Stowe, Killington, or Whiteface - total package?

[slayeratcp]

Hi all, new to the forum.

I am trying to plan a trip for five or six guys trying to get some good East Coast skiing in by day, and some good drinking and having fun at night. The most important thing is obviously the mountain, but we would like to go somewhere that has a decent town and nightlife as well.

None of us has ever been to Whiteface but the vertical and town of Lake Placid nearby interest us a lot. We have all been to Killington and Stowe and enjoy the mountains, though they can get a bit crowded at times. The problem is we all went when we were 15 or 16 and didn't really experience the towns at all.

Any input about the mountains or surrounding areas would be awesome. Thanks

 

[Geoff]

What skill level is the group at?

What are you looking for in nightlife?

Is this a weekend trip?

 

[JD]

Go where the most recent snow is..

 

[slayeratcp]

Reply

Hey sorry

We are all intermediate skiers (mostly blue to black cruisers). No moguls or terrain parks really.

I think we'd prefer a larger sports bar type place, but anything that involves drinking and being up late with a bunch of people.

It would be a long weekend, probably Thurs-Sun or Sat-Tues.

 

[slayeratcp]

Unfortunately, we are coming from Maryland and can't just go last minute to the place with recent snow.

 

[JD]

Hey sorry

We are all intermediate skiers (mostly blue to black cruisers). No moguls or terrain parks really.

I think we'd prefer a larger sports bar type place, but anything that involves drinking and being up late with a bunch of people.

It would be a long weekend, probably Thurs-Sun or Sat-Tues.

Killington.....you'll love it.

 

[wa-loaf]

Hey sorry

We are all intermediate skiers (mostly blue to black cruisers). No moguls or terrain parks really.

I think we'd prefer a larger sports bar type place, but anything that involves drinking and being up late with a bunch of people.

It would be a long weekend, probably Thurs-Sun or Sat-Tues.

Sounds like Killington fits the bill.

 

[dropKickMurphy]

Hi all, new to the forum.

I am trying to plan a trip for five or six guys trying to get some good East Coast skiing in by day, and some good drinking and having fun at night. The most important thing is obviously the mountain, but we would like to go somewhere that has a decent town and nightlife as well.

None of us has ever been to Whiteface but the vertical and town of Lake Placid nearby interest us a lot. We have all been to Killington and Stowe and enjoy the mountains, though they can get a bit crowded at times. The problem is we all went when we were 15 or 16 and didn't really experience the towns at all.

Any input about the mountains or surrounding areas would be awesome. Thanks

Vert is an overrated statistic. You'll have more than enough vert and terrain to keep you happy at any of those places. You'll also have more than enough drinking options at any of them.

What really makes the difference between a crappy trip or a great trip is the snow. Seeing that you need to decide in advance, you should lean to which location is most likely to have the best snow. Out of the 3 you mentioned, that would be Stowe.

If Stowe is on your radar, I'm assuming this isn't a really low budget trip. Seriously,have you considered SLC? Check out the prices of flights from Baltimore to SLC. I'd guess that the total cost of the SLC trip would compare very favorably to the Stowe trip. And your chances of finding great conditions is greater by an order of magnitude. Park City has the nightlife, and 3 huge areas (Deer Valley, Park City, and the Canyons) with huge amounts of intermediate (and above) terrain. Also within an easy drive to Alta/Snowbird, which offer a combination of terrain and snow that is among the very best on the planet.

I love skiing in the northeast, and I love the fact that I'm within a 4 hour drive of so many fantastic ski areas. But, if I lived in Maryland, most of my skiing would be in Utah.

 

[tjf67]

Hi all, new to the forum.

I am trying to plan a trip for five or six guys trying to get some good East Coast skiing in by day, and some good drinking and having fun at night. The most important thing is obviously the mountain, but we would like to go somewhere that has a decent town and nightlife as well.

None of us has ever been to Whiteface but the vertical and town of Lake Placid nearby interest us a lot. We have all been to Killington and Stowe and enjoy the mountains, though they can get a bit crowded at times. The problem is we all went when we were 15 or 16 and didn't really experience the towns at all.

Any input about the mountains or surrounding areas would be awesome. Thanks

Whiteface is having a good snow year so far. We are certainly going to be the least crowded. If conditions are right(not a lot) There is no better mountain in the east than Whiteface. The nighlife winner is going to be K. Stowe is going to cost the most and if you are not going BC it will be a waste IMO.

I may be a little bias as I live in LP. I can say I was out skiing last night and the snow is up above my knees.

 

[campgottagopee]

Whiteface is having a good snow year so far. We are certainly going to be the least crowded. If conditions are right(not a lot) There is no better mountain in the east than Whiteface. The nighlife winner is going to be K. Stowe is going to cost the most and if you are not going BC it will be a waste IMO.

I may be a little bias as I live in LP. I can say I was out skiing last night and the snow is up above my knees.

What he said----you mentioned never being to WF or LP---you owe it to yourself to ski the only Olympic Mnt in the NE and find out why it's that way.

 

[deadheadskier]

If I was booking that far out, Stowe would definitely be my pick. Best chance of having recent natural snow. Plenty of night life in town as well. You're also within an hour of Burlington if you really want diverse night life options with good views (read: college girls)

 

[Geoff]

I'd send them to Stratton or Okemo... or Mount Snow. All ski resorts have a bunch of bars with the game on. What they want is groomed cruisers. Why screw around with Stowe or Killington or Whiteface?

 

[wa-loaf]

I'd send them to Stratton or Okemo... or Mount Snow. All ski resorts have a bunch of bars with the game on. What they want is groomed cruisers. Why screw around with Stowe or Killington or Whiteface?

I think they want to party more than ski. Killington is the king of apres ski partying in the NE. That's their best choice.

 

[Geoff]

I think they want to party more than ski. Killington is the king of apres ski partying in the NE. That's their best choice.

The OP said "larger sports bar". The sports bar scene at Killington is kind of marginal. You'd never confuse Moguls or Jax with an ESPN Zone. You can find that quality level at any mountain. Killington has the live music scene that nobody else has but that's not what they are looking for.

 

[deadheadskier]

I'm not sure I'd say Killington's live music scene is necessarily better than Stowes; at least for the music I tend to like. The Rusty Nail and Matterhorn certainly are on par with Pickle Barrel and other K places.

 

[jaywbigred]

I think Killington (if your willing to get to the bars via non-walking transport) or Stratton (walking) fit your bill the best. Stowe and Whiteface will take you longer, and a lot of their value is in the kind of terrain it sounds like you will be avoiding (steeps, woods, generally ungroomed). Every ski town has their hotspots, but I think Stowe and Whiteface have a slightly more staid party atmosphere than Killington. Stratton is about the same, but you can walk everywhere right at the base. This means the acronym you are most likely to score is MILF, not DUI.

 

[deadheadskier]

Actually if partying was my main motive and I lived in Maryland? I'd got to Snowshoe

 

[mondeo]

The OP said "larger sports bar". The sports bar scene at Killington is kind of marginal. You'd never confuse Moguls or Jax with an ESPN Zone. You can find that quality level at any mountain. Killington has the live music scene that nobody else has but that's not what they are looking for.

I'm not sure I'd say Killington's live music scene is necessarily better than Stowes; at least for the music I tend to like. The Rusty Nail and Matterhorn certainly are on par with Pickle Barrel and other K places.

Different kind of live music scene, I'd expect. Killington's got the party-type live music scene. I've heard it described as the same playlist, different band each weekend. But then again, I was under age last time I was at Stowe.

I would've figured Stratton, Snow, Okemo, etc as well, but he did mention that they enjoyed Killington and Steaux.

 

[Geoff]

I'm not sure I'd say Killington's live music scene is necessarily better than Stowes; at least for the music I tend to like. The Rusty Nail and Matterhorn certainly are on par with Pickle Barrel and other K places.

Here is the Pickle Barrel event list:
http://www.picklebarrelnightclub.com/concerts-events/

Here is the Wobbly Barn event list:
http://www.wobblybarn.net/site/entertainment/events/index.html

Here is the Rusty Nail:
http://rustynailbar.com/site/index.php/home/events.html

Here is the Matterhorn:
http://www.matterhornbar.com/newsite/music.asp

I don't think "on par" is an appropriate comparison

 

[2knees]

people can argue about anything it seems like.....