Many ski towns are RV-friendly, including the iconic destinations around the country.
Here are some of the more popular bucket-list mountains with a few insider’s tips about camping and skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing there.
Breckenridge, Colorado
Like many towns in the Rocky Mountains, Breckenridge was originally a mining camp. When the ski resort opened in 1961, it saved Breckenridge from becoming a ghost town. Today, Breckenridge is a huge ski resort, with 2,908 skiable acres and a vertical drop just shy of 3,400 feet. A third of its terrain is groomed daily, and 40 percent is open bowls. With 350 historic buildings, it’s not just a place to ski but also a charming place to visit, and it has one of the best sushi bars in Summit County.
Pass: Epic Pass
Campground: Tiger Run RV Resort. Free Wi-Fi. Free bus every 30 minutes into town and the ski slopes.
See Related Stories:
RVing, Skiing and Snowboarding
and Snow-Country RVing tips
Gunstock, New Hampshire
Gunstock Mountain Resort is part of a county-owned recreation area. When it opened in 1937 with the first chairlift in the eastern United States, more people came to watch the top ski jumpers of the day, rather than to turn down its slopes. Though it is one of the oldest ski areas in America, today it’s modern and much bigger with 55 trails (not including glades), 90 percent of which have snowmaking and 24 are lit for night skiing. Not an alpine skier? You can walk out your door onto 50 kilometers of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing trails, go tubing down a prepared track, ride the Mountain Coaster or watch a few jumpers fly through the air on the newly renovated ski jump.
Pass: Gunstock season pass or lift tickets only
Campground: Gunstock Mountain Resort. Full-hookup RV camping at the ski area!
Heavenly Valley, California/Nevada
Heavenly Valley is, well, heavenly for skiing and snowboarding. Its 28 chairlifts take you to 4,630 skiable acres, the most of any ski resort in the Lake Tahoe area. It’s also the highest, with a summit elevation of 10,067 feet. Its 3,500-foot vertical drop is the longest on the West Coast. The mountain has a variety of trails, from wide-open cruisers to steep chutes. It’s also uniquely located on the California-Nevada line. You can ski from one state to the other.
Pass: Epic Pass
Campground: Zephyr Cove RV Park and Campground. Near South Lake Tahoe’s restaurants and casinos. Backcountry snowmobile tours from the campground.
Park City, Utah
Park City Ski Resort was host to several of the alpine events during the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The beauty of visiting Park City is the chance to also ski Deer Valley and the Canyons, which share the same historic mining town, now an upscale resort, with boutiques, interesting restaurants and numerous events. The Sundance Film Festival fills up the place, but hardly anyone skis, and you never know which of your favorite movie stars might walk by. You’re also an hour’s drive to Snowbird, Alta, Brighton and Solitude. There’s so much skiing near Park City that you can’t possibly experience it all
in a week.
Pass: Epic Pass
Campground: Park City RV Resort. Minutes away from the slopes and festivities in town. Seasonal and nightly reservations available.
Sun Valley, Idaho
Founded in 1936 by railroad tycoon Averell Harriman, Sun Valley was the first ski area in the country to install a chairlift. Today, its “big” mountain, Baldy, offers some of the best fall-line groomed slopes in the world. Its state-of-the-art snowmaking system does a remarkable job of creating fantastic conditions when Mother Nature doesn’t. Its “little” mountain, Dollar, is a treeless dome with a top-notch learning area. Free-riders can take their pick of three parks, two cross courses and 76 rails. The resort also has 25 miles of groomed Nordic ski and snowshoeing trails.
Pass: Mountain Collective
Campground: Meadows RV Park. Views of the ski runs on Baldy. Free Wi-Fi, 50-amp full-hookup sites and on-site laundry.
