SKI Magazine's Top 30 Resorts for 2008-09

Learn from the experts: SKI Magazine's readers. Use SKI's 21st annual survey as a guide to North America's top resorts, then hit the snow and start your research. Find more complete reviews, check out trail maps, and custom search for resorts using our ResortFinder, available at www.SkiNet.com/resortfinder.

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1. Deer Valley, Utah

The Lowdown: Groom to Zoom, it's deluxe. There's no better destination resort.

Dan Campbell

75 comments

Anonymous wrote 23 weeks 6 days ago

are you out of your mind, i just skied deer valley today and i would even rank it in the top 5 mountains in utah let alone the best in north america. This rating system really needs to be adjusted

Anonymous wrote 23 weeks 3 days ago

Fabulous

Michael Lathrope wrote 23 weeks 3 days ago

Obviously the last post by "Anonymous" is ridiculous and can only be the result of some agenda he has. Deer Valley consistently ranks amongst the top ski resorts in North America. Deer Valley is "the" reason that Utah skiing took off. I have lived in Salt Lake City my entire life and have skied at every resort in Utah and throughout North America (mostly the West) competitively. There was basically no skiing in Utah prior to Deer Valley and the reason Park City, The Canyons, Alta and Snowbird even hit the map is because Deer Valley came along and made a top notch ski resort that could attract skiers away from Colorado. Deer Valley has the widest variety of trails for all skiers (and when us experts get tired at the end of the day). It has almost a lot more high speed lifts than any other mountain in Utah. It has twice the snow-making equipment as any other resort in Utah and it has three times the number of grooming equipment (and they do groom 3x as much as any other mountain in Utah). Obviously, the previous guy who posted has not really been to Deer Valley as it takes at least a couple of days to ski all their peaks and someone who claims to have gone "today" but wouldn't rank it in the top 5 in Utah has clearly never even been there (or to the other resorts in Utah), or he has an agenda. That is precisely why his post is "anonymous". The facts are the facts and Deer Valley simply has more of everything and is super-high end. It is the only resort in Utah where the staff are actually abundant, helpful, and very friendly. The balloting for Deer Valley winning by a landslide over all other resorts in North America says it all. Everyone who has actually skied all over North America knows this and knows that Deer Valley is one of the best kept secrets around. Incidentally, I live closer to Alta than anything else, but am willing to travel the 40 minutes to get to Deer Valley everytime the snow falls (and certainly when it doesn't as they actually make tons of snow here and groom it right). Deer Valley is also the only major resort in Utah that does not allow snowboarders. That says a lot too about how serious Deer Valley is about high-end skiing. Snowboarders typically ruin an entire ski day if you are a serious skier. For Deer Valley to forego that revenue from snowboarders (about half/half skiers/snowboarders these days) ought to tell you that Deer Valley is the only serious SKI mountain in Utah.

Anonymous wrote 22 weeks 4 days ago

Hmmm..why is Kicking Horse not in the top 30! This would be my #1.

Anonymous wrote 22 weeks 4 days ago

Telluride and Deer Valley are the two best in No America. If not world!

Mr. Price wrote 22 weeks 4 days ago

I'm always up for ideas on new places to ski. It would be ignorant to say that Whistler/Blackcomb or Aspen Snowmass (my two favorites) is better than this place. Every seasoned skier or boarder knows that it's a gamble when you plan a trip to go skiing. You never know what the weather is gonna do. Whistler/Blackcomb has been rated number one on other websites but the powder was way better in Aspen the last time I went. I like the sound of Deer Valley also because of what Mr. Lathrope mentioned about the grooming. I am in no way an expert skier, in fact it doesn't even snow where I live (South Georgia). I just have a drive to ski the best ski resorts in North America and I now have Deer Valley in my sights for Spring Break.

TT wrote 21 weeks 6 days ago

I completely agree with Mr. Lathrope in his assessment of Deer Valley. To me, Deer Valley is the ski resort of the future, where amazing terrain and customer service blend to make the perfect ski vacation. I am willing to drive up to Deer Valley because of the excellent experience I have every single day I ski. In addition, as Deer Valley sells out, I have never waited in a line for over fifteen minutes, EVEN DURING CHRISTMAS! All in all, Deer Valley provides the atmosphere necessary to make it an excellent ski resort which should be ranked number one in North America every year in Ski Mag.

Brian wrote 21 weeks 1 day ago

I've always loved to hear what others think. Personally I have a more focused view of the perfect ski location. So I made my own list. I'd like to know what others think: http://travelcompanionblog.wordpress.com/

Findlay wrote 18 weeks 2 days ago

RE: Michael Lathrope

I agree with what you say about Deer Valley but you need to get your facts straight. Snowboarders make up 25-30% (Source: madriverglen.com), not around 50/50. DV has almost double the next resort for high-speed lifts in Utah, and rivals the best in North America, losing to such giants as Vail and WB.

PC, Alta and Snowbird would still have gotten the recognition, it just would have taken longer. The Canyons is the greatest disappointment in Utah.

Everyone needs to remember the #1 reason DV is the best, WEATHER. Utah is the greatest place in the world for weather. I just got back and I was skiing in 10 deg C weather in February.

Anonymous wrote 17 weeks 4 days ago

re Findlay - MadRiverGlen's statistics are way off. Considering MadRiverGlen is one of only 3 places left in the country where snowboarding is not allowed - it's pretty safe to say they have a bias. Numbers vary greatly from resort to resort - so if you're skiing at a place that typically has more skiers than snowboarders, the perception is going to vary greatly from Reality. If you sky MRG, Alta, or DV - you'll never even see a snowboarder - Jackson, they're not very common. Squaw Valley, Heavenly, Kirkwood, Northstar - you're going to see a much different ratio.

In terms of Skier Visits Annually - skiers outnumber snowboarders a bit, but in terms of estimates of the number of individuals who actually take part in each sport - it's pretty evenly split.

Canadian skier wrote 16 weeks 3 days ago

I am an intermediate skier that started the sport at the age of 46 (only when rich enough to afford it). I have tried Park City, Canyons, Lac Louise, Breckenridge, Sainte Anne (unfortunately did not do Deer Valley but visited) and other smaller resorts and Utah/Colorado skiing rules. I am not a powder fanatic but if you want powder....Utah and Colorado are the places to be. Our Eastern ice hills are totally blown away by theses fantastic conditions. Our (Canada) weather conditions are unstable from one year to the next while these states have incredible conditions. If not for the poor exchange rate, I would return every year.
Can anyone rate European sites ?
Go Canada go....Vancouver 2010

Jason wrote 16 weeks 1 day ago

Deer Valley is only rated #1 based on resort experience, the criteria is conditions, services and amenities. This resort is known for their groomers and lazy skier atmosphere.
Locals know where the best snow is! We know that these rankings are a marketing gimmick aimed at attracting lazy, wealthy skiers to a posh resort that is more akin to a country club than a ski resort. Most of Deer Valley-goers are fair-weather skiers who are more interested in convenience; so let them have #1, it just leaves more good stuff for the rest of us!
For those of you who want to ski instead of lay in lawn chairs go to Alta.

Drewski wrote 15 weeks 6 days ago

How is Snowbird #25? Jason is right, this rating system seems to work well for keeping lazy skiiers with fat wallets off the mountains where you can truely get a unique skiing experience. Of course, that is assuming those lazy skiiers are also ignorant enough to base their decision on where to ski solely on this list. When I drop my hard-earned money on a skiing trip, I spend time on the mountain, not in the spa or shopping. They need to make a list that rates mountains based on what should really matter: quality of terrain (i.e. powder vs. groomed, I prefer powder), annual snow fall, average temperature, annual attendance, number of lifts...etc. That's what matters the most to those of us looking for the best skiing/boarding mountains. That's not to say that the top 30 mountains listed here aren't all good choices in some respect. They're just rated with regards to off-mountain amenities for which I couldn't care less about when trying to decide what mountain will provide me with the most unique and challenging SKIING experience. I would keep that in mind before planning your next ski trip based on this list alone. And that's all I have to say about that.

Mike Stevens wrote 15 weeks 3 days ago

How are The Canyons AND Soltude above Alta and The 'Bird? Deer Valley is a nice resort, but not No. 1 and certainly not above Whistler-Blackcomb in terms of between when you get off the lift and back on...

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SteveM wrote 14 weeks 4 days ago

Tops overall? No, not even close. Not even the best in Utah. However, it is a great mountain with underrated terrain (including good tree skiing), and needless to say great groomers. The snow isn't nearly up to Alta's or Snowbird's standards as it's not quite as high, nor is the scenery comparable. The facilities, while top-notch, aren't even in the same ballpark as Snowbasin (the new gold standard for facilities), but as a whole, Deer Valley is a good place to spend a day, especially if you're looking for groomers or it hasn't snowed in quite a while... but #1 overall??? C'mon!

Anonymous wrote 11 weeks 2 days ago

I have been to all 4 SLC resorts and all 3 PC resorts...and I just got back from Alta....best resort in utah hands down. DV is good, but Alta blows it out of the water. That said, I'd rather ski than sit in a lounge chair tanning and drinking beer, so what do I know? Snowbird is also great unless you're a beginner anda few too many out of control snowboarders. The Canyons is the worst resort of the 7. My list goes Alta, Snowbird, DV, Brighton, PC, Solitude (could be higher but I had bad weather when I was there), and The Canyons.

FLSKI wrote 9 weeks 4 days ago

We skied at Deer Valley in late February, and although I had the best lunch ever at a ski resort, I would rate Deer Valley as good, with lots of high speed lifts, and good terrain.
The grooming is UBER grooming. Very deep, and very good from edge to edge. After skiing at Beaver Creek in December, I think Deer Valley was much better groomed.

Although we didn't ski any blacks during our two days, the blues and greens were great, but they are short compared to most western resorts.

We did get more skiing in at Deer Valley than anywhere else by the vertical feet during our trip, it didn't seem like it because the lifts were so fast and you never waited.

I agree that better snow can be found at any of the cottonwood canyon resorts, but not the grooming, excellent food and service.

If you are in Park City, pay the extra and you will be well rewarded. Park City Mountain will suck after Deer Valley, so if you must ski PCM, do it first on a weekday. The Canyons is good for strong green or at least easy blue skiers, but it is huge and can overwhelm some.