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We have never been to Beech or sugar Mountain as we have been going to Vail for the last 10 years. But this year once we added up the total cost for our trip during spring break we realize we were going to be spending about $19,000 for a family of four. So I was trying to find a more cost-effective option and I was wondering which would be better Beech mountain or sugar mountain? Obviously we are not going to have anywhere near the caliber of skiing we have in Vail I am hoping it will still offer some challenging slopes and good family time I would love to hear your feedback thank you

Jencrow35 wrote: ↑Sat Nov 27, 2021 7:52 pm We have never been to Beech or sugar Mountain as we have been going to Vail for the last 10 years. But this year once we added up the total cost for our trip during spring break we realize we were going to be spending about $19,000 for a family of four. So I was trying to find a more cost-effective option and I was wondering which would be better Beech mountain or sugar mountain? Obviously we are not going to have anywhere near the caliber of skiing we have in Vail I am hoping it will still offer some challenging slopes and good family time I would love to hear your feedback thank you

Hello! Where are you starting from? Do you usually stay slopeside at Vail? What week are you thinking about?

If your family has been skiing Vail for a decade, the experience skiing in NC may be a bit too much different. Have you looked at Snowshoe at all?

When flying out west to ski, there are a lot of other options that would be less expensive than Vail. But usually helps a lot to start planning during the summer or early fall to get the best prices on lodging and lift ticket options.

If you are a woman, check out TheSkiDiva.com . It's a much more active ski forum.

not to disparage either one but its going to be vastly different.

idk when your spring break is but theres a great chance sugar and beech wont be open the anyway

why not just try somewhere cheaper like copper? or an slc resort? or lake tahoe? about anywhere is cheaper than vail

idk how big your family is but if u give me dates and a 12000 dollar budget i can probably find you some pretty good bang for your buck for around 10 grand and keep the remaining 2 grand for myself....but thats 7k cheaper than vail

Depends on how much you value savings. You could ski either - Sugar has a high speed lift, IMO Beech is better laid out - for a couple hundred per person per day, easily. You could also go to the Canaan Valley WV and ski double or triple the area in better snow for less or the same money as NC, or commit to travelling to the Northeast.

When are you staying and for how long?

Sugar is the Vail of NC. Beech better vibe, but Sugar has best terrain in NC

Wow what an interesting question. I like what the others have said here. Some background on my perspective: I grew up in the Northeast skiing in Vermont but moved to Florida at 19. (I'm now 63). I enjoyed skiing in North Carolina. It's quite different from Colorado (as my daughter reminded me after having experienced Breckenridge and returning to the southeast. I suggest you consider if close enough a short sampler trip to see for yourself (and the kids) how you like North Carolina Boone area and sample all three areas Beech, Sugar, and even Appalation as the 3rd. They all have different characteristics. Most likely the kids will not like NC very much after skiing Vail.

Or you could ski Utah for what is said to be better value and snow.