What resorts has Vail and Alterra Mountain Company ruined most

BingPowStowe. Used to have a sick park, now i only hear horror stories.

They didn't fuck Stowe up at first it was fine until the pandemic despite being cheaper.


Wildcat turned to shit immediately used to be the first to open and last to close. I think they fucked Attitash up even worse.

Buying an Epic or Ikon is super white trash its like taking every vacation to Disney.

When y'all say the crowds/traffic/lift lines are absurd since Epic/Ikon, I'm assuming you mean on weekends? I've been out west the last 3 season to various Epic/Ikon mountains (PC, Northstar, Heavenly, Alta) and have never once thought they were remotely crowded on weekdays... they were ghost towns. Parks/groomed terrain were always money too.

That being said Vail is ruining my home resort BMBW which blows, but BMBW was hot garbage before Vail too. But if we're going solely based on my experiences on my trips, it seemed pretty dope everywhere I went. Figured most avid skiers avoid weekends anyways, no?

PeppermillRenoThey didn't fuck Stowe up at first it was fine until the pandemic despite being cheaper.


Wildcat turned to shit immediately used to be the first to open and last to close. I think they fucked Attitash up even worse.

They definitely made it cheaper, but in terms of park, lifts and terrain being open it was down before the pandemic too.

Mount Snow, starting with the new carinthia baselodge, then the following season they implemented $30 parking.
The new lodge attracted all of the tourist families to camp out in this base area and crowd up the lot and lifts.

Carinthia lodge used to be an XBOX and a bunch of smelly snowboarders eating food from home.

Well, aside from parks, when Vail Associates was bought out in the 90s and shifted to Vail Resorts(which includes rock resorts), the culture at towns which inhibit a vail resort, changed. Vail itself was always marketed towards rich people, but the festivities became more corporate and large scale, than tradition based when the whole company scene changed. Vail also moved their headquarters from Eagle to Brookfield as the company went public. As the company went corporate, it became harder to delineate one mountain from another in terms of culture. Even during covid, vail had the same mask and distancing signs at each resort and each store they owned(epic gear & breeze rentals). It might just be the business models, but at alterra resorts, things still seem fairly different from one another. Even before alterra, Intrawest was contributing quite a bit to more crowded resorts like Winter Park and partnering with powdr Corp owned copper for a Colorado pass which also included steamboat and CB for a few seasons. CB since being aquired by vail and it wouldn’t surprise me if Vail also bought telluride in the near future after partnering with the epic pass for a week of skiing a year. In terms of park, vail in recent years has really cut back on such. Whether it’s insurance or costs, I’d say it’s more so impacted on costs. Vail in terms of acquisitions the past few years has been unheard of which means spending power is quite shortsighted at vail. Imo, vail has ruined community culture, while alterra has attracted more people, but kept culture/traditions in tact. This is even what the company CEO has said. Vail is more focused on acquisition and budget cuts while alterra is more so in the business of partnering and offering multiple pass options like resort specific or an affordable sample of resorts. Vail is all under one pass. For vail, I can’t go and buy a resort specific pass. I have to get the epic pass which can lead to crowds at destination resorts. With alterra, I can get a ikon pass with select places and then a full pass for a specific resort at a premium, but this applies to destination resorts. Vails pass is high access, high profit, but drawback of crowded hills is hike alterra maintains the environment at destination resorts and uses main resorts for everyday use. Unlike alterra, I’m more so under the impression that vail isn’t in the business of skiing but destination resort/lodging that offers world class skiing, but the emphasis on the average customer/ not avid skier. Alterra and others like powdr focus on the skiing and I realize conglomerate passes leads to more congestion especially if one resort gets one more inch than the other on pow days. Just the way the market is going. Wish I was alive when Vail Associates was still a thing and were hip about skiing.

**This post was edited on Feb 16th 2022 at 3:01:33pm

DummyBearsI’m a spring skiing addict so I might try and go once it’s like 50+ degrees too. The car thing is the reason I might drive and get to see a bunch of the US I never have before plus I just like my own car preferably I’ll have a westfalia by next spring sometime and yes I know the issues that come with it but I’ve wanted one since I was a young kid.

I can never recommend a big road trip enough. If you pass through the northwest let me know. I can prolly get you on crystal for dirt cheap.

MaimHelpYou don’t ski

big boulder

you dont ski

theabortionatorI can never recommend a big road trip enough. If you pass through the northwest let me know. I can prolly get you on crystal for dirt cheap.

I hope to sometime soon I've never traveled further then Jay to ski

vail did ruin Stevens, although they hired a new gm who was a local and the mtn is turning around slowly now

eheathI would skip Colorado completely, it gets hyped up but it's actually one of the worst places to ski in the west. Utah, Idaho, Nevada/Cali, Montana, Wyoming, PNW are all better.

Most resorts will be busy and my best advice would be to chase snow, otherwise just pick a place and go, hard to go wrong with most skiing in the west.

I ski in Colorado Mondays and Wednesdays and have experienced essentially zero lift lines nor traffic at abasin, copper, MJ, CB, or wolf creek. I wouldn't dare touch it between Friday and Sunday but if they are traveling that likely isn't an issue. Claiming its one of the worst places to ski in the west is laughable.

**This post was edited on Feb 18th 2022 at 7:19:46pm