Ski Resorts for Non-Skiers

In my family, 3/4 of us ski.

My dad, sister, and I all enjoy the dopamine derived from strapping two slabs of wood to our feet and finding something steep.

My mom does not.

Growing up this situation posed a serious dilemma. How do we get the whole family on a trip out to Colorado rather than — say Cancun.

After all, in our household decision making is rarely a democratic process. But — all good leaders consider feedback.

So it was up to the three of us to propose a destination suitable for a non-skier.

We did an okay job.

Eventually, the thought of an empty house to herself won out and we settled on a pseudo win-win. The three of us would go and she would stay back and enjoy the quiet.

But trips as an entire family are irreplaceable and there are plenty of places that really do cater to everyone.

I've spent some time digging and thinking about suggestions that could have been made, and boy did I miss some solid spots.

So, here is a list of 4 places I would suggest to guarantee a family trip out to the mountains.

1. Park City, Utah

If I could go back in time and make one suggestion, this would have been it.

Park City is 35 minutes from the Salt Lake City airport. That alone is a cheat code. No white-knuckle mountain passes. No three-hour shuttle rides through a blizzard. You land, you grab a coffee, and you're there. For a family trying to minimize the "are we there yet" portion of the trip, there is no better option in the country.

But the airport proximity isn't the pitch. The pitch is Main Street.

Park City's downtown is a former silver mining town that somehow turned itself into one of the best walkable strips in the Mountain West. We're talking 100+ restaurants and bars crammed into a historic downtown that lights up at night like something out of a holiday movie. There are galleries, boutiques, live shows at the Egyptian Theater, and — I cannot stress this enough — High West Distillery, which is literally the world's only ski-in distillery. It sits at the base of the Town Lift. You can watch skiers come down the mountain while sipping a whiskey flight. If that doesn't sell the non-skier in your life, I don't know what will.

For the person in the family who wants some action but not on skis, Park City has the Utah Olympic Park. This is the actual venue from the 2002 Winter Olympics. You can tour the facilities, hit two free museums, and — if you're feeling brave — ride the Comet Bobsled down the real Olympic sliding track at 70 mph with a professional driver. My mom would never. But she'd absolutely watch from the observation deck and tell us about it at dinner.

There's also an alpine coaster at the resort (mile-long track, you control the speed), snow tubing at Woodward Park City, and scenic gondola rides at Canyons Village where you can soak in mountain views without ever clicking into a binding.

The skiing itself is no slouch either. Park City Mountain is 7,300 acres — the largest resort in the US. Deer Valley is right next door. Between the two, the skiers in the family are more than covered.

Getting there: Fly into SLC. 35–45 min drive. Free bus system around town. Park City Mountain is on Epic Pass, Deer Valley is on Ikon. Budget tip — stay in Heber City or Midway, about 20 minutes out, for significantly cheaper lodging with the same access.

2. Breckenridge, Colorado

Breck is where a lot of families end up, and there's a reason for that.

It's a real town. Not a resort that built a village around a chairlift. Breckenridge was a gold mining settlement in 1859, and that history is still baked into the architecture. There are 171 historic buildings, most of which now house restaurants, breweries, and shops along a Main Street that you can easily spend an entire day wandering without getting bored. The Breckenridge Heritage Alliance runs guided walking tours and — this is a great one for kids — gold panning experiences.

But the real selling point for the non-skier? The craft beer scene.

Breckenridge Brewery is the institution — always packed, always solid. Broken Compass Brewing is the locals' pick, with experimental beers and food trucks parked outside. And Highside Brewing sits 173 steps from the gondola with Colorado BBQ and 15 taps. You could build an entire afternoon around a brewery crawl and never feel like you were missing out on the mountain.

The food scene has quietly gotten very good, too. Forage just opened this season with a 12-course tasting menu using Colorado ingredients. Threefold Bakery is from the team behind a spot that the New York Times named one of the best bakeries in the country. And if you want a truly memorable dinner, take the gondola up to Keystone's Alpenglow Stube or Der Fondue Chessel for a mountaintop meal. Non-skiers can ride the gondola too — it's not just for people with lift tickets.

Beyond the food and drink, there's snow tubing with conveyor lifts, snowcat rides through the backcountry in a heated Pininfarina-designed cat, dog sledding, fat-tire biking, and snowshoeing on 15 kilometers of Nordic trails. If you happen to visit in January, the International Snow Sculpture Championships are free to watch — 16 teams from around the world hand-carving 20-ton blocks of snow with nothing but hand tools. It's genuinely one of the coolest winter events I've come across.

Getting there: Fly into Denver (about 2 hours) or Eagle County Regional (about 80 minutes). Free gondola from town to the base of Peak 8. Free bus between Breck, Keystone, and Frisco. Everything is on Epic Pass. Budget tip — Frisco is 10 minutes away with cheaper lodging and its own brewery scene (Outer Range is excellent).

3. Aspen, Colorado

Okay. I know what you're thinking. Aspen is expensive.

You're right. It is. But hear me out — because if the goal is to give the non-skier in your family the best possible time, Aspen might be the strongest play on this list.

The thing about Aspen that separates it from every other ski town is that the off-mountain experience isn't an afterthought. It's the main event for a lot of people who visit. The Aspen Art Museum is free, designed by a Pritzker Prize-winning architect, and has a rooftop cafe where locals actually hang out. The shopping downtown mixes luxury brands with legitimately unique local spots like Kemo Sabe and Pitkin County Dry Goods. The Aspen Institute hosts lectures and events all winter. This is a place with cultural gravity that just happens to also have four world-class ski mountains.

And then there's the food.

Ajax Tavern is the après institution — truffle fries, DJs, and a sunny plaza where you can watch skiers finish their runs while you're already two drinks deep. But the real move for a non-skier is Pine Creek Cookhouse. You take a horse-drawn sleigh ride through snowy aspen groves to a remote alpine restaurant that feels like it shouldn't exist. Reservations required, and worth every second of planning. For something completely different, Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro does snowcat-accessed dinners at the top of Aspen Highlands — Swiss-inspired food with views that are hard to describe without sounding like a brochure.

On the activity front, Snowmass (one of Aspen's four mountains) has the Breathtaker Alpine Coaster — a mile-long track through the trees at 28 mph — plus lift-served snow tubing and Ullr Nights, which are evening events with gondola rides, gourmet dinner, and s'mores by fire. The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies runs naturalist-led snowshoe tours on the mountain with the gondola ride, gear, and guide all included. There's ice skating at three different rinks around town (the one at Snowmass Base Village is free, skate rentals included). And there are 60 miles of free Nordic and snowshoe trails connecting Aspen, Snowmass, and Basalt.

Yes, it costs more. But the free art museum, free trail system, free bus system, and free ice skating take some of the sting out. And if you stay in Snowmass Village or Basalt instead of Aspen proper, you can shave a meaningful amount off lodging while keeping the same mountain access.

Getting there: Aspen/Pitkin County airport (ASE) is 4 miles from town with direct flights from major cities. Eagle County Regional is about 70 minutes out with more flight options. Denver is a 4-hour drive. All four mountains are on Ikon Pass. Free bus system (RFTA) runs between everything.

4. South Lake Tahoe, California

This one's the wildcard.

And honestly, it might be the easiest sell for a family that has a non-skier who is also not particularly interested in snowshoeing, craft beer, or art museums.

South Lake Tahoe has casinos.

I realize that sounds like a strange selling point for a ski town, but stay with me.

The town straddles the California-Nevada border. The California side has some of the most beautiful scenery in the American West — Lake Tahoe in winter, ringed by snow-covered peaks, is genuinely stunning. The Nevada side, literally steps across the state line, has Harrah's, Harveys, Hard Rock, and a handful of other casino resorts with table games, entertainment, shows, and restaurants.

No other ski town on this list offers anything remotely like that. Trust me. 

So while the skiers in the family are out chasing powder at Palisades Tahoe (which, by the way, just got almost 10 feet of snow in four days and pushed its snowpack from 60% to above average), the non-skier can ride the scenic gondola at Heavenly for panoramic views, spend the afternoon at the Spa at Edgewood, drive out to Emerald Bay State Park for some winter hiking, and then meet everyone for dinner before hitting the tables.

That's a full day, and a good one.

The food and drink scene is solid too. Base Camp Pizza is a classic après spot. Edgewood Restaurant does lakefront dining with views that justify the price tag. And there are enough local breweries and distilleries scattered around the South Shore to keep things interesting.

For families with kids, there's snow tubing at Adventure Mountain right near the Heavenly gondola base, snowmobile tours through the Sierra backcountry, and seasonal outdoor ice skating. For families without kids, there's a very real chance the non-skier ends up having a better trip than the skiers. I've seen it happen.

Getting there: Fly into Reno-Tahoe (about an hour drive) or Sacramento (about two hours). Chains are required during storms — check Caltrans before you head up. Heavenly and Northstar are on Epic, Palisades Tahoe is on Ikon. Budget tip — go midweek. Lodging drops, crowds thin out, and Palisades Tahoe has a Midweek 4-Pack at $109/day for Monday through Friday.

The Bottom Line

Looking back, I think the mistake we made wasn't a lack of good options — it was a lack of imagination.

We defaulted to local towns that sorta-maybe had something without ever actually doing proper dilligence. And honestly, some of these non-ski itineraries sound better than a day of fighting for fresh tracks on a crowded Saturday.

Pick the right town, build the trip around the whole family, and let everyone come back to the dinner table with their own stories.

The skiers will talk about the run they found.

The non-skier will talk about the sleigh ride to a hidden restaurant, the bobsled they rode at 70 mph, or the truffle fries at Ajax.

And everyone will talk about the money they lost at the blackjack table.

See you on the slopes. 

-Shai