What it’s like snowboarding at one of many final ‘hidden gem’ inexpensive ski resorts: Brian Head

You most likely don’t want me to let you know this, however snowboarding within the U.S. has gotten costly — very costly.

There are methods to scale back the price, comparable to with a preseason or early-season buy of the main ski passes, particularly if snowboarding at a big-name resort within the Epic Move or Ikon Move community. However it could nonetheless simply be tons of of {dollars} per day per particular person if you think about tickets, gear, classes, lodging and extra.

However imagine it or not, there are nonetheless a handful of resorts which might be inherently inexpensive, even and not using a move buy. And one of the vital inexpensive full-service ski resorts in america is one you might not have heard of but for those who don’t frequent Utah: Brian Head, positioned in southwest Utah.

At Brian Head, raise tickets begin at simply $29, children ski free with out restrictions, senior residents ski free, there’s $25 snow tubing, a ski faculty and you should purchase a burger and fries on the mountain for simply $12 … which, for those who’ve eaten someplace like Aspen or Vail anytime not too long ago, you recognize is a relative discount that rings in at half the conventional on-mountain burger basket charge (which turned out to be a theme all through the journey).

Associated: Bank card bonuses that may present $1,000 or extra in worth

What’s the Brian Head ski resort?

What began as a one-chairlift operation in 1965, identified initially as Monument Peak because of its excessive elevation, has grown. Not solely that, however with the best base elevation in all of Utah at 9,600 toes, Brian Head Ski Resort has some legit snow and runs.

Brian Head’s snowfall averages are available at 360 inches throughout its 650 acres and two linked mountains, every with its personal base space.

The resort boasts 71 ski runs and eight chair lifts. To present some context, Breckenridge Resort in Colorado averages an identical quantity of snow at 355 inches yearly and has 35 chair lifts. In different phrases, Brian Head has strong snowfall and is smaller than some ski resorts, nevertheless it additionally isn’t so small that you just’re relegated to only a daytrip.

Brian Head sometimes opens for the season in mid-to-late November and closes in mid-April, circumstances allowing, with lifts open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekends and holidays. As well as, it is among the resorts that provides evening snowboarding on Fridays and Saturdays by way of the Blackfoot Raise till 9 p.m., with costs beginning at $25.

Brian Head has 5 eating choices within the winter:

• Final Chair Grill and Brews in Big Steps Lodge with a pub-style menu
• Big Steps Eatery within the Big Steps Lodge with informal choices like pizza and rooster fingers
• Navajo Eatery within the Navajo Lodge with burgers, sandwiches and comparable objects
• Raise Bar and Pation within the Brian Head Lodge with breakfast buffet, burgers, appetizers and a Prime Rib dinner on Saturdays
• Navajo Espresso & Deli within the Navajo Lodge with espresso, sandwiches and pastries

The ski faculty gives personal and group classes for each youngsters and adults. Children ages 3-6 can enroll in First Tracks, which gives a half-day personal instruction. Group or personal classes can be found to these 7-12 years outdated.

On high of that, there’s a free program for first-time skiers ages 13 and up; we’ll get to extra on that shortly.

Associated: These are the very best ski resorts within the US

The place is Brian Head ski resort?

Like many ski resorts, Brian Head is a bit off the crushed path, in that it’s a few hours from any main metropolis.

Nevertheless, it’s only a snowball’s throw from Interstate Freeway 15 in Parowan, Utah, which makes it comparatively simple to get to, even when it takes a few hours to take action from both Las Vegas (2.5 hours) or Salt Lake Metropolis (3.5 hours). It’s additionally one hour from Zion Nationwide Park and 35 minutes from Cedar Metropolis, which is the place you’ll discover quite a few (normally) inexpensive finances and midrange inns, comparable to a Courtyard by Marriott, Vacation Inn Categorical, Hampton Inn and Greatest Western.

There’s a free shuttle that may take you the 14 miles up the mountain to Brian Head, which will be further helpful in winter driving circumstances. However for those who do make the drive up the mountain your self, parking is free at Big Steps Lodge and Navajo Lodge (area allowing), with freshmen and people with classes doubtless desirous to park at Navajo Lodge.

Brian Head raise tickets

Right here’s the place we get to the actually good elements about Brian Head; the low price of raise tickets.

First, know that children 12 and underneath ski without spending a dime with no restrictions or necessities, apart from you might want to signal them up for the free Energy Children Move, which you are able to do on-line in only a minute or two. That’s unusually easy on this planet of kids-ski-free choices. On high of that, these ages 75 and up also can ski without spending a dime with out restrictions, which can be fairly uncommon as of late. That is what gave start to our three-generation ski journey concept for the reason that youngest and oldest within the group would ski free.

For everybody else, raise ticket costs begin at $29 per day, with a typical provide being $10 in included “Corduroy Money” with every ticket to spend on issues like mountain eating, classes, procuring and tools leases.

Costs aren’t all the time fairly that low, however $45-$60 per day is frequent a lot of the season, with advance buy costs topping out round $99 on essentially the most peak days, like President’s Day weekend, so long as you e-book at the very least 5 days out. Examine that to raise ticket costs of $200-$300-plus per day at many main ski resorts for those who don’t plan months prematurely to buy one thing like Epic or Ikon Passes, and it’s an enormous distinction, particularly since children ski free. 

Professional tip: Brian Head typically has a 20% off sale on reward playing cards throughout Black Friday that you would use to decrease your efficient price much more.

Associated: Plan a ski journey with factors and miles

How a lot does it price to ski at Brian Head?

Along with the affordable raise ticket costs that we simply mentioned, you’ll have another prices to ski. On-site gear leases at Brian Head begin at $25 per day throughout March and April in 2024 however can price $35-$40 per day for a fundamental grownup ski rental package deal for the remainder of the season.

Group ski faculty for teenagers 7-12 years outdated begins at $145 for a half-day and $310 for a full day with lunch, so whereas that’s lower than at another mountains, it’s nonetheless a hefty sum you’ll need to finances for. Snowboarding throughout weekends and holidays will drive these costs upward some, in addition to not reserving at the very least 5 days out.

If you’d like a non-public lesson, these are less expensive at Brian Head than many different mountains, as half-day personal classes will be had beginning round $250, when that quantity can simply strategy $1,000 elsewhere.

Contained in the Brian Head Lodge

You possibly can select to remain up on the mountain at Brian Head within the 100-room Brian Head Lodge, which has lodging beginning at round $100 per evening with some frequent promotions such because the second or third evening free and even a free evening with a raise ticket buy (with some blackout dates). Good luck discovering free on-mountain lodging with a raise ticket buy nearly anyplace else.

Whereas I didn’t keep within the lodge personally, as we stayed at a points-friendly lodge in Cedar Metropolis, the images appear to be the resort hasn’t been renovated shortly. Nevertheless, it does have a basic lodge vibe and an indoor pool/waterfall, out of doors sizzling tub and on-site spa. There’s additionally a sport room with issues like air hockey and basic video video games.

Should you select to not keep on the Brian Head Lodge, you’ll be able to as an alternative keep in Cedar Metropolis, about 30-35 minutes away, at locations just like the Courtyard Marriott Cedar Metropolis, Springhill Suites Cedar Metropolis or quite a lot of different budget-friendly manufacturers.

An excellent resort for first-time skiers

Many first-time skiers and snowboarders assume lengthy and onerous about the place to take that first ski journey. And if the aim is primarily simply to be taught to ski or trip, the reality is, you don’t have to go to an enormous resort — you gained’t ski a lot of the mountain on that first journey anyway.

Brian Head is a good selection not solely to your pockets however for teenagers that you just don’t need venturing too far off however you need to give some runway to. It even has a reasonably distinctive on-snow expertise that gives a free hour of ski and snowboarding fundamentals at 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. for these 13 and older.

The resort recommends pre-booking a slot to make sure area, however there’s no cost to begin studying the fundamentals past your raise ticket and kit, which you might want to pay for.

Past that, this season, from March 1 till closing day (apart from March 11-17), the resort is providing those that buy raise tickets the flexibility to e-book a $100 afternoon newbie group lesson and an ordinary $25 ski rental package deal, that are costs a lot beneath what you’d typically discover elsewhere, making this not simply an inexpensive place to ski, however an inexpensive place to be taught.

Associated: These are the very best ski inns

What it’s like snowboarding at Brian Head

We skied for 2 days at Brian Head over President’s Day weekend and located it to be an excellent worth for what we bought. There was good snow, pleasant skiers (with an enormous variety of guests coming from San Diego that weekend) and a laid-back angle shared by skiers and boarders simply seeking to have a superb, inexpensive day on the mountain like we had been.

It’s not a elaborate mountain — the services haven’t been actually up to date shortly from what I might inform (although an growth mission is underway) — and most of the little issues that greater resorts do to make issues simpler (like placing non permanent labels in your rented skis, having a ski valet system or offering wagons to haul your gear) don’t presently exist right here.

Additionally, there aren’t many locations to take a seat, and the road for meals on President’s Day weekend was near an hour proper after ski faculty set free. However … the meals was inexpensive and did the trick to fill you up and get you again out on the mountain — which was what you got here for.

Associated: The best — and mistaken — age to begin ski faculty

Suggestions for snowboarding at Brian Head

• Parking is free at Brian Head, however the heaps can refill on busy days within the late morning, so I like to recommend arriving about half-hour earlier than lifts open to have a simple choose of spots to park.
• Lifts opened at 9:30 a.m. whereas we had been there, and the primary half-hour or so had been devoid of any noticeable raise traces, which made for a good way to get in a number of fast runs earlier than the traces did develop on the busy lengthy weekend.
• Like at most ski resorts, you might be finest served to keep away from the bottom raise traces throughout peak hours for those who can.
• Try to eat early — particularly if it’s a busy weekend — as meals traces can get very lengthy, particularly on the Navajo aspect of the resort, as there aren’t a ton of shops to select from. I like to recommend checking lunch off the record by 11:30 a.m. if potential, and definitely earlier than half-day ski faculty will get out at 12:30 p.m. That’s if you’ll need to head again up the mountain whereas the raise traces are barely shorter.
• Talking of the Navajo aspect, that mountain has extra beginner-friendly terrain. However, as quickly as your group can graduate to simple blues, we discovered the Big Steps aspect to be a bit much less crowded. You possibly can nonetheless do a number of inexperienced runs there off the Blackfoot raise that had considerably shorter traces than the first categorical lifts.
• Don’t skip snow tubing, because it’s additionally a superb worth at $25 for limitless runs for 90 minutes.
• Whilst you don’t have to make your Brian Head purchases months prematurely simply to make them inexpensive, you’ll want to do it at the very least every week or so prematurely of your journey, as costs bounce 15% inside 5 days and 30% inside 24 hours.

Is Brian Head price visiting?

If you wish to ski on usually above-average snowfall for an inexpensive sum of money, aren’t in search of a flashy ski scene and are OK driving a number of hours from Las Vegas (or Salt Lake Metropolis) to get there, then 100% sure — Brian Head is price visiting. It’s a midsize mountain that provides a superb number of terrain for a number of days and gained’t put a everlasting dent in your pockets. And it’s the apparent selection if snowboarding with a multigenerational group the place the children and the 75-plus can each ski without spending a dime, as we did.

On the flip aspect, if you would like Aspen-style eating choices or Vail-style procuring and revel in expansive mountains that take a full week to discover, then Brian Head most likely isn’t the appropriate spot for you. It additionally isn’t the appropriate ski vacation spot for those who want — or really need — issues like ski valets, table-service eating, a hybrid ski program for preschool-age children, a luxurious ski-out lodge and different nice-to-haves that may admittedly make snowboarding a bit simpler (and dearer).

Associated: Greatest ski resorts for households

As for us, we totally intend on returning to Brian Head for journeys when simply getting some days on skis is the aim, sticking to the finances is essential and we aren’t in search of a ton of extras to go together with it. However that mentioned, there’s little doubt that Brian Head is a gem of a vacation spot as one of many final actually inexpensive ski resorts the place you don’t must be a one-percenter to have some enjoyable on the snow.

Associated studying:

• Find out how to plan your ski journey with factors and miles
• Why it could be cheaper to fly overseas to ski
• Planning a household ski journey this winter? Right here’s what you might want to know
• How to decide on the very best ski mountain for you
• Sure, all-inclusive snowboarding is a factor — right here’s whether or not it’s price it