Best Ski Resorts in New York
New York has some great ski resorts within the state to ski/snowboard at. New York does have a lot of smaller ski resorts, however, they do have two of the biggest in the Northeast. In addition, Whiteface Ski Mountain, has the highest vertical drop on the east coast. So, even though New York might not have the number of ski resorts that Vermont has, they still have some great mountains.
In this article you will read about, the best New York ski resorts, the best New York ski resorts for beginners, the biggest ski resorts in New York, the best New York ski resorts for families, and much more.
This post is all about New York ski resorts.
New York Ski Resorts:
1. Gore Mountain
First on our list is, Gore Mountain. Personally, this is my favorite ski resort in New York State. It is also the biggest ski resort in New York. It has 110 trails, 28 glades, 8 different terrain parks, 90% intermediate to expert terrain, and a 2,537 foot vertical drop. Safe to say, it is quite the mountain! Gore is located in North Creek, New York, about an hour and a half, South of Lake Placid, and an hour and a half, North of Albany. I HIGHLY recommend this mountain! Gore is also a great New York ski resort for families. In my opinion, Gore is the best ski resort in New York.
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2. Whiteface Mountain
Next on our list is, Whiteface. Whiteface use to be the largest ski resort in New York, however, due to the rebuilding of Gore, Gore took that title a couple years ago. However, Whiteface still has the biggest vertical drop of the East. Whiteface has 90 trails, has 4 different terrain parks, 77% of intermediate to advanced terrain, and a 3,216ft vertical drop. Whiteface is a pretty gnarly mountain.
Now, if you want to have a ski weekend, I recommend getting an AirBnB in Lake Placid, because the village is super cute and has a lot more to do, than North Creek does (the town Gore Mountain is in). This is also a good place to stay if you want to take the trip down and ski at Gore Mountain as well. Here is an article with a list of different fun activities you can do while in Lake Placid, and here is a link of different AirBnBs.
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3. Titus Mountain
Titus Mountain is way up north in Plattsburgh, NY. It offers 53 trails, 8 lifts, and lots of variety for terrain. Terrain is pretty much equal in terms of beginner, intermediate, and advanced terrain. They also offer night skiing on Fridays and Saturdays from 4:30pm-9pm for only $34 and $29 for kids and seniors.
The Catskills
Alright next on our list are a couple different mountains within the Catskills. The Catskills are great southern New York ski resorts. Three of the most popular are, Hunter, Windham, and Belleayre. All three of these mountains are about 2 and a half hours from NYC, and offer roughly the same terrain. I HIGHLY recommend going to Belleayre and Windham over Hunter. The one time I went to Hunter, it was not good. The snow was not kept well, and NOBODY there knew how to ski. Whereas, Windham had slightly better snow, and people, but Belleayre. Bellearye was a breath of fresh air, compared to both of these mountains.
4. Belleayre
I went to all three of these mountains about 2 years ago, so things might have changed, but from what I remember, I thought Belleayre and maybe Windham were the only mountains worthwhile in the Catskills. Belleayre has 50 trails, 5 glades, 1 terrain park (and some other cool park features), mostly intermediate trails, and a 1,404ft vertical drop. This is a great New York ski resorts for beginners and families.
5. Windham & Hunter
Windham has 54 trails, 6 terrain parks, and a 1,600ft vertical drop. These two mountains are some of the few New York ski resorts with lodging right on the mountain. If you are interested in staying on the mountains, you can find various accommodations here for Windham and here for Hunter. Hunter has 67 trails, 4 glades, 4 terrain parks, mostly intermediate to expert terrain, and a 1,600ft vertical drop.
Now, from these stats and the website, Hunter looks very promising, so like I said before, things might have changed since my last visit there. But from what I remember, it was not my favorite. Anyways, if you’re looking for an easy weekend getaway from the city, all three of these mountains are only about 2 and a half hours from NYC, and are all within 40 minutes of one another. Here are some more great places to stay if you’re interested.
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6. Catamount
Now, there is one more mountain you can add to this list, Catamount. Catamount is about an hour from either Hunter or Windham, but about an hour and 40 minutes from Belleayre. Catamount offers 36 trails, mostly beginner and intermediate terrain, night skiing, and a 1,000ft vertical drop. It is located on the New York and Massachusetts border, and is a fun little mountain for the day and or night. This is also a great New York ski resorts for beginners.
7. Greek Peak & Plattekill Mountains
Okay, the next mountains on our list are more central to western New York. They are Greek Peak and Plattekill. Greek Peak is located in Cortland, New York, and Plattekill is in Roxbury, NY. They are about 2 hours and 15 minutes from one another. A great little town to stay in, that is almost in the middle of both, is Oneonta, NY. Oneonta is about an hour from Plattekill and about an hour and 20 minutes from Greek Peak.
Greek Peak offers 51 different trails, mostly beginner to intermediate runs, a 952ft vertical drop, 4 terrain parks, and night skiing. They also have this awesome mountain coaster, that is open all year round, and looks like a fun time. While Plattekill has 38 trails, mostly intermediate terrain (but almost the same amount of beginner and difficult), 1 terrain park, a 1,100ft vertical drop, and tubing.
8. Willard & Royal Mountain
The next two mountains are both smaller resorts, that are more geared towards beginners. They are both located near Saratoga Springs, NY, which is about 30 minutes north of Albany (New York’s capital). They are Willard and Royal Mountains. I have a soft spot for Willard, even though it is a small mountain, because it’s where I first learned how to ski. Then I proceeded to West Mountain, and then finally to Gore Mountain. I skied at Royal Mountain once, and again, it was a smaller mountain, but I still had a lot of fun.
Willard has 16 trails, mostly intermediate, with 2 glades, and night skiing. Night skiing, if you haven’t gone, is a super fun time, but just a little chillier and harder to find the ice spots, so just be extra aware if you go. Willard is located in Greenwich, New York, about 30 minutes from Saratoga, and an hour and 20 minutes from Albany, NY.
Now, Royal Mountain has 12 different trails, 5 glades, and a 575ft vertical drop. Royal Mountain is located in Johnsburg, NY, which is about an hour from Saratoga, and an hour and fifteen from Albany, NY. Thus, I would stay in Saratoga, if you plan on skiing these two mountains. These again, are great ski resorts for beginners.
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9. West & Oak Mountain
The next two mountains I recommend are West Mountain and Oak Mountains. West Mountain, is a great little mountain to learn at, and to again, night ski. It is located in Queensbury, New York, which is very close to Saratoga Springs. They offer mostly beginner to intermediate terrain, with about 30 different runs, night skiing, and a tubing park. West Mountain is also a great New York ski resort for beginners. It has a special place in my heart because it’s where I learned to ski, along with Willard Mountain.
Oak Mountain is located in Speculator, NY, and offers 22 trails, with a mix of beginner to advanced runs, and a tubing hill. I would recommend staying in Saratoga Springs if you want to check out these two mountains. West is about 15 minutes from Saratoga, and Oak is about an hour and fifteen from Saratoga. You can easily get to Gore Mountain from Saratoga as well, as it is only about an hour drive.
10. Bristol Mountain
Now, for all you western and central New Yorkers, Bristol, is a great mountain for all of you. Located in the Finger Lakes Region of New York, Bristol Mountain has 38 trails, mostly intermediate runs, a 1,200ft vertical drop, and 2 nordic/cross-country runs. A great place to stay is, Rochester, NY. It is 45 minutes away from Bristol, and an hour and a half away from Niagara Falls, if you want to stop by and visit there as well.
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10. Peek N’ Peak Mountain
The last New York Ski Resort on our list is, Peek N’ Peak. Which is WAYYY North, it is on the border of Canada and New York. Peek N’ Peak has 25 different trails, mostly intermediate runs, and 4 different terrain parks. Peek N’ Peak is about 40 minutes from Erie, Pennsylvania, thus, I recommend staying here. The next closest “big” city is Buffalo, which is about an hour and a half away.
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And that wraps up our list of New York’s Ski Resorts. Now, there are a couple other resorts not mentioned on this list, however, the others I saw were very small (less than 10 trails), and were more geared towards Nordic and cross-country skiing than Alpine skiing. Thank you for reading, and I hope you found some new resorts to ski at, take care, and get skiing!!
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