Why indeed. Skiing in Europe and skiing in the US or Canada are two almost different ski experiences, made different by not just the ski terrain but the culture and the longer journey times across the Atlantic. From Heathrow the British Airways flight to Denver takes off around midday and lands at 3:30 pm and by the time you clear immigration and customs you wonder what day it is. You should not expect to be on a transfer shuttle till 6:30 pm and at least two hours more till you arrive at your hotel. A long day especially when you consider that you can almost leave home at 9:00 and be finishing your dinner in resort in Europe by 9:00 pm! So why do so many UK skiers do this, there must be something in it, right?

Physical Differences

I’ve said before that, when skiing in the Alps, you ski in the mountains and when skiing in America you ski on the mountains. In the Alps the mountains are a lot closer together and a lot more pointy. In America the mountains and the slopes are not just bigger but much more rounded. There are big peaks in some resorts but you need to access these as a backcountry skier and not from the resort, though sometimes there is an access gate from the resort. The ski runs tend to be longer and wider with a lot more space for everyone to play. This is not always the case and there are bottlenecks but there are fewer bottlenecks than you often find in Europe. At the base when you arrive there are usually volunteers who are locals who work a couple of days a week in exchange for their annual ski pass and are there to answer any questions that you might have. They also often run an introduction to the area, skiing around with you to show you around, which lifts are which, where to find the restrooms, where is good for lunch etc. You meet at the base at 09:30 for a tour, or at a designated meeting point and time elsewhere; the tours are for intermediate skiers and above. You will also see a few ski patrollers out on the hill and often some yellow-jackets, “Ski Safety”, making sure that skiers and boarders slow down at busy and choke points on the hill. All in all it’s about making sure that all the guests have a good day on the hill. 

Eating on the Hill

From this you can see just how culturally different a North American ski experience is. Your hosts know that if they don’t look after you then you may choose to go and ski elsewhere. Most of the resorts have huge wooden lodges that cater for the masses with a cafeteria-style restaurant serving salads, wraps, pizza, and the ubiquitous bowl of chilli. Expect to pay around $15 now for a bowl of chilli. The cute, family-run, chalet with fondue or local specialities don’t really exist in the USA, but you might find a private lodge that opens to the public at lunchtime or on special occasions.

Hotels and Eating Out

There are other big differences too. The hotels tend to be much bigger with larger rooms and it is quite common to have a room with two queen size double beds when you book a double. Most hotels operate on a room only basis, not even including breakfast which you will need to purchase separately. Some of the higher end hotels have a ski valet with whom you can leave your skis as you come off the slopes, you’ll then find conveniently transported back to your hotel and ready to pick up again next morning. Dinner will often be taken at a local restaurant and in most ski towns there are usually a good selection of mid-priced options along with a few high end choices too. You can opt for bar food, wings, nachos, burger and fires which may be at the lower end but it will not be as cheap as a Big Mac. At the higher end, you might find a fancy steak restaurant or chichi Italian. You really will find food to suit all budgets, we generally budget $150 for dinner and drinks for the two of us when eating out.

Resorts are often located a few miles outside of town which means either catching a free resort shuttle to the ski hill or driving. Most of the purpose built resorts like Aspen, Snowmass; Vail or Beaver Creek are ski in, ski out and often there are hotels at the base of the ski hills.

How Runs are Graded

The ski runs in America are graded differently with the grades being Green, Blue, Black and Black Diamond. This can be seen from the signage where the runs not only have a name but the grade is in a coloured Green Circle, Blue Square, Black Diamond or even Double black Diamond (Experts Only) on the sign. They are pretty much the same as the runs in Europe but differently named. 

If you are a hard charger then stick to Europe as there are fewer opportunities to let go but if you are happy having a blast down some pretty strong black diamond and double black diamond runs you would be in for a treat. In Beaver Creek they have the “Birds of Prey” downhill which is reputed to be the hardest and gnarliest run on the Downhill Circuit! In places it is a bit like skiing down a lift shaft. Often these blacks and double blacks are left to build into mega bump fields to challenge the strongest of skiers. Often these runs have a half and half set up where one side of the run is left to grow into a bump field and the other is groomed for when your thighs tell you to slow down! All great fun on telemark skis but not every skier enjoys the challenge. Slow down and enjoy the journey and head for the hot tub when you return to the hotel or apartment to ease off your burning quads.

The Biggest Difference

The biggest difference in the two places is that in North America the ski areas work hard to manage the lift lines. This along with the fact that Americans are inherently more courteous to strangers makes the trip over the Atlantic an eye opener on your first visit. There is also a singles line in North America which is used to make sure that all the chairs go up full. So, if there’s three of you about to get on a quad chairlift, someone from the singles line would just jump in and join you. It’s a great system which makes sure that all the chairs go up full and reduces lift lines. It also opens up some interesting chairlift conversations. Wouldn’t that be good if they introduced it in Europe. What this means that when the lifties are working to load the lifts and gondolas to capacity during busy periods you don’t see chairs going up with only one occupant which you do see regularly in Europe.

The Other Big Difference

The cost of the lift tickets. Comparing the price of a ski pass in Europe and in America is eye opening. Some of North America’s biggest ski areas have really expensive lift passes. Once upon a time Vail Mountain used to pride itself on the cost of its lift tickets and increased prices whenever they found another resort with higher prices! This season, the walk-up price for a lift pass in Vail is $319 (£261) per day, compare that to Euro 79 (£67) for a day pass in the Trois Vallees.

Thankfully there are much cheaper ways to ski if you purchase in advance, especially if you are going for a couple of weeks where a season pass would definitely be worth considering. There are two main season passes to choose from that include multiple resorts. The Ikon Pass covers Aspen for 7 days and unlimited riding at loads of other resorts including Steamboat, Copper Mountain and Winter Park in Colorado. In Europe there are a host of other resorts to go to with the pass, Grand Valira Andorra, Ski Dolomiti, along with 7 days in Zermatt, St. Moritz and Chamonix. The Epic Pass from Vail Resorts includes all the resorts in the Vail Resorts portfolio (Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Whistler) and this is stretching over to Europe too with the purchase of Andermatt-Sedrun-Disentis followed by Crans Montana for winter 24-25. There are also a number of partner resorts including Verbier 4 Valley’s, Ski Arlberg, SkiRama Dolomiti, Les 3 Vallees. With a bit of judicious planning you can have a week in Europe and a further two weeks in the USA on the same season! On our Epic Pass we managed to ski Vail and Beaver Creek in February followed by Northstar and Heavenly in April with a day each at California’s Palisades and Alpine Meadows on the following year’s Ikon Pass. That year we skied, 1 week in Andorra, 3 weeks in Winter Park followed by 1 week in Selva Val Gardena.

Epic or Ikon Pass

If you are doing all your own planning and booking then you need to decide by late April where you are going so you can book either the Epic or Ikon Pass at the best price, paying a deposit and the balance in September for the Epic Pass and the whole amount for the Ikon Pass in April. Expect to pay around £1,000 for the Epic Pass and a little less for the Ikon Pass. Buying your holiday from a tour operator you can generally buy your Epic Pass from them or if a member of the Ski Club of Great Britain you can buy an Ikon Pass from there.

How Long Should You Go For?

How long to go for is another consideration as most trips to a European resort are booked with a tour company and are for a week, with 6 ski days. Most European ski resorts are good for about 6 days but can be a bit boring after you have discovered your favourite bits of the hill. This is why most tour companies do not offer a 2 week option. Having flown out to either the USA or Canada you would expect to go for two weeks as it’s a long way to go for just six days skiing. Staying for 2 weeks allows you to take a day off and visit the local spa, shopping mall, spend time in the gear shops, try snowmobiling, XC skiing or something different. Your other option is to do a bit of a road trip taking in 2 or more resorts, say Vail and Beaver Creek which are only 10 miles apart, Breckenridge and Vail, or Aspen, Steamboat and Winter Park work well together too on the Ikon Pass. One of our trips was to Monarch, we were driving past it anyway and it seem rude not to stop and spend the day there, followed by Crested Butte, Telluride, and Beaver Creek which made an interesting mix of resorts.

HireCar or Shuttle Transfer

Another point to consider is whether to drive or go to the resort via a shuttle. The shuttle is convenient and easy but having a car has loads of benefits if you want to head to a hot springs or to buy groceries if you are self catering. There is not a huge difference in cost as the shuttle is not cheap but it means you can just climb on the minibus and sleep on the road up, it is dark after all so there are no views that you are missing out on! If you are collecting a car from Denver Airport it’s worth checking both the vehicle and the tyres as despite booking an SUV you might have a front wheel drive vehicle rather than a 4 x 4 and it may have spent the summer in Florida with summer tyres on it.

Final Thought

I suffer from “Mal de mer” when the weather socks in and the light goes flat. In flat light I really struggle to see, it can be so bad that if the visibility is very flat then I have difficultly knowing which way is up and which way is down. I can set off downhill to find that I’m pointing up the hill and head off backwards knowing that it’s going to hurt when I stop! This usually happens about once a week in Europe but I’ve never had this in America. We have lost days in resort when a storm comes in and we have decided not to ski that day but it’s usually because the accompanying winds are closing down the chairlifts and skiing is just not pleasant rather than not being able to see and ski. We once drove up to Sunshine from Banff when the outside temperature reading on the car was -36 degrees. We decided that today would be a swim day and headed for the local pool!

Don’t forget that a lot of American resorts are high in terms of altitude. This is particularly the case in Colorado where a lot of the resorts are over 10,000 feet. The air is thinner, the air is drier, and you need to remember to drink lots of water. Take it easy for the first day as you’ll probably find yourself breathless just bending over to do up your boots.

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