Aspen / Snowmass Blog

Aspen Mountain and Snowmass will open for the season on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 27. Snowmaking teams have worked around the clock to cover the mountains and snow is forecasted this week.

Aspen Mountain opens with four trails and 48 acres of skiing all of it at the top of the hill with 1,100 feet of vertical. Open trails include 1 & 2 Leaf, Upper Copper, Silver Bell and Deer Park. The Ajax Express is open but skiers and riders will download on the Gondola at the end of the day.

World Cup racer: World Cup racersThe fastest women in the world will compete this Friday to Sunday in Slalom and Giant Slalom. Check out Olympic Gold Medalist Julia Mancuso as well as Lindsay Vonn, Resi Steigler and Stacey Cook. The races are held on Aspen Mountain from 10am to 4pm.

Check out the full World Cup Aspen schedule of events.

Friday, Nov 28:
10 a.m. - 4 p.m Sponsor Village in Gondola Plaza

You can now ship your luggage and skis or snowboard to Aspen/Snowmass with Aspen Snowmass Luggage Express. The new service is available through Stay Aspen Snowmass Central Reservations, powered by UPS. Guests can save from $50 to $300 over other shipping programs.

Aspen/Snowmass Luggage Express offers options including, 2-Day Air for inbound bags and Ground for outbound. The program is available to all guests traveling to or from Aspen/Snowmass, regardless of whether the trip is booked through Stay Aspen Snowmass.

Snowmass Village, Colorado will start running lifts on November 27th, Thanksgiving Day. Snowmass lodging properties are getting ready for the holiday with cheap rooms and cheap lift tickets. Book a snowmass ski vacation for early December and take advantage of lower prices. Open this season: The Treehouse Children’s Adventures Center, new restaurants and nightclubs, new on-mountain restaurant, Top of the Knob, and all the highspeed lifts from last year.

Stay Aspen Snowmass is sponsoring the Aspen Valley Ski Club for its second year. The AVSC is located at the local Aspen Highschool with its own private lift to Aspen Highlands. The AVSC has been teaching local kids to ski, ride and race since 1937. Stay Aspen Snowmass offers friends and family of the AVSC affordable accommodations in Aspen Snowmass for race events and get togethers.

While Aspen is known as a travel destination for the rich and famous, that’s not the case this early season. Discount, discount, discount! Aspen vacation packages are on sale now. Check out all the great Aspen vacation specials – there’s bound to be one to fit your budget.

Need a reason to book your Aspen ski vacation? Here’s some Aspen events:

• World Cup Ski Racing - Nov 29 & 30, 2008
• Aspen WinterSkol - Jan 8 -11, 2009
• Aspen Gay Ski Week - Jan 11 – 18, 2009

Aspen/Snowmass received up to 7 inches of new snow as of 8 a.m. this morning and it’s still snowing. Mountain operations have been out on the mountains measuring the new dump - Snowmass Mountain and Aspen Highlands both have close to two feet of snow on the ground. Temperatures have been cold and snow making is in full force. The storm is due to run its course through Friday morning.

A surprise storm dumped up 14 inches on Aspen/Snowmass last week and temperatures dropped to well below freezing. Snow guns have been blowing hard on Aspen Mountain and Snowmass Mountain since.

Another storm, due this week is expected to drop up to 5 inches of fresh snow on the resort. With all this early snow you should take advantage of = the great deals on lodging and lift tickets. Inventory won’t last long, so check out our Aspen Snowmass Lodging Deals.

Storm in Aspen/Snowmass dumps MORE THAN A FOOT of Snow.

A late night storm swept into Aspen/Snowmass last night and dropped more than a foot on some parts of Snowmass Mountain. Recordings show 11 inches on Sam’s Knob and 12 on the Big Burn. The Aspen Skiing Company has been making snow since yesterday and plans to keep on blowing for the next 48 hours.

The storm system is expected to last all the way through Thursday, dropping up to 6 more inches. So pray for snow!

VOLUNTEER FOR WORLD CUP, November 5
Aspen/Snowmass is hosting the World Cup Volunteer Rally at the Cantina on Wednesday, November 5, from 5 – 7 p.m. You can sign up to help out with Hand Timing, Race Headquarters, Press, Sponsor or Wax Room while enjoying a free beverage, appetizers and music by Brad Manosevitz.