I took my kids to Boone for their first ski trip. The first day, Thursday, was very nice with a good instructor and the slopes were ideal for beginners. However, when we returned for the night session, about 90% of the people there were college-age snow boarders. Those kids were rude and showed no respect for skiers. My teenager reported to the lift operators that there were kids smoking marajuana on the slope - the employees did not care. I talked with a manager at the resort and he basically said, "That's the culture that comes with boarders." My advice - keep your wife and kids away from Appalachian at night.

The facility is close to Boone, which makes things convenient. The staff is normally more friendly than some places and the prices are not bad. The terrain design leaves alot to be desired. You can get the same run lenghts over a Hawksnest with less crowds and better terrain. I would certainly recommend App over Sugar anyday. You'll get alot more skiing done at places like App and Hawksnest than at a place like Sugar.

We went boarding and skiing yesterday. Had lots of fun. the lines did get heavy at 1pm for the afternoon session but everyone knows that. There's not a whole lot of snow right now- you can see the grass on the side and going up the lifts you'll see it. It's fine up at the top and coming down. Some parts gets a little slushy, crunchy or icy but overall had a great time. Where's all the snow?

We visited Appalachian Jan 2nd after visiting 4 other N.C. and 1 TN ski resorts. This was the most family friendly and easiest resort to visit by far!!!! The whole staff was so friendly and helpful especially the Ski shop staff - thanks for the new snowboard!! This was my kids first time skiing (Florida family) and they took right to it. The smaller hill is great to get started and the night skiing was wide open - no lines. It even snowed while we where there so life was great!! Thanks Appalachian for a great family outing and we will be back as much as possible.

After skiing Sugar for the past 7 years, we tried Appalachian for the 1st time for a change. What a great day! It started with a short line to purchase lift tickets inside, followed by easy access to the slopes. We found several choices for our ability level and our 14 year old snowboarding son loved the small jumps built into the intermediate runs. The lift lines were relatively short and the quad lifts got us to the top quickly. The staff were very helpful and friendly; most were ASU students. The cafeteria had hot cooked meals (good pot roast, sesame chicken and real veggies) as well as fast food (hot dogs, pizza, french fries), reasonably priced for a ski resort. The dining area was clean and well maintained, as was the entire resort. We plan to go back for a full day tomorrow.