If privacy and wide-open space are your main concerns this winter, then renting out an entire ski resort for the day with your pod is worth the splurge. Plus, in some cases, splitting the fee among a group may not cost you much more than a day ticket at a larger mountain.Not every resort offersthisoption, of course, but select ski areas—usually smaller hills that may close for a day or two during the week anyway—do allow full-resort buyouts for private groups midweek. Talk about a rad holiday gift. Because who wouldn’t want bottomless powder with friends and a base lodge all for yourself? Here are our favorite hills for rent at every price point.
Beaver Mountain, Utah ($)
You can’t reserve, located near Logan, Utah, for the day, but you can. Yep, private night skiing is offered all week long. Starting at $1,200, it’s one of the more affordable mountain-rental options out there. Terrain is limited to where night lighting exists, so you’ll be skiing runs accessed via the magic carpet and Little Beaver Lift, and you’ll have full access to the lodge. If you want food and drink, you can request special items, like itspopular street tacos, which areserved from the on-site Beaver Mountain Café. (Rentals and lessons are available for an extra fee.)
Plattekill, New York ($$)
From Monday through Thursday (except for holidays),, in Roxbury, New York, is available for for up to 250 people from $4,500 for the day. This family-owned ski area in the Catskills has four lifts, 1,100 vertical feet, and two-mile-long beginner runs. Its north-facing terrain often gets more lake-effect snow than other ski areas in the region, averaging around 175 inches. For additional fees, you can add on extra features, like an outdoor BBQ lunch, equipment rental or lessons, snow tubing, or lodging at nearby cabins.
Anthony Lakes, Oregon ($$)
On the eastern edge of Oregon, in the foothills of the Elkhorn Mountains, is, a small ski area outside the well-named town of North Powder. You can rent it out for groups of up to 50 people on select Mondays from $6,000, granting you exclusive access for five hours to itslone chairlift—the Rock Garden triple—and 1,100 acres. With a base elevation of 7,100 feet (the highest in the state) Anthony Lakes often gets snow when it’s raining elsewhere.
Magic Mountain, Vermont ($$)
, in Londonderry, Vermont, is typically open Thursdays through Sundays, plus the full weeks that coincide with holidays (though the resort will open from Monday through Wednesday if it receivessix inches or more, much to the delight of locals). Thanks to that regular closure, the resort offers for groups and private parties on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays starting at $6,200 for the day. This independent ski area has a lot of charm—a throwback feel, steep terrain, some 1,500 feet of vertical drop, and six lifts, including two that servethe upper mountain from the base area. Private parties will also have access to the, part ofthe base lodge, for food and beverages throughout the day.
Pico, Vermont ($$)
The smaller, neighboring ski area to Killington,, outside Rutland, Vermont, can bestarting at $8,000 on non-holiday Tuesdays and Wednesdays for up to 250 people, withprivate access to the base lodge and the resort’s two best chairlifts, the Golden and Summit Express quads. You’ll find quality tree skiing through birch forests, entry-level groomers, and a mile-long trailcalled Pikethat drops from the top of the mountain to its base. An additional fee will get you food service, lessons, and lodging.
Silverton Mountain, Colorado ($$$)
You canand enjoy guided skiing before the ski area opens tothe general public any day of the week between late November and late December, or for the entire day from Mondays through Wednesdays (when the mountain is typically closed)the rest of the winter. Full-mountain rental starts at $9,900 for up to 40 people. You’ll have private, guided access to Silverton’s one legendary chairlift and all of its 1,819 acres of rugged terrain, and for afee, you can add on heli-ski drops in the surrounding 22,000 acres of backcountry, too. Keep in mind, there’s no easy way down at Silverton and no grooming, so this option is best suited for the hardiest skiers and riders.
Showdown, Montana ($$$)
If the price of’s three chairlifts for the day seems a bitspendy—it’s $10,000 for up to 50 people—consider that the price includes everythingfrom all-you-can-eat mealsto an open bar of beer, wine, and cocktails for all your guests, plus ski and ride lessons, gear rental, andguides. You’ll even get live music from a local band after skiing at no extracharge. For afee, the resort can arrange for a catered dinner at a nearby restaurant, lodging for your entire group, and transportation to the nearby town of White Sulphur Springs for a soak. Still too steep a price?, in northwest Montana, does full-mountain rentals for up to 100 people for $3,750 from Mondays through Thursdays, and you can bring your own food and beer.
Eagle Point, Utah ($$$$)
Most people don’t think of skiing in southern Utah, because themajority of the state’s ski resorts are in the north. But , in the Tushar Mountains near thetown of Beaver, has unique, high-alpine terrain that tops out above 10,600 feet elevationand gets 350 inches of snow on average. You can—including all five lifts, 650 acres, and two lodges—for $15,000 a day Tuesdays through Thursdays for up to 200 people. Add-ons like guides to show you around the slopesor instructors to teach kids and beginners are also available.