FindandGoSeek

After five seasons with the kids in the Ridge Runners program at Bolton, we spent the 2009-2010 season at Sugarbush. There are a lot of things to love about Sugarbush. While the majority of our time was spent skiing/riding Lincoln Peak, the kids program occasionally took them over to Mt. Ellen. Our two kids were in an all day "Blazer-like" ski program from 10:00-3:30 for sixteen Saturdays throughout the season.

Lincoln Peak is great. There is terrain for everyone. Even the beginner hill/bunny hill has options. You can graduate from the nice long magic carpet to the double chairlift for an easy-peasy run down. The rest of the mountain provides tons of choices for skiers/boarders of all levels. And with the mid-mountain lifts you don't have to go all the way to the top if you don't want to.

There are 3 choices for dinning: Timbers (upscalish, but you can still wear you ski garb), The Castlerock Pub (good for lunch and apres ski) and the Food Court. All have outdoor seating. The deck off the Food Court has an outdoor firepit plus a large tube which the kids can play in while you have a beverage. Oh and of course there is a waffle house!


Little touches we loved:

- The Sherpas waiting to help you carry your gear from the parking lot to the lodge or vice versa.

- The free hot apple cider that magically appears every Saturday at 3:30 outside the with lodge.

- Ski Drop off super easy. It is at the foot of the ski school literally. Plus, there are at least 2 people manning the area so all cars pulling in/out are managed very well.

-The Sugarbush ambassadors that are everywhere willing to answer any question you have whether it is the easiest way down the mountain, or which trails have been groomed or where is the rest room. They are there for you.

- The owner Win Smith being omnipresent. He was everywhere, every weekend with his dog Rumble. He is accessible and you felt that.

Regarding the cost factor, we thought that it was great that our season passes included our children (Every Adult 7 Pass comes with a FREE 12-and-under dependent pass) which makes it pretty reasonable when you do the math. And when we had friends come up, it was nice to be able to purchase tickets for them at one of several outlets around town and get the $70 discounted off-site tickets....more

I echo Miss Magpie's review... our kids were in the same program, and we also migrated from Bolton. BV is a great family mountain, but we all enjoyed the increased scale and terrain at Sugarbush. It is a highly-customer-oriented organization and over-all world-class facility. Our kids loved the variety and challenge that the trails and woods offer, and so did my wife and I. We'll be back next season!

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