Vail and Breck trip - which first? - Snowboarding Forum

pairadux · 01-24-2012, 03:14 PM

Hey all,

A friend of mine is coming from Oregon and we're going to hit Vail and Breckenridge. Sure there are cheaper hills and other solid places, but in the end when he tells his buddies back home that he skiied Vail and Breck, they'll be envious.

So the question is this, which should we do first?

We're going on Thursday the 16th and Friday the 17th with a stay in Frisco between them.

Our thought is Vail Thursday, hit the scene afterwords, then go to Breckenridge Friday and drive back to Denver. We're thinking if our tired old legs need to cut out around 3pm, we'd rather short out Breck.

Thoughts on factors like drive back, how crowded do they all get on a Friday....

Thank all.

BurtonAvenger · 01-24-2012, 03:19 PM

Give or take on Breck on a Friday it's an arrival day. Good news is the roads back should be clear of most traffic so all you have to fear is snow and the abominable snow beasts.

As far as which to do first play it by ear if Vail gets hammered go there they always get more snow than we do in Breck except for last season by some freak chance.

Argo · 01-24-2012, 03:21 PM

Not crowded in vail on Friday until late at night whenthe front rangers get up here. You can cover all of breck in 4 hours. It would take you a couple of days to cover all of vail. You guys ride park or prefer groomers or BCish type all mountain riding?

pairadux · 01-24-2012, 03:31 PM

We mainly stick to the designed runs but wouldn't be opposed to exploring BC if we knew what we were doing.

As far as playing by ear, I'm planning on purchasing tix online because it'll save us some money and we don't have an Epic pass. A friend recommended Vail first because it wouldn't be as crowded. But how crowded can 5,000 acres be on a weekday?

Argo · 01-24-2012, 03:34 PM

You typically won't see a lift line in vail unless your on first chair in the morning... During the week

**killclimbz** · 01-24-2012, 03:35 PM

Friday is probably the third busiest day of the ski week. It is nowhere near as busy as the weekend.

Seeing as how you are driving back on Friday and all things being equal, I would go to Vail on Thursday and Breck on Friday. That will make your drive back down to Denver a bit shorter. Especially if you are hitting the airport. If there is any bad weather, Vail Pass is more likely to close than the tunnel.

pairadux · 01-24-2012, 04:26 PM

Sounds like we'll stick to Vail/Thursday and Breck Friday.

Does anyone know what happens if you buy the lift ticket ahead of time, but need to make a change to dates? Can they recode those cards?

Argo · 01-24-2012, 04:32 PM

I think you can date change but call for sure.

marcg · 01-24-2012, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pairadux

Hey all,

A friend of mine is coming from Oregon and we're going to hit Vail and Breckenridge. Sure there are cheaper hills and other solid places, but in the end when he tells his buddies back home that he skiied Vail and Breck, they'll be envious.

So the question is this, which should we do first?

We're going on Thursday the 16th and Friday the 17th with a stay in Frisco between them.

Our thought is Vail Thursday, hit the scene afterwords, then go to Breckenridge Friday and drive back to Denver. We're thinking if our tired old legs need to cut out around 3pm, we'd rather short out Breck.

Thoughts on factors like drive back, how crowded do they all get on a Friday....

Thank all.

Unless you ride park I would skip Breck personally.
Vail frontside if it hasn't snowed, backbowls if it dumps (not sure what state they are in this season though).

pairadux · 01-26-2012, 09:25 AM

Thanks for the tips. Called the Vail ticket office and if I go for the two day pass from the Vail website and not the Breck website, I can use it at both places regardless of day - this gives me flexibility depending on what the weather is doing.

The Breck two day pass won't work at Vail or Beaver Creek. However the Vail 2 day is good at all five Epic locations. Good for 2 out of 3 days days.

Perfect. Thanks for the advice to call.

01-24-2012, 03:14 PM	#1 (permalink)
pairadux Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 31	Vail and Breck trip - which first? Hey all, A friend of mine is coming from Oregon and we're going to hit Vail and Breckenridge. Sure there are cheaper hills and other solid places, but in the end when he tells his buddies back home that he skiied Vail and Breck, they'll be envious. So the question is this, which should we do first? We're going on Thursday the 16th and Friday the 17th with a stay in Frisco between them. Our thought is Vail Thursday, hit the scene afterwords, then go to Breckenridge Friday and drive back to Denver. We're thinking if our tired old legs need to cut out around 3pm, we'd rather short out Breck. Thoughts on factors like drive back, how crowded do they all get on a Friday.... Thank all.

01-24-2012, 03:19 PM	#2 (permalink)
BurtonAvenger Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Mountains Posts: 8,053	Give or take on Breck on a Friday it's an arrival day. Good news is the roads back should be clear of most traffic so all you have to fear is snow and the abominable snow beasts. As far as which to do first play it by ear if Vail gets hammered go there they always get more snow than we do in Breck except for last season by some freak chance. __________________ Angry Snowboarder Because someone has to call it how they see it!

01-24-2012, 03:34 PM	#5 (permalink)
Argo -LIFETIME MEMBER- Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Vail, CO Posts: 1,956	You typically won't see a lift line in vail unless your on first chair in the morning... During the week Last edited by Argo; 01-24-2012 at 03:57 PM.

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01-24-2012, 03:21 PM	#3 (permalink)
Argo -LIFETIME MEMBER- Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Vail, CO Posts: 1,956	Not crowded in vail on Friday until late at night whenthe front rangers get up here. You can cover all of breck in 4 hours. It would take you a couple of days to cover all of vail. You guys ride park or prefer groomers or BCish type all mountain riding?

01-24-2012, 03:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
pairadux Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 31	We mainly stick to the designed runs but wouldn't be opposed to exploring BC if we knew what we were doing. As far as playing by ear, I'm planning on purchasing tix online because it'll save us some money and we don't have an Epic pass. A friend recommended Vail first because it wouldn't be as crowded. But how crowded can 5,000 acres be on a weekday?

01-24-2012, 03:35 PM	#6 (permalink)
killclimbz Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Front Range Posts: 9,177	Friday is probably the third busiest day of the ski week. It is nowhere near as busy as the weekend. Seeing as how you are driving back on Friday and all things being equal, I would go to Vail on Thursday and Breck on Friday. That will make your drive back down to Denver a bit shorter. Especially if you are hitting the airport. If there is any bad weather, Vail Pass is more likely to close than the tunnel.

01-24-2012, 04:26 PM	#7 (permalink)
pairadux Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 31	Sounds like we'll stick to Vail/Thursday and Breck Friday. Does anyone know what happens if you buy the lift ticket ahead of time, but need to make a change to dates? Can they recode those cards?

01-24-2012, 04:32 PM	#8 (permalink)
Argo -LIFETIME MEMBER- Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Vail, CO Posts: 1,956	I think you can date change but call for sure.

01-26-2012, 09:25 AM	#10 (permalink)
pairadux Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 31	Thanks for the tips. Called the Vail ticket office and if I go for the two day pass from the Vail website and not the Breck website, I can use it at both places regardless of day - this gives me flexibility depending on what the weather is doing. The Breck two day pass won't work at Vail or Beaver Creek. However the Vail 2 day is good at all five Epic locations. Good for 2 out of 3 days days. Perfect. Thanks for the advice to call.