Hitting the slopes: Northeast vs. Eastern Canada

The warm weather of summer is nice, but for those of us who are itching to get back on the slopes, ski season couldn’t come soon enough. New Yorker’s are known to be avid skiers, always looking for a way to escape the bitterness and dreariness of winter in the city. Normally, they hop on a bus or into their SUV’s and head northeast to Maine and Vermont to some of the most popular ski resorts in the country, however there are other places to consider when booking a ski vacation.

With some of best skiing in the world, resorts such as Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Jay Peak and Killington, all located in the northeast of the country, are naturally some of the destinations frequented most often by New Yorker’s in the winter time. However, these resorts are well aware of their popularity, and their prices are adjusted accordingly, making them not only some of the most heavily trafficked ski resorts around, but some of most expensive. And since skiing is already one of the most expensive sports to participate in, high priced resorts are not attractive to anyone.

Somewhere you may want to consider when booking that ski vacation this year is Mont-Tremblant in Quebec. Located just north of Montreal, Mont-Tremblant is a paradise for ski and snowboard enthusiasts alike. With 94 runs, 13 state-of-the-art lifts, and 18 acres of rails, ramps and jumps, those who love the sport have the perfect playground. The mountain also provides activities such as horseback riding, snow shoeing, tubing, ice climbing and sleigh rides as well as has areas for activities such as cross country skiing. After a long, tiring day out on the slopes, you can enjoy a nice meal at one of the several restaurants located in and around the lodges and a relaxing massage at the resorts spa.

Mont-Tremblant is known for its great skiing and easily is as good as the mountains of similar size in the Northeast, if not better; however the biggest advantage that Mont Tremblant has over these mountains is price. It costs roughly a third for accommodations and lift tickets of what it costs at Sunday River or Killington, both mountains with similar resources. Why the huge difference in price? Some of the price difference can be attributed to the strength of the American dollar against the Canadian dollar, but most of it is attributed to simple inflation in the Northeast’s ski resort prices.

Although Mont-Tremblant is further away from New York than Maine or Vermont, it is still within driving distance. Driving, it takes about seven and half hours to get to Mont Tremblant from the city, where as it takes about five hours to get to Maine or Vermont depending on the location. There are also direct flights from the city to Mont Tremblant International Airport which are reasonable and are scheduled about every other day.