Possibly the worst-run ski area I've ever seen

[Grassi21]

I was up in the air between Catamount and Butternut for a season pass this season. They are about the same distance from where I live. Catamount has the more difficult terrain overall. But as I said The Meadows area is great for beginners. They have a nice steep trail in Catapult and some fun blacks in the Glades, Alley Cat and Offstage (with a bump field at the bottom). But compared to Butternut, Catamount can do a little better in the snow making department. Butternut does a good job blowing snow and overall has less pitch in their terrain compared to the Cat.

So in general what makes a resort/ski area family friendly?

Good snow making and regular grooming for the less skilled family members
Enough terrain to keep all skill levels in the family entertained
Varied terrain that feeds into a base area so that its easy to find the family
A reliable and highly regarded daycare/ski program

My 2 cents

 

[SteveFoy]

This guy takes his young family to a small ski area thinking it would be a good place to go. He is very disappointed with the ticket policy, the facilities, and the ski area in general. He shares his negative experience on this board and is basically attacked by various members. Talk about shooting the messenger! The advice people gave to take it to the owner is idiotic. Are the owner(s) so out of touch with their business they need customers to point out obvious shortcomings? There should be "a guest services" where customers can lodge complaints. All low-level employees should be trained to direct unhappy customers to higher level employees who can respond. This is basic business 101. There will always be families with youg kids seeking smaller areas that are kid-friendly and suitable for kids to get into skiing/snowboarding. Apparently, Bosquet is not such a place.

 

[Tex Boyle]

This guy takes his young family to a small ski area thinking it would be a good place to go. He is very disappointed with the ticket policy, the facilities, and the ski area in general. He shares his negative experience on this board and is basically attacked by various members. Talk about shooting the messenger! The advice people gave to take it to the owner is idiotic. Are the owner(s) so out of touch with their business they need customers to point out obvious shortcomings? There should be "a guest services" where customers can lodge complaints. All low-level employees should be trained to direct unhappy customers to higher level employees who can respond. This is basic business 101. There will always be families with youg kids seeking smaller areas that are kid-friendly and suitable for kids to get into skiing/snowboarding. Apparently, Bosquet is not such a place.

Thank you!

 

[Grassi21]

The first few people who responded led off by saying did you talk to the owner. As Tex continued the spirited debate is when people started to offer tangible alternatives. The owner might not be accessible but like you said someone in guest services or a general manager might do. But the person in the ticket booth is probably dying to punch the clock at the end of the day. I think its irresponsible to not say anything at the resort (where it matters) and simply turn around and trash the place on a message board. I know nothing about the ski area in question nor to I know anything about Tex. And that's another thing. If you join an online community and the first thing you do is trash a ski area, that is irresponsible.

 

[Tex Boyle]

So in general what makes a resort/ski area family friendly?

Good snow making and regular grooming for the less skilled family members
Enough terrain to keep all skill levels in the family entertained
Varied terrain that feeds into a base area so that its easy to find the family
A reliable and highly regarded daycare/ski program

My 2 cents

Nicely put!

The only thing I'd add is a price structure such that you don't want to put a bullet in your brain if your three year old decides after one run they want to go home. If you make it too expensive for people with little kids, you kill the industry.

 

[thetrailboss]

This guy takes his young family to a small ski area thinking it would be a good place to go. He is very disappointed with the ticket policy, the facilities, and the ski area in general. He shares his negative experience on this board and is basically attacked by various members.

I don't think he has been attacked...rather questioned for more details.

The advice people gave to take it to the owner is idiotic.

If you're referring to what I said, here it is:

did you contact the management of the resort directly with these concerns before posting them here?

And:

As someone who "works" for the industry, I assume you knew that you really need to voice your concerns to the management and not a kid making minimum wage selling tickets. I'm sure that any good business person would have attempted to accomodate you.

Which actually mirrors what you said:

Are the owner(s) so out of touch with their business they need customers to point out obvious shortcomings? There should be "a guest services" where customers can lodge complaints. All low-level employees should be trained to direct unhappy customers to higher level employees who can respond. This is basic business 101. There will always be families with youg kids seeking smaller areas that are kid-friendly and suitable for kids to get into skiing/snowboarding. Apparently, Bosquet is not such a place.

The only comment I made about the owner was:

And if you had a problem with the owner in the past, as you sort of imply, why would you go back?

Which has not been answered yet.

I can't speak for what others have said, nor can I say anything about Bousquet. I was commenting about how best to remedy the problem rather than joining this board for the sole reason of bashing a small resort. Again, I hope that the latter is not happening....is it?

 

[Grassi21]

Nicely put!

The only thing I'd add is a price structure such that you don't want to put a bullet in your brain if your three year old decides after one run they want to go home. If you make it too expensive for people with little kids, you kill the industry.

Thanks. And I apologize if I got on you too much. But you made a great point in your last post. "If you make it to expensive for people with little kids, you kill the industry." Small area like the one in question are feeder hills. Kids start there cause its around the corner or 10 minutes away. Even though you don't agree with their price model (it does seem steep for kids) the place serves a purpose. By complaining to management maybe the place will get better maybe not. But at least you tried and you can always take your dollars somewhere better/more affordable. And seriously, if you are looking for a certain type of ski area start a thread. People around here love giving their opinions on which areas might work for the person asking. ;-)

 

[Sky]

What makes a resort family friendly?

Since the original poster skied out in Western MA...I don't suppose a homer like me for Wa saying "Wa under 5(or 6?) is free".

But to answer the Family Friendly post...I'd say a place that offers day-care, kids (under 5 or so) free, family-specific trails, Kid-specific programming...or a combination of the above gets a resort into the Fam Freindly category.

Wa offers all of the above. *end Wa homer rant*

I also think a fam friendly place needs to provide the array of trails to satisfy the needs of the various levels of skier/rider in the fam. Tubing (although not skiing) gives non-skiing parents and interested kids a chance to participate together in a winter sport.

ALSO...fam discounts for a one-timer trip would be nice. Ragged offers car-full days (or did anyway).

Winter is too long around here to NOT have a winter sport in your quiver.

 

[MadPadraic]

Thanks. And I apologize if I got on you too much. But you made a great point in your last post. "If you make it to expensive for people with little kids, you kill the industry." Small area like the one in question are feeder hills. Kids start there cause its around the corner or 10 minutes away. Even though you don't agree with their price model (it does seem steep for kids) the place serves a purpose. By complaining to management maybe the place will get better maybe not.

This is a total hijack, but I'm not convinced that this is true. Most people I know who skiied from a very young age have effectivley given it up by the time they are making serious money, but most people I know who took up the sport in highschool/college/early professional life have become very addicted and tend to spend plenty of money at both a local night skiing hill and destination resorts. Obviously there is a sampling problem here, but still.

 

[MadPadraic]

But to answer the Family Friendly post...I'd say a place that offers day-care, kids (under 5 or so) free, family-specific trails, Kid-specific programming...or a combination of the above gets a resort into the Fam Freindly category.

I also think a fam friendly place needs to provide the array of trails to satisfy the needs of the various levels of skier/rider in the fam. Tubing (although not skiing) gives non-skiing parents and interested kids a chance to participate together in a winter sport.

What is a family specific trail? Flat? I'm seriously asking, not trying to be a jerk.

 

[threecy]

I have no idea what level skier your kids are so take this with a grain of salt. If they are solid skiers then you can throw what I am about to say out the window. Berkshire East has predominantly natural snow trails, little snow making, doesn't run the groomers down a good number of trails. I don't think its the place to bring little ones unless they have some experience. BTW, the above is not a complaint. You need to take a ski area for what it is. I love Berkshire East for their lack of grooming and snow making. Its cool old school rugged NE terrain.

While Berkshire East does offer a lot of natural trails, about 75% of the skiable acreage has been well covered with snowmaking, and all of the beginner and intermediate terrain is groomed nightly. There's a 2.5 mile beginner run from the top, an isolated beginner/intermediate area served by a quad, and two bunny hills. While it was a challenging mountain when I learned to ski there about 20 years ago, it has come leaps and bounds and is a great place for beginners and intermediates.

 

[Grassi21]

While Berkshire East does offer a lot of natural trails, about 75% of the skiable acreage has been well covered with snowmaking, and all of the beginner and intermediate terrain is groomed nightly. There's a 2.5 mile beginner run from the top, an isolated beginner/intermediate area served by a quad, and two bunny hills. While it was a challenging mountain when I learned to ski there about 20 years ago, it has come leaps and bounds and is a great place for beginners and intermediates.

I didn't know the stats. I wasn't knocking the place. I hit it the Monday after Valentine's day and had to go back on Friday of the same week to get 6"of fresh. But that Friday was spent trying to catch up with Greg, Bvibert, and ALLSKING on anything with bumps, trees, or a lift line. One of my best ski days ever.

 

[thetrailboss]

What is a family specific trail? Flat? I'm seriously asking, not trying to be a jerk.

I think discussing what is a family specific trail or area is a good, constructive direction for the conversation to go from here.

 

[wa-loaf]

Since the original poster skied out in Western MA...I don't suppose a homer like me for Wa saying "Wa under 5(or 6?) is free".

5 and under at WA is $5, not free but close. :wink:

 

[Sky]

What is a family specific trail? Flat? I'm seriously asking, not trying to be a jerk.

No worries...no offense taken. Wa has two trails designated as Family trails. They are posted with a banner at the top of the trail stating...GO FAST, LOSE PASS.

So, what Wachusett offers is a stand-along GREEN lift with two trails. Great for learning once you move off the Bunny slope. The lift is a slow fixed grip...so not many intermediate (or better) skiers hit this trail. Parents take their learners here to build confidence. My kids learned here.

Off the intermediate lift, the easiest trail (Ralph's Run) is designated "Family". This allows parents to take their kids on harnesses (or not) and ski with confidence that they won't get run over by a heard of skiers/riders. Ralph's Run is quite tame at the top and a bit steep and wide at the very bottom. Nice twisty trail.

Off the summit, there is a Blue trail (Conifer Connection) designated as Family. Same as Ralph's Run, except it's actually the best trail off the summit for cruising. It's also rather steep in two places. But it gives parents a place to take their better-skiing kids, although they too have to heed the warning banner.

Anybody can ski these trails...but you'd better heed the GO FAST, LOSE PASS guidance.

 

[Newpylong]

Berkshire East can work well for a family mountain, but, it does not fit under the category he was looking at (Western MA), so I ommitted it. I don't consider anything in the Pioneer Valley western MA, but central.

 

[wa-loaf]

Pioneer Valley not western mass? C'mon you know everything west of 495 is considered western mass! :lol:

 

[2knees]

Pioneer Valley not western mass? C'mon you know everything west of 495 is considered western mass! :lol:

495? try 128. seriously. they dont call boston the hub of the universe for nothing.

at least thats the way they seem to think. no offense to bostonians here, i married one.

 

[Phildozer]

They do the same thing Bousquet does: charge even toddlers $15. Sheesh. NONE of the big resorts do that. How do the little places hope to stay in business if they're going to make it so expensive for families who aren't millionaires?

How are little places going to stay in business when people arent' willing to pay for them?

Other than poor customer service, you have nothing to complain about.

You didn't do your homework before going to Bousquet, found their ticket policy not to your liking. Quit your complaining and admit YOU made a mistake.

 

[marcski]

This is a total hijack, but I'm not convinced that this is true. Most people I know who skiied from a very young age have effectivley given it up by the time they are making serious money, but most people I know who took up the sport in highschool/college/early professional life have become very addicted and tend to spend plenty of money at both a local night skiing hill and destination resorts. Obviously there is a sampling problem here, but still.

First off...I kind of agree with phildozer here. I mean, know before you go. You should have at least known about the tix prices. I have a young daughter and I get on the phone and call any prosective ski area before i take her to make sure it will be to my liking.

Now, with regard to madpadraic...I think that most people that started skiing early would definitely continue skiing in their later lives. I have no definitive data...but c'mon...its the skibug.