.
in the “getting there” section you forgot to mention that the resorts very far away from denver have an airport and all of them can get flights from denver and most of them can get flights from chicago and even locations in california and texas
i forgot to say that steamboat has flights from boston and new york city
no mention of Indy pass which works at Beaver and Powder in Utah
praying to the air force gods that I land Hill next. my body and soul is ready if I can be so close to Park City
Have u done w mountain review on Loveland?
I was at Loveland a couple days back. What an incredible experiance. I should stop being a resort snob.
Loveland has terrific terrain, and not many people, but the chairs are slow.
been going to Colorado for 20 yrs. Since about 2015 interstate 70 is brutal. Every day of the week no matter how early you go, i-70 is awful. Used to take 2 hours drive from Denver to Vail, now it's like 4 hours of stop & go traffic. Aspen used to take 3.5 hours now it's 6 hours. Ever been on the 405 in LA ? same thing
because Colorado, especially down i-70 has become so California-ized it’s almost impossible to want to go to any big time mountain any more.
Damn is it that bad now??
Both are great, but I've always preferred Utah.
What Utah zone is the cottonwood zone?
Ski Colorado, please.
One thing both states have in common is outrageous prices. not only will you spend $200 plus for a single day lift ticket but there may be a parking fee and renting equipment buying food will also cost an arm and a leg. It didn't used to be this way I remember as a kid in the 2000's $70 lift tickets no parking fee and food was only alittle overpriced. I pity todays kids I think only kids with rich parents will learn to ski and the ski resorts will have alot less customers in another 10 or 20 years.
Both states have nice resorts that aren’t super expensive. E.g. Brighton in Utah, Loveland in CO (and quite a few others). Just have to research a bit.
Idaho has many smaller resorts that are almost all inexpensive.
there are plenty of affordable mountains in Colorado, especially outside of i-70 so in general it’s an overall better experience. Skiing in general is just a very expensive sport, ESPECIALLY if getting rentals in the process. Monarch, Loveland, and Cooper are all very affordable
@@Madzzy I skied at Ski Cooper where I paid $75, which included a lesson, the lift ticket, and something else, I forget now what the third thing was, maybe lunch. That was in 2012 I think.
Have you done any reviews for New Mexico Resorts?
We've done Taos in written form! www.peakrankings.com/content/taos
A video review is in the pipeline.
Beware of analysis paralysis. It’s all good, just go!
Colorado. Everyone should go to Colorado.
"Many Colorado destinations are several hours apart from one another" as it shows a clip of a someone skiing Keystone with Breck in the background xD
I wish I could live near Salt Lake City so I could drive to SnowBird every weekend... sadly im stuck on the ice coast.
Best resort is the one where it snowed the night before.
Timing
Can you review steamboat ski resort? its one of the best I've skied in Colorado
Just wait till next week.
Steamboat is very snow dependent. It has few runs facing North, and lower elevation, so gets beat up quickly when sunny. Otoh, it can’t be beat when it’s snowing. This makes it a risky choice if you have to plan way ahead, but if you can go when you know it’s snowing, it’s a great choice.
colorado ftw!! alta/snowbird get way less snow than they advertise, and alta doesnt even have any double blacks... avoid the crowds-- go to colorado!
Alta has plenty of double blacks. They label everything as “Black”, but many of these are double blacks, and very difficult. It’s a steep mountain.
Excellent video. Utah for resort access, cost and nicer people. Colorado for epic pass.
What kinda camera do you use to film this?
GoPro Hero 7 Black!
I live in Colorado so naturally I’m more inclined to go to the ones in my state.
Who is best? It simply depends on who’s got the best snow.
what mountain is 2:16
Heavy wet snow in Colorado and light packing peanut snow in Utah
Need a Stowe review 🙏
@El Barbero what do u recommend for east coast?
@El Barbero A weekday pass was $114 at Stowe last year. This year they are $155. $189 on a Saturday. $800 for a 3hr ski lesson. F that! I hate what consolidation has done to the industry.
@El Barbero true Jay is my favorite east coast mountain, just very long drive from Long Island
U need a full ikon for steamboat
What about spending a season? Is living and working a season in Coloardo is still that expensive like going for a holiday?
If you live there, you'll probably want to get a season pass. Housing is pricey, but not nearly as expensive as nightly hotels.
@@PeakRankings exactly, if i work there i will probably get a ski pass, MAYBE help with rentals, idk about housing but that is making my spending much lower and reasonable isn't it?
The answer is super simple... As yourself, who's getting hit by the storms? Go there!
My question is which state is better to move to as a young person in the outdoor industry with a marketing background. SLC cost of living is insanely better than Denver’s but Denver’s overall vibes seem like they offer more
SLC is, perhaps surprisingly, not that different than Denver, but a lot smaller. A big advantage is the mountains are literally right there.
It depends, Utah isn’t as crazy Mormon as people see it as. I lived there for 4 years. The views in Salt Lake City might be better form in the city as well.
Where are the best freeride possibilities, access to great terrain, when you’re also ready to go up with skins?
Both regions have great options, but Utah's Cottonwoods are probably the most popular when it comes to easy backcountry access.
i’ve been to both colorado and utah, i’ll have a better idea when i go to park city next week
I was there on new years and it was amazing. The pow was up to my hips on one day!
We have such soft snow here. The texture is unreal sometimes.
"Greatest snow on earth" for a reason.
@@redbeardreturns3550 Shhh.
@@ewallt oof my bad 😬
Hi
Cottenwoods🔥🔥🔥
what resort is 6:40?
Snowbasin!
Utah for me. Stay in Salt Lake city, way cheaper than Colorado resorts, better restaurants, bars and pubs. Rent a car, visit several ski areas and if Little Cottonwood Cyn is busy on the weekend, go to Brighton instead.
i prefer Utah mainly due to the lower altitudes of the ski areas. get fatigued instantly @12,000 ft....
I like them both , however on a powder day nowhere touches Utah’s fluff .
Not even Steamboat? Not being critical just curious as to your opinion. Thanks...
@@johnb5482 steamboat is nice , but not as dry as Utah
@@tt55kolorado will almost always be drier than Utah due to their more continental climate (further away from the ocean). I think Utah is in the perfect spot for getting light snow with still having lots of precipitation.
Except Steamboat.
#SkiColorado
Hands down Colorado...or California...or Idaho...or...
Weed and mushrooms are legal in Colorado, but no one can beat Utah's powder. 903" in the Wasatch mountains last season. So, you make the call. Face shots or getting faced?
TLDR; It depends
As a native to the colorado ski resorts the answer is utah is 100% better based entirely on crowd sizes. Shouldn't really be any other consideration tbh.
1
The problem with CO is that every resort is crowded every day
I've skied Snowbird and Solitude in Utah, and Wolf Creek, Breckenridge and Copper Mountain in Colorado. Colorado is better. Colorado greens are like blues in Utah and California. Blues in Colorado are like black diamonds everywhere else. Colorado is more challenging.
I’ve skied most of the resorts in both, and have not noticed that. It seems to me much more resort dependent than state dependent. For example, the Blacks at Alta or Snowbird are no joke.
Are you being serious ?? Colorado has the flattest black diamonds I ve ever ridden in western resorts other than a handful of the upper runs at places like Crested Butte and Telluride, majority of CO terrain is just flat boring groomers through aspen groves. Utah blows them away in general ( especially Snowbird, Alta, Snow Basin) and CA is right behind with places like Mammoth, Squaw, Kirkwood
1:56 where is that?
That's the International trail at Aspen Mountain (Ajax)!
@@PeakRankings so if i go snowboarding in aspen, i will see that ?
@@designertonio5801 if you hit the Ruthie's lift, yes.
I70 sucks. Little cottonwood sucks. Colorado is crowded. Utah’s mountains are so close to town that waves of crowds show up all day. Turns out there’s downsides everywhere. Might as well just give up and switch to underwater basket weaving if you really wanna get off.
Both have great snow and resorts but the weird Utah liquor laws puts CO ahead.
I live in Colorado Springs and have had the epic and the Ikon. Skiing is great but if you are all about the skiing, Utah wins hands down.