Read skier and snowboarder-submitted reviews on Alyeska Resort that rank the ski resort and mountain town on a scale of one to five stars for attributes such as terrain, nightlife and family friendliness. See how Alyeska Resort stacks up in the reviews, on and off the slopes, from skiing and family activities to the après scene. Read up on pros, cons and other comments in reviews left by fellow skiers and riders. Don't forget to submit your own Alyeska Resort review! Scroll to the bottom of this page to let other travelers know about your skiing and resort experience.
Reviews for Alyeska Resort
Total:
A ski resort's overall star rating displayed here is not calculated based on a simple average but takes several factors, including the age of a review, into account.
Great resort for those strong intermediate and up, with world class expert terrain, including the longest Double Black run in N. America. ... Full Review
John Lhotka
We just returned from Alyeska over Xmas. We are a family of 4, with 3 snowboarders and one skier. We found the terrain on the upper mountain very challenge to snowboard, with most runs very narrow, crowded, with lots skiers giving going full bore send it mode down the runs. The runs on the lower mountain were wider but short and really not enjoyable. Upper mountain was also mostly unmarked making it a choose you adventure for those new to the resort which is not a pleasant experience, knowing there is terrain here that easily injure our pre-teen children. We found most the runs all empty in to a few runs and what would typically be one run at another resort is 5 named runs at Alyeska. We found Girdwood to be a beautiful town and really enjoyed our meals at a few (Jack Sprat especially) and really liked Girdwood Brewery, but in general there is fairly limited options once you are off the slopes. We didn’t stay at Alyeska hotel (we stayed at a VRBO in town) but we did visit there for some meals and cafe for lunch. It definitely wasn’t our style and we found it very expensive ($6 for a bottle of water at the cafe?!?). We aren’t going back to Alyeska any time soon. ... Full Review
Susan Kuo
This is a great resort, plus during certain times of year stays light till 10pm.... Full Review
Daniel Siri
Skied all of the Tahoe Basin, Tetons, and Northern Rockies...THIS place had the most grand surroundings...Awesome summit views to go with the above average snow..
If you like to push the gas pedal on your skis this is a great choice wide open pitches and no crowd during the week... Good vibe no Vail pretense here...
... Full Review
Greg Ross
For a quality mountain so close to Alaska's largest city of Anchorage, Alyeska can't be beat. If the skiing is poor at the base, you'll be amazed how quickly that can change from the mid mountain to the top. Remember, the base of this mountain is at sea level and on the mild side of the Chugach Mountains that separate the warmer coastal zones to the colder inland areas. so don't be surprised if its raining in the parking area and dumping up top. Unless you're a beginner, one doesn't spend time on the lower hill anyway. Does the mountain cater to the whinny, sniveling complainers in previous reviews, no, so if that's your style do us all a favor and stay home. With the return of the sun and warmer temperatures March and April offer the best skiing of the season. For the price one of the best ski venues out there. Now go enjoy the pow!... Full Review
Annoyed Skier with Family
Outside of the view on a bluebird day, you are better off avoiding this mountain. Weekends are horrendous with lift lines for two main lifts (only two that get you to the top of GBX/Chair 6). The trail map is very inaccurate with what terrain and runs are open/available. The runs aren't marked well, they all whitewash together into one big white 'blob'. This is made worse by other users crisscrossing the terrain (there is rarely mountain etiquette displayed). 50% of the users are filming for their go pro and youtube channels (or so they think) and are reckless. Novice skiers and boarders as well as the go pro hero make for a very unsafe ski experience. We have never seen ski patrol on mountain to help make sure it's a safe experience for all. Only when there is an accident for evacuation. Low light/flat light makes it very hard to read the terrain before mid-March. ... Full Review
Quentin
Just about everything Alyeska has to offer will blow away any skier from anywhere in the world. However there is one thing that could massively improve this resort, and that would be getting in a little bit more terrain / a few more lifts! This mountain is begging for another lift to the top. Or even a separate adjacent ski area. There are just so many people skiing on the slopes it’s almost impossible to get a turn in at times. I’m no expert, and I’m also making some broad assumptions. But it seems to me that when this resort builds, the skiers will come! The demand appears to be there for some more terrain! ... Full Review
Joe
I live in Anchorage and go to Alyeska regularly. This year has really pushed me over the top and I'm about done spending my money there. Ski patrol and trails crews are inexperienced and often times ruin the outer area conditions with their misuse of avalanche mitigation. It seems they don't really care about the mountain conditions and just pull the bare minimum effort. Outer areas/expert terrain would be AMAZING if ski patrol and avalanche crews didn't ruin it. Half the mountain is typically closed; probably because they don't have staff who know how to manage the different areas.
The lift lines are unbelievably long, especially up top. There is only one lift going to the "top" of the mountain so everyone bottlenecks at Glacier Bowl Express (Chair 6) and the lift line is so long it seems you're standing in line WAY more than going down the mountain. The mountain is underserved and the layout is basically opposite from most other places I've been to; most resorts have more lifts up top to spread out on the mountain, but Alyeska has more lifts down low and only 1 up top so everyone converges at the same spot (I know it's redundant). The tram runs from the bottom to nearly the top of Chair 6, but lines there are a killer too and it's always questionable whether the Chair 6 route or tram is faster.
Alyeska is really the only decent mountain to ski in Alaska; in addition, Anchorage isn't small and a lot of locals like to ski/ride so there's always heavy local traffic. This results in a lot of the mid-mountain runs and bottlenecks being overly icy. Just so icy it's not even fun. Many inexperienced snowboarders in the area carve the mountain to death also and just makes it that much worse - not all snowboarders, but definitely most of them.
I used to have my kids get lessons through the resort and I used to be pretty happy with the level of knowledge and expertise, but this year they "let go" a lot of the senior instructors and hired a bunch of younger/less experienced instructors and I couldn't stand how unfit they all were so I pulled the kids from lessons/groups. The snowboard instructors seem to have the experience of a 2nd year 8 year old and the maturity to match. The ski instructors seem like 16 year olds on winter break with no real commitment to the mountain or the sport and the same maturity level as the snowboard instructors.
Alyeska used to be decent, but lately the staff and operations policies have been killing the mountain. If I didn't love skiing so much I would definitely stop going there. I don't ski at Hilltop in the Anchorage city limits because it's overpriced too, but at least the expectation and potential don't disappoint the way Alyeska does. It's so bad now that I'm just considering moving somewhere with a better mountain, or at least a more reasonable atmosphere with appropriate pricing.
Bottom line for me - I would not pay to ski at Alyeska from out of state or even from outside the Anchorage area. It's absolutely not worth it. I will only ski there for lack of other decent options. Lessons and programs are a joke. Snow report/snow phone is always misleading. Great conditions are ruined quickly and everything is WAY overpriced. Maybe it's good for a bucket list item. On the plus side, the night skiing is pretty good. It's still icy, but at least you're not skiing elbow to elbow or waiting for 45 minutes in the lift line.... Full Review
Bob S
We went to Alyeska over Christmas break 2020. Chose it for the early season snow reliability and comfortable low altitude base area. Neither aspect disappointed. The mountain, in my opinion, compares to Crestted Butte. Slightly steeper than average and longish Blue runs. Only the Tanaka lift was closed the 7 days we were there. Night skiing was great (not 100% of runs) and lights were bright. COVID ruined the dinning options. Take out everything, Seven Glaciers at top of tram closed. Resort rooms were nicer than many places in lower 48 but still could use an update. EVERYONE was super friendly. Had an 8th floor room with great views. Great value at about $275/night WITH a pair of lift tickets.... Full Review
Tom MacPhail
Skied here for 16 years. I have had some epic powder days but also some white-outs, heavy rain, icy, winds and closed lifts. The coastal location means tons of moisture but big temperature changes from summit to sea level. The scenery is unbeatable and prices used to be reasonable though limited skiable terrain (much of terrain shown on map is extreme and/or rately open) make it only a so-so value. Best season is March and April...too cold and dark mid-winter with good chance of high wind closing lifts.... Full Review
Rate this Resort
Share your experience at resort Alyeska Resort to help other skiers.
