- I’m a mom and a travel journalist who’s covered everything from ski resorts in the U.S. to sledding in the Swiss Alps over my 20-year career.
- I know first-hand what it’s like to prep little ones for a day on the slopes, including what works (and what doesn’t).
- These are my picks for the most family-friendly ski resorts in the U.S., where there’s supervised childcare, kid-friendly trails, and some of the country’s best ski schools.
Ask anyone who’s been skiing with little kids—or even suited them up on a snow day—and they’ll tell you that enjoying winter with little ones is a lot of work. It’s worth it, though. If you’re planning to hit the mountains for winter vacation, especially if you or your kids are beginners, it’s smart to opt for a family-friendly downhill ski resort (or cross-country ski resort) that makes things especially easy.
Best Ski Resorts for Families and Kids in the U.S.
With perks like supervised childcare, kid-friendly ski trails and learning areas, and plenty of alternative winter activities like onsite snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and tubing, these are the best U.S. ski resorts from coast to coast for families who can’t wait to hit the slopes.
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1. Snowmass, Colorado
One of the four ski mountains that make up Aspen Snowmass, Snowmass covers the most terrain, with 3,342 acres of powdery perfection accessed by 20 chairlifts and 98 trails. But those superlative numbers aside, what parents love most about Snowmass is how easy the resort makes it for families looking to get kids hooked on skiing or snowboarding.
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Base yourself at the ski-in/ski-out Viceroy Snowmass and you can get your rental gear right onsite. Then catch the complimentary shuttle to the Treehouse Kids’ Adventure Center, a Colorado-themed wonderland for little ones at the foot of the mountain in the town’s scenic base village. The facility welcomes kids from eight weeks to four years old for fully supervised childcare and activities, as well as group lessons for beginners aged two to four on the bunny hill and magic carpet just out the door. Snowmass’s children’s ski school is one of the most renowned in the country.
And when the day’s done, the ski resort’s base village beckons with free activities that include daily s’mores, free ice skating (including rentals), and a cool hangout called The Collective with old-school games (skeeball, foosball, Pac-Man, and the like) to encourage further family bonding.
2. Beaver Creek, Colorado
Another family favorite among the best ski resorts in the U.S. is Beaver Creek, a kid-friendly Colorado ski mountain that mixes a luxurious stay with a top-notch children’s ski and snowboard school focused on teaching kids to venture confidently forth.
With the ski-in/ski-out The Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch as your base, you can get your rentals and lift tickets right onsite and catch the chairlift just steps from the resort’s legendary après-ski terrace (where there are nightly s’mores sessions, of course, in addition to bottles of bubbly popping on repeat).
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McCoy Park at Beaver Creek is 250 acres of snowy terrain with 17 trails, almost all of them for beginners, accessed by two chairlifts. This family skiing area occupies a wildlife sanctuary within the White River National Forest that’s closed for elk calving during the spring break period. And at Eaton Haus, the cute warming hut atop the mountain here, has an interactive nature activity for kids to learn about local fauna while warming up with hot chocolate. There are even easy tree runs in McCoy Park where skiers who are still gaining confidence off the groomed runs can test their turns in the powder.
3. Snowbasin, Utah
Less than an hour north of Salt Lake City’s international airport, family-favorite Snowbasin boasts 111 trails spanning an incredible range of terrain. Younger skiers at this kid-friendly ski resort love Bear Hollow Woods, a tree-skiing zone that’s just for kids, while double black diamond runs offer a real challenge for expert skiers. There’s even a NASTAR course for some friendly family racing against the clock.
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Kids are divvied by age and ability level for group classes with the mountain’s Snow Sports School, considered one of best in the country. Private lessons are also available.
There’s currently no lodging at Snowbasin’s base. Instead, many skiing families stay in the cute ski town of Ogden, 25 minutes away, which has several major chain hotel brands and vacation rentals.
4. Smugglers’ Notch, Vermont
Named after a pass at the base of Vermont’s towering Mount Mansfield, Smugglers’ Notch ranks high among the best ski resorts for kids in New England. Spread across three mountains, the resort has kid-friendly ski terrain as well as a ton of other family favorite winter activities like ice skating, a tubing hill that’s illuminated at night, indoor swimming pools, and roughly 20 miles of snowshoeing and cross-country skiing trails.
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With afternoon bonfire warm-up sessions and weekly events throughout the season (think pirate-themed bingo, family magic shows, and build-a-sled competitions), the fun doesn’t stop there. There’s even a 26,000-square-foot indoor playground where the kids can go wild with laser tag, a bounce house, mini golf, air hockey, and more. Opt for a ski-in/ski-out condo rental in the base village to simplify your family ski vacation.
5. Sunday River, Maine
Another New England go-to for family skiing, Maine’s Sunday River ski resort has 135 trails and glades that stretch across eight peaks. The kid-friendly mountain is known for having some of the East Coast’s most wide-open terrain, making it ideal for beginners to ski in comfort, even on crowded days.
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Sunday River feels like a true winter wonderland with tons to experience off the slopes throughout the season, including fireworks, fire dancer performances, magic shows, and the awesome Après Aglow Winter Trail. Set behind the ski-in/ski-out Grand Summit Hotel, the special trail is an atmospheric spot to stroll along a half-mile path through snowy woods illuminated with twinkling lights.
Other amenities that make Sunday River one of the best ski resorts in the U.S. include twilight skiing under the lights and meet-and-greets with the resort mascot, Eddy the Yeti, who makes regular weekly appearances to cuddle kids around the South Ridge Lodge and the SnowSports School.
6. Taos Ski Valley Resort, New Mexico
New Mexico’s largest ski resort is another tried-and-true favorite with kids and parents in a state that might not first come to mind when you think of mountain fun. But you can ski the Rockies in New Mexico just two hours from the airport in Santa Fe at the independently owned Taos Ski Valley Resort.
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The ski resort stays open to skiers and snowboarders into the first week in April, and you’ll find most of the groomed green and blue trails on the lower front side and back side. Take a break from skiing for lunch at The Bavarian, a restaurant at the base of chair lift four, set in a European-style Alpine lodge with a sunny terrace. German beers and Bavarian specials like spätzle (a type of cheesy pasta that’s a real kid-pleaser) are on the menu.
Consider staying 20 minutes from the mountain in the town of Taos at El Monte Sagrado, which has a gorgeous saltwater swimming pool for après ski fun as well as a spa worth treating your ski legs to after a day on the mountain.
7. Palisades Tahoe, California
California skiing is at its best at Palisades Tahoe, the resort formerly known as Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows. This excellent family ski resort gets more than 400 inches of annual snowfall a year packed in between its 300 sunny days.
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And while there’s lots of expert and extreme terrain across the mountain resort’s 6,000 skiable acres (Tahoe’s largest terrain), beginner runs count for 25 percent of the two mountains that make up the resort. In short, there’s a little something for every skier style to enjoy and find challenging here at one of the best ski resorts in the U.S. for families.
When you’re not shredding the mountain with the kids, go for a scenic drive around Lake Tahoe, which looks particularly sapphire-hued with a snowy backdrop. You can try some snow tubing at the resort or go or sledding at the many hills in North Lake Tahoe, too. The children’s sled hill at North Lake Tahoe Regional Park is an area favorite for families.
8. Boyne Mountain Resort, Michigan
Head to Lower Northern Michigan to ski Boyne Mountain Resort, easily one of the best ski resorts for families in the Midwest thanks to its many options for on- and off-mountain fun. The mountain has 60 trails and 415 skiable acres accessed by 12 lifts. And since there’s only 500 vertical feet of drop here, there’s plenty of easy terrain for beginners.
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When you’re not skiing, let the kids burn off even more energy at Avalanche Bay, Michigan’s largest indoor water park. Try some tubing at the Top Notch Tubing Park, accessed by the Top Notch Lift. Or bundle up for a winter ziplining adventure. The resort’s cross country center has miles of trails to explore on skis and snowshoes, too. And there’s even winter horseback riding on tap.
9. Copper Mountain, Colorado
With a simple-to-navigate mountainside base area spread across three villages lined with condominiums offering easy access to 2,490 acres of skiable terrain, Colorado’s Copper Mountain makes skiing with the kids as simple and intuitive as possible. Beginners will appreciate how the mountain’s terrain naturally divides it by difficulty level, so you won’t find yourself surprisingly veering onto slopes harder than you signed up for. Stick to the west side for the easier family skiing runs, and consider signing up for ski school, where lessons range from adult clinics and group youth ski lessons to private family lessons.
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You can enjoy several free mountain tours at Copper, including excursions with the resort’s ambassadors to discover their favorite blue runs, snowshoeing tours, and on-hill cultural and natural history tours. Kids love the free snow maze and sledding area in the village and the magic carpet ride to a snow tubing hill. And don’t miss ice skating on West Lake pond and challenging the Rocky Mountain Coaster together as you fly down 5,800 feet of track.
If you prefer a hotel stay to a condo, consider Cambria Hotel Copper Mountain at the base of Center Village.
10. Sundance Resort, Utah
Originally founded by Robert Redford (who has since sold it), Utah’s iconic Sundance Resort in the Wasatch range lives up to the hype as one of the best ski resorts in the country—not just for its the incredible skiing and views all around, but also for its range of creative non-ski offerings for families, too.
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Take a family art class together during the winter months at the Sundance Art Studio, catch some air on Sundance’s side-by-side Winter ZipTour, or head out on moonlit “Night Owling” snowshoe tours from the Nordic Center with a local wildlife rescue organization, during which guides call and help you listen for wild owls hooting from the hushed snowy surrounds. And if the kids still have energy to burn, you can even go night skiing or hit the terrain park after dark several evenings a week.
11. Breckenridge, Colorado
With five peaks to ski and snowboard with your gang and a beautiful base village that oozes authentic mining town history, Breckenridge is a favorite for family skiing fun. It’s free to ride both the Main Street Trolley to explore town (with its more than 200 shops, restaurants, and taprooms) and to take the BreckConnect gondola up to peaks seven and eight, where kids who aren’t quite ready to ski down yet can make snow angels with views before riding back to the base.
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For an excellent family stay in the heart of it all, base yourself at the alpine-chic Gravity Haus, where rooms with queen bunk beds can sleep as many as eight people. In addition to snow tubing, tobogganing, dog sledding, and other winter activities off the mountain, Breckenridge is known for having a near non-stop schedule of events all season long, too—from its renowned International Snow Sculpture Championship and street fairs to festivals in the buzzing Breckenridge Arts District.
