Last weekend, the first snow of the season frosted the golden leaves of Snowmass Village and Aspen, reminding residents and visitors that the ski and snowboard season is literally just around the corner. As if on cue, as the snow began to fall, the awards garnered by Aspen/Snowmass began to shower down on the respective resorts.

Just before the first flakes began to fall, on October 6^th, the Aspen Daily News reported Transworld Snowboarding’s 2011-2012 rankings had placed Snowmass as the number one overall snowboarding spot in the nation for the second year in a row.

Just one week later, on Thursday the 13^th, the Aspen Daily News announced that Snowmass Ski Area had gained two spots in the Ski Magazine’s annual rankings of North America’s best resorts, bringing it into the top 5. This year Snowmass Village moved from #6 to #4 in a survey of over 20,000 readers. Aspen Mountain garnered the spot for #11, while Aspen Highlands held onto  #19.

In the same survey by Ski Magazine, Aspen Highlands ranked at #10 in the best snow of the season.  Aspen ranked #3 for best ski resorts and Snowmass brought home the award for 5^th.  Aspen Mountain earned respect as the 2^nd best après ski location, while Aspen Highlands ranked in at the #8 best place to party after a day on the slopes. Aspen Highlands also took home the #3 ranking for the most scenic ski location

Colorado has maintained its reputation as a skier and snowboarder’s paradise with 6 of the top 10 spots in Ski Magazine’s being located in Colorado. This is the second year running in which Colorado has dominated the rankings.

Forbes Magazine has also rated Aspen/Snowmass Village as the 7^th best resort for families this year, citing the multi-age activities throughout the four mountains appealing to a range of ages from infant to senior citizen. Buttermilk was acknowledged for its great learning facility for young skiers, as well as the mini-terrain park and ski lift dedicated exclusively to beginning skiers without any traffic from fast, more experienced skiers coming in from higher up on the mountain. Meanwhile the ‘Power of Four’ campaign seems to be an effective program, tying the ski passes, transportation and activities of the four mountains together to allow skiers the maximum experience overall.

While the awards roll in, the excitement surrounding opening day in Aspen and Snowmass Village is mounting. This year opening day at Snowmass and Aspen Mountain will be November 24^th.  The rest of America may be planning, cooking and celebrating their Thanksgiving feast, those ‘on-mountain’ will be having a different sort of Thanksgiving.  One in which they celebrate the beauty of nature, the thrill of the mountains and the joy of life in Snowmass Village and Aspen, Colorado.

Join us on Opening Day in Snowmass Village and Aspen. After your own Thanksgiving on the mountain, take a look at homes, properties and investments in the area and find out what it is like to live an award-winning lifestyle by clicking here! www.GregRulon.com

 

Tags: Snowboarding, Transworld