Read skier and snowboarder-submitted reviews on Crotched Mountain 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 Crotched Mountain 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 Crotched Mountain review! Scroll to the bottom of this page to let other travelers know about your skiing and resort experience.
Reviews for Crotched Mountain
Total (2.7)
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.
Good mountain to take the family to or visit for midnight madness. The entire mountain is lit for night skiing. The terrain is challenging yet very approachable for newer skiers. If you want to avoid lines and stay less than 2 hours from Boston this is where to go!
Fred Innh
I’m surprised by all the people saying it was better before vail got involved. I live not far away and have been to crotched MANY times and it never had any charm for me other than proximity and good trails.
The lodge is the most sterile I’ve ever been in and has no view of the slopes. There are no decent food options. The area where you can get booted up has inadequate seating. It’s overpriced for what you get.
That said, it has a lot of fun intermediate trails, HOWEVER, you have to get down a bit from the summit to access them and that’s not fun or safe for a beginner. Your choices off the summit are a blue trail that’s fine until you get to a steepish, narrow, always-icy part that is always crowded and has another steep, icy, crowded trail crossing it, or your choice of 3 steep, usually-icy, black trails, only one of which gives you access to the whole mountain.
They have 2 other lifts that go 3/4 up the mountain but one is an ancient double that only accesses 3 trails and the other rarely runs.
I learned to ski at the crotch and I just had a great day there and I recommend it to people who are confident intermediate skiers. Experts will be bored and beginners will be scared.
J F
ever since vail resorts have taken over, crotched mountain has significantly declined. the new management structure/team is not up to the task, not family friendly and the mountain and its community of dedicated skiers has suffered. after 15 years of primarily skiing at crotched, will be looking elsewhere. there are much better options in nh. sad to end my time at crotched, but they're terrible
Rosanne
We went Feb 6&7 after a winter storm. Crotched is only 90 min from the Boston area which makes it very accessible, but it also means it got the same wintery mix of sleet and ice, not the big snowfall further north. The Rocket lift was closed for de-icing the whole weekend. While most of the mountain was open, only the slower quad lift and the 2 person lifts were operational so half the mountain and the summit was inaccessible unless you wanted a long vertical hike first. Sunday there was racing, so even less of the mountain was open. Conditions weren't bad and trails were in decent shape, but it was long lines followed by short runs.
Also, the mountain is open Wednesday - Sunday for the 21-22 season. If we didn't have the Epic Local pass, we wouldn't come back because Sunapee and Gunstock are about the same drive times and are bigger so there are more options.
There is night skiing, which is great if that's your thing.
David Hart
This place was a gem before Vail bought in 2019. I used to go all the time and there were small lift lines and pleasant experiences. Now flash forward to 2022. 40 min lift lines, only 2 lifts running making 1/2 the green trails not accessible by a beginner, middle of COVID outbreak and no capacity limits just hundreds of Epic pass holders making full price paying day pass payers stand in line. On top of all that it was very icy. Crotched depends on natural snow for coverage so it can get icy as it gets "skied off". That used to happen mid afternoon, but because of the increased traffic it was icy by 10:30 am. I cant comment on it any more but the place is now being milked for profit my maximizing capacity without changing anything else like lift access or snow making. I will never go back.
Jacqueline
I had come here the first time Christmas week and it, like all northeastern resorts it seems, was having a really hard time. Super thin coverage, lots of ice. Not fun. That's not on Crotched, that's on climate change. In the full swing of things, however, this place rules. It's the perfect place to get a bunch of fast laps in during a weekday when it has nearly no crowds, and has a good mix of groomed and ungroomed terrain/glades which offers technical challenges in an area that otherwise doesn't have tons of steep stuff. I've become a really big fan, and am glad it's so close to Boston.
Rob Jones
This is a smallish resort in the Northeast that continues to lose its charm after being acquired by Vail Resorts. Full disclosure: I am a senior citizen and have the epic pass. I have skied have several times over the years and it appears that they are putting less and less effort into grooming especially operation of the lifts.
Larry Kovalk
This place beats other options close to Boston hands down. Yes, it's a little further than Wachusett (takes me under 90 minutes to get here), but the convenience is miles away. You park close to the lifts, not in parking lot #18! There are no lines to speak of at the lifts. Forget the zoo at Wachusett or Mt Sunapee on the weekends and try Crotched!
Bernad Glusac
If you are considering skiing mountains in the east this is not one of them. They do not put effort into the parks, only have fake snow, and it is extremely expensive. Parks are small and there is only two of them that are actually OK. I would not come here if you are looking for a good time.I have fun skiing on just ice if that is what you like you would love it at the this mountain.
Josh undefined
Although small, crotched does have its perks. Good skiing for beginners and especially for families, with a plethora of greens and blues. Blacks need some work though, as there are only a few and as you’d expect, they’re pretty easy. But, if you’re from southern NH, give this small ski area a try.
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