TRUMBULL, Conn., Sept. 12, 1997 - Put away those beach chairs
and start waxing up those downhill
skis! The September issue of Snow Country contains the magazine's ninth
annual ranking of the continent's Top
50 Resorts -- an extensive compilation of 20,000 reader reviews of
392 alpine destinations that breaks down the
resorts and their surrounding amenities into 24 separate categories
in three regions: The Rockies, The Far West
and The East.
This exclusive guide provides insight into which resorts have the best
scenery, terrain, snow quality, dining,
off-hill activities, and includes sections on resorts for the whole
family and resorts that offer the most bang for
your buck. Snow Country's editors have also ranked mountains in each
region on the basis of their appeal to men,
to women, to singles, and to the bar-hoppers. A comprehensive survey,
Snow Country's "Top 50 Resorts" is THE
guide to North American skiing and an invaluable tool for adventurous
travelers. What follows is a sample of
some of the rankings in this 44-page ski vacation planner. The September
issue of Snow Country is currently on
newsstands.
BEST OVERALL RESORT BEST IN THE WEST
1. Whistler Resort, BC 6. Beaver Creek, CO 1. Mammoth Mountain, CA
2. Vail, CO 7. Mammoth Mountain, CA 2. Squaw Valley, CA
3. Steamboat, CO 8. Sun Valley, ID 3. Heavenly, CA
4. Snowmass, CO 9. Keystone, CO 4. Sierra-at-Tahoe, CA
5. Aspen, CO 10. Big Sky, MT 5. Mount Bachelor, OR
BEST IN THE EAST
SNOWBOARDING
TERRAIN
1. Sugarloaf, ME
1. Stratton, VT 1.
Whistler Resort, BC
2. Killington, VT
2. Okemo Mountain, VT 2. Mammoth Mountain, CA
3. Mont Tremblant, QU 3.
Mount Bachelor, OR 3. Vail, CO
4. Stowe, VT
4. Whistler Resort, BC 4. Jackson Hole, WY
5. Sunday River, ME
5. Sugarloaf, NE 5. Alta,
UT
BEST FOR:
SNOW QUALITY
SKI SCHOOL
SCENERY
1. Grand Targhee, WY
1. Smuggler's Notch, VT 1. Lake Louise, AB
2. Alta, UT
2. Taos, NM
2. Wildcat Mountain, NH
3. Snowbird, UT
3. Beaver Creek, CO 3. Telluride, CO
4. Sunshine Village, AB 4. Sun Valley,
ID 4. Heavenly, CA - NV
5. Snowbasin, UT
5. Aspen, CO
5. Sunshine Village, AB
SERVICE
NIGHTLIFE
ON-MOUNTAIN FOOD
1. Deer Valley, UT
1. Aspen, CO
1. Deer Valley, UT
2. Smuggler's Notch, VT 2. Killington,
VT 2. Sun Valley, ID
3. Mad River Glen, VT 3.
Vail, CO
3. Mont Tremblant, QU
4. Beaver Creek, CO
4. Heavenly, CA 4.
Whistler Resort, BC
5. Sugarloaf, ME
5. Breckenridge, CO 5. Snowmass, CO
FAMILIES
VALUE
ON-MOUNTAIN LODGING
1. Smuggler's Notch, VT 1. Alta, UT
1. Whistler Resort, BC
2. Whistler Resort, BC 2. Mad
River Glen, VT 2. Vail, CO
3. Mont Tremblant, QU 3.
Snowbasin, UT 3. Steamboat,
CO
4. Steamboat, CO
4. Bridger Bowl, MT 4. Sugarloaf, ME
5. Snowmass, CO
5. Grand Targhee, WY 5. Snowshoe, WV
SNOW COUNTRY is the year-round magazine of mountain sports and living.
Published monthly by The New
York Times Company Magazine Group, Inc., it has a circulation of 450,000.