Lake Tahoe

The Most Challenging Ski Resorts in North America

The toughest ski resorts in North America will turn your idea of what a physical trail can be upside down. In this piece, we call out the 10 most extreme mountains out there—and explain why they’re so difficult.

North America Is Having a Historically Bad Snow Year So Far. Here’s What This Means.

Every major US and Canada ski resort has had a slow start to the season. In this piece, we go through each region one by one and explain the current situation on the ground.

North America’s Ski Season Has Seen a Significant Rebound. Will It Last?

A series of very wintry weather events have given much needed jump starts to ski seasons across Canada and the US. However, a number of less-than-ideal factors have reared their ugly heads over the past few weeks.

Epic vs. Ikon vs. Mountain Collective vs. Indy: Which Should You Choose?

With Ikon Pass prices going up after April 14—and the chance to secure Epic Pass buddy tickets expiring after April 10—we’ve compiled all you need to know to make a decision on your next multi-resort pass product.

North America’s Best Ski Towns to Live In

If you’re looking to relocate to the ski slopes permanently, these towns will offer the highest quality of life around.

Ikon Pass Adds Sierra-at-Tahoe for 2024-25 Season

Sierra-at-Tahoe will become the second Tahoe destination—and the first on the south side of the lake—to join the Ikon Pass starting this winter.

Homewood

While this Tahoe hill can’t hold its own overall against the destination resorts, it boasts an astonishing, one-of-a-kind mountain aesthetic.

Diamond Peak

This Tahoe mountain will impress many visitors with breathtaking lake views, but its terrain and amenities are no match for the area’s better-known destination resorts.

Mount Rose

Despite its high elevation, a number of shortcomings detract from this Nevada mountain’s appeal as a destination resort.

Sugar Bowl

This California resort can’t match the acreage and vertical drop of competing Tahoe mountains, but it stands out with trails for all ability levels and an extremely demanding expert footprint.

Northstar

This family-friendly resort offers excellent grooming and a top-tier terrain park, but expert and above-treeline terrain is lacking.

Sierra-at-Tahoe

While it can’t boast the same crazy lake views, striking terrain, or expansive base village as some other Tahoe areas, this moderately-sized resort offers reasonable prices and a local feel.

Kirkwood

This relatively undeveloped mountain isn’t for everyone, but its striking aesthetic, local feel, and extreme terrain are tough to match.

Heavenly

This Lake Tahoe area offers some of the most beautiful slopes we’ve seen anywhere. A few logistical problems diminish the resort’s size advantage.

Palisades Tahoe

Two of Tahoe’s best ski areas have now been linked as one continuous lift-served destination, but the resort still functions as two separate mountains in many ways.