I have visited Ski Beech Several times in the Last 8 years or so. I have noticed a steady decline in conditions and overall experience at Beech. While Beech has the highest Summmit elevation in the area & 1 one of the Highest on the East Coast (over 5,500 ft), it is consistenly behind the other resorts in the area in snow making, Base, and Grooming. Ski Beech does feature a high speed quad which increases the amount of runs per day, but is often overcrowded. The terrain is solid for beginners & intermediate skiers , however, the runs are short (830 ft verticle)and flat. There are no challenging runs on the mountain for advanced skiiers. What the terrain and mountain are lacking Beech makes up for in off the slope activities. The area is beautiful and there are reasonably priced ski-in ski-out accomodations. There is also outdoor ice skating right in the middle of the ski village. Beech is more suitable for vacationers than skiiers.

I went to Ski Beech for the first time on the weekend of 2/8/08. It was my first time skiing and I loved it. Although ir was a bit crowded, I still never waited more than 10-15 minutes on a lift. I came down the intermediate slopes on the left of the map 3 times in 3 hours during the day and 5 times in 2 hours during the night. The slow pace during the day was due more to my getting the hang of skiing in general. Our rental home was right off of the parking lot and had a wonderful view. I cannot wait to have the chance to back again. Overall, I was very satisfied with the resort. The staff could have been a bit more friendly but I'm sure their overworked like the rest of us. I give it a grade of A- and would recomend a trip to Ski Beech to anyone interested in going.

All the reviews I have read about Beach are true. It simply depends on when they where there and Mother Natures temperment. I have skied at Beach on and of for 25 years. Some where bad some good some great. December skiing is always risky and weekends and Holidays are of course busy as all resorts are. Try Late Jan.,Feb and March. Lifttickets are reasonable as is the overall experience when you compare it to actual costs for west area skiing. My only consistent complaints are that the Oz run of the back is often closed and not enough snowmaking. Face it, it is a weather risk sport. My ratings are based on my last experience on New Years Day 04 and compares to other East Coast resorts. Thanks

A few tips on NC skiing in general.

Eye the weather especially if you have no 4wd. check the resort website and another called high country web cams for conditions. They have images of roads there in Banner Elk and Beech Mtn. They also have slopeside images in two locations. Most Nc Ski resorts have at least one cam.

Second advice is go during the week. Weekends are crowded especially during good conditions.

Lastly don't go if you have expectations of skiing the Rockies - Beech is barely a mile high at the summit, about a 700 ft change in elevation summit to base. THere is a decent range in offerings when all slopes are open. The highest location in the East, views are wonderful during the day with good visibility.

Ski Beech was an awful experience. We just went there in December of 07. It is very run down. One employee stated that they never put money back into fixing up the park. The prices were not cheap either. They never resurfaced the snow. It was basically like ice with holes in it. Water was running everywhere, it was very slippery and it seemed like they never make any snow either. Everyone I was with got hurt. Even seasoned skieers were saying that the conditions were too poor to be skiing there. Maybe it is better their when natural snow is available all the time, but it is still very outdated and run down. The employees were not friendly. Their employees were not of the highest calliber. Our first hint should have been the parking lot attendees who were in the US on work visas. I would never visit there again. Thank goodness we tried skiing somewhere else or we would have never realized that skiing is fun.