Steamboat Ranked 8th Overall (No.1 Family Resort) by SKI Magazine Readers

Steamboat climbs one position in SKI Magazine's annual readers survey with the expectation that with developments that are now underway a top 5 position in the future is within reach.

This idea is reinforced by the readers who expressed frustration with the resort’s “aging base area” which is now being comprehensively addressed by a unprecedented amount of tear-down and redevelopment.

“If it were a day resort or a throwback mountain, Steamboat’s aging base area — which one reader describes as being ‘stuck in a 1970s time warp’ — might be tolerated,” SKI’s October issue reads, citing feedback from its annual Reader Resort Survey. “But the resort’s relative isolation in northern Colorado, while keeping it crowd-free, makes it dependent on destination travelers, who want more than great snow and small-town character.

Steamboat’s No. 8 ranking is a slight improvement compared with the previous two years, when it ranked ninth. This is the third year in a row Steamboat has garnered a top-10 ranking. It was ranked 11th by SKI readers in 2005. Steamboat was sandwiched between Aspen Mountain in seventh and Breckenridge in ninth. Longstanding programs such as “Kids Ski Free” and “Kids Fly Free” made Steamboat SKI’s No. 1 family resort in the West.

With the demolition of Ski Time Square and Thunderhead Lodge, Steamboat doesn’t look to gain any ground in the upcoming ski season with those annoyed either by the lack of nightlife or the high level of construction. Moving Mountains has a great solution to this dilemma as most of it's exclusive rental properties are away from the base area and avoid the construction impacts completely, while still providing great access to the skiing.

Access to Steamboat has improved significantly in recent years and the resort will look to gain ground in this area of future surveys because this year’s nonstop flight program will be Steamboat’s largest ever, with the recently announced addition of Frontier Airlines flights from Denver.

Night life is also improving this winter with the opening of the Ghost Ranch Saloon at Seventh and Yampa streets which could play a major role if it opens on schedule this winter. Co-owner Amy Garris told the Steamboat Pilot & Today last week that she plans to have live music seven nights a week during the winter and summer tourism seasons.

SKI typically polls about 6,000 readers each year to get their perceptions of ski areas in 18 categories. They include overall satisfaction, access, après ski, dining, family programs, grooming, lifts, lodging, off-hill activities, on-mountain food, scenery, service, snow terrain/challenge, terrain variety, terrain parks, value and weather.

Ski area spokesmen could not point to one specific area of improvement that may have explained Steamboat’s move from No. 9 to No. 8, but they did cite the multimillion-dollar capital improvements that have accompanied Intrawest’s purchase of Steamboat Ski and Resort Corp. from American Skiing Co. in 2007.

“I think it’s kind of the overall appeal of Steamboat that people keep discovering and enjoying, and the overall level of service they receive throughout the community,” Lane said.

We could not agree more as we know that our services are what sets us apart from the competition both in Steamboat and across the Rocky Mountains.