Alta vs. Snowbird: Which Should You Choose?
Looking for the best skiable snow conditions on the continent? It’s hard to find better choices than Alta and Snowbird, two neighboring ski resorts in Utah’s Little Cottonwood Canyon just east of Salt Lake City. These mountains aren’t the biggest out there, but they really stand out from the pack thanks to their frequent powder days and reliable conditions. But how do they compare against each other?
While Alta and Snowbird might look pretty similar on paper, a few key circumstances distinguish the two mountains from one another. In this piece, we’ll go through the differences between these two mountains, what they both do well, what they both fall short in, and who each is for.
Snow Quality and Reliability
Advantage: Alta
If you’re looking for top-tier snow conditions, you won’t go wrong with either Alta or Snowbird. Both resorts are nearly unparalleled when it comes to annual average snowfall, seeing the snow totals above 500 inches in a typical season. On top of that, accumulation is supremely dry and light at both resorts, making for a combination that we haven’t found an equal to anywhere else.
But when it comes to choosing between the two resorts, a few key factors give Alta the very slight upper hand on snow quality. Despite sitting in neighboring mountains, Alta sees somewhat higher snowfall totals than Snowbird each winter. If there’s been a storm at Snowbird, chances are that Alta’s received a few extra inches. In addition, Snowbird’s footprint isn’t quite as resilient as Alta’s—the resort’s lower base elevation makes for slightly more variable lower-mountain conditions than at Alta, which doesn’t have any terrain below 8,500 feet.
Alta has the best overall snow quality of any resort we’ve tried.
But most importantly, nearly all of Alta’s terrain faces north, making for one of the most optimal aspect ratios of any northern hemisphere ski resort. On the other hand, Snowbird’s south-facing Mineral Basin terrain can fall victim to the sun, and sees freeze/thaw cycles throughout the season, as well as a later season opening date than the rest of Alta and Snowbird’s terrain. Alta is probably the slightly better pick for an early-season trip if you want to ski the whole mountain due to these circumstances, although both resorts are still excellent choices overall.
But one place where Snowbird beats Alta is in spring skiing. Snowbird stays open as long as feasibly possible, with a season that goes until mid-May and can sometimes extend as late as July. On the other hand, Alta is much more stringent in this regard, nearly always closing in mid-to-late April. As a result, Snowbird always offers a few extra weeks of operations compared to Alta, despite similar on-mountain conditions at the two resorts.
Skiable Footprint
Advantage: Snowbird
Alta and Snowbird are pretty comparable in size. Snowbird is a bit bigger, with 2,500 skiable acres, but Alta isn’t far behind, measuring in at 2,200 skiable acres. That being said, the two resorts hold considerable differences in their layout and topography. Alta has more rolling, wide-open slopes, while Snowbird comprises narrower, generally steeper canyons. Snowbird also has a back side in its Mineral Basin zone, whereas Alta is entirely front-facing.
Snowbird’s 2,500-acre footprint has more than enough terrain to keep guests busy for days.
Beginner Terrain
Advantage: Alta
While neither are really designed for first-timers, Alta is a significantly better mountain than Snowbird for beginners. Snowbird’s beginner terrain is almost laughable, existing just in a handful of lower-mountain areas and only seeing service from slow, fixed-grip double chairs—this is especially insulting when literally every other terrain zone at Snowbird has high-speed lift service. Alta’s beginner terrain isn’t exactly plentiful, only existing in the small Sunnyside mountain zone, but at least this area is removed from the rest of the resort with a variety of trails, providing a solid learning environment. The Sunnyside zone is getting a new six-pack for the upcoming season, which should make it easier for families to ride together.
Intermediate Terrain
Advantage: Alta
Snowbird isn’t great for intermediates either, and this is the demographic for which Alta probably has the biggest advantage. Alta is great for intermediates, featuring groomed, wide-open cruisers in every mountain area. On the other hand, the blue runs on Snowbird’s front side have very little variety, with only a few blues off each lifts, and most just being traverses—some of which are uncomfortably narrow in certain places. These easier groomers can get somewhat tracked out and icy if it hasn’t snowed in a few days. But it’s not all bad for intermediates at Snowbird, and the resort’s Mineral Basin Baldy chair does serve some great intermediate bowl terrain.
Snowbird’s Cirque zone is home to some of the most extreme in-bounds terrain in North America.
Advanced and Expert Terrain
Advantage: Snowbird
When it comes to advanced and expert terrain, both Alta and Snowbird have it in spades. Both resorts are hard to beat for experienced visitors, with incredible steeps across every mountain zone. Alta especially delivers on tenuous high-alpine bowls and chutes, while Snowbird boasts a more varied selection of challenges, including narrow mogul runs, tenuous glades, and steeply-pitched bowls. Both mountains have more than enough challenges to keep visitors busy for a proper weeklong trip.
But when it comes to overall difficulty, we’d say Snowbird ekes out the win in this incredibly competitive fight. Alta’s toughest trails are extreme, involving narrow couloirs and some jaw-dropping cliff lines. Some might also argue that Alta has better, longer mogul runs than Snowbird. But Snowbird’s true extremes are more widespread, with multiple trails directly off the lifts that leave absolutely no room for consequence. On the other hand, Alta’s toughest features take some exploring to properly find.
Many of the toughest lines at both Alta and Snowbird require hiking to reach. A somewhat higher percentage of Alta’s footprint lacks direct lift service than Snowbird’s, with some entire mountain pods, such as Catherine’s Area, requiring short uphill treks to reach. Alta’s hikes aren’t the hardest in the world, but they do make it difficult to do repeat laps on the terrain they serve. Snowbird’s footprint requires fewer hikes, but the ones that do exist generally take a lot more effort than those at Alta. The hike-to terrain at both resorts hides untouched snow for days, and by having more and easier-to-access of these, it’s much easier at Alta to find fresh powder on off days.
Navigation Logistics
Slight Advantage: Alta
When it comes to directly lift-accessed slopes, a not insignificant percentage of both Alta and Snowbird’s terrain requires prolonged traversing to get to, though this is the case quite a bit more at Alta than at Snowbird. However, the vast majority of Alta’s lift-served terrain is logistically straightforward to lap, with essentially every trail ending back at the same lift it started at. Such is not the case at Snowbird, where some key pods are much harder to plan runs around, especially when it comes to expert terrain. If you want to hit the hardest lines on Snowbird’s formidable Cirque, it takes at least two chairlifts to get back to where you started.
Snowbird does have a tram that gets you from bottom to top in one fell swoop, but unless it’s an off-peak weekday, lines are ridiculous. The tram’s very low capacity means it’s better viewed as an experience ride rather than a practical means of uphill transport, with each cabin fitting 125 people and rising over incredible spans of the valleys below.
A significant portion of Alta’s terrain, including the intermediate Ballroom run pictured here, requires traversing to reach. The resort is one of only three in North America to ban snowboarders.
Crowd Flow
Advantage: Alta
For the most part, Snowbird is not as well set up for crowds as Alta. Lines can get lengthy at both resorts, but they’re generally compounded at Snowbird due to a lack of redundancy in some really crucial areas—especially at Mineral Basin, where there’s only one lift out. With Alta, there are at least two lifts at every junction area, which helps spread out crowds.
However, Snowbird does have one trick up its sleeve: a one-of-a-kind ski tunnel. This magic carpet ride goes directly through Hidden Peak, allowing guests to travel through the actual mountain to get to Snowbird’s backside. Guests will find no such tunnel at Alta—let alone any other ski resort in North America.
Snowboard-Friendliness
Advantage: Snowbird
Perhaps the biggest policy difference between the two mountains is their stance towards snowboarders. Alta is one of only three remaining North American ski resorts to completely prohibit snowboarding, banning boarders from access to any lifts. Snowbird, on the other hand, allows snowboarding just like pretty much every other ski area on the continent. Needless to say, Alta doesn’t have any terrain parks; Snowbird’s freestyle zones aren’t that special, but they’re better than nothing.
Alta and Snowbird are located very close to Salt Lake City, which is visible from parts of both resorts.
Getting There
Advantage: Tie
If convenience of location is a factor in your ski trip, you won’t go wrong with either Alta or Snowbird. Both resorts are less than an hour away from the Salt Lake City airport with no traffic, and the drives are along flat, easy roads until the final 10 or so miles up the Little Cottonwood Canyon access road. There are also a number of shuttle services to and from the airport, as well as public bus service to both mountains from several Salt Lake City suburbs. Alta is a negligible 5 minutes further up the access road than Snowbird.
But while they’re physically easy to get to, that doesn’t mean the trip there can’t be frustrating. The access road to both resorts is a notorious chokepoint, generating stop-dead traffic jams up the canyon on peak and powder days mornings. If you’re staying on-site at one of the resorts, make sure to arrive in the afternoon or evening to avoid this problem.
Parking
Advantage: Snowbird
Both resorts have recently implemented parking policies to try to mitigate capacity issues. Alta has gone the stricter route, requiring paid reservations at all lots on weekends and holidays. Snowbird still offers limited first-come, first-serve parking, but many lots require paid reservations and the free lots fill up quickly. If you want to drive up to either resort on a weekend or holiday and avoid paying for a reservation, your best bet is to either get to Snowbird really early or drive up in the afternoon.
To combat increasing crowds, Alta now mandates paid parking reservations on weekends and holidays.
Lodging
Slight Advantage: Snowbird
In a lot of cases, the defining factor on whether you decide to book a trip to either Alta or Snowbird might be lodging. Both resorts have pretty limited lodging options, with only a few hotels at each mountain, and they book up quickly. But Snowbird’s hotels are significantly less expensive than Alta’s, making them much more accessible to vacation-goers. However, Alta’s lodges are generally nicer, and in a lot of cases, they actually come with a dedicated chairlift to take you up to your hotel.
Aprés-ski
Slight Advantage: Alta
One area where both Alta and Snowbird fall short is in the aprés scene. Neither mountain has much going on after the slopes close, with very small, tame bases at both resorts, although neither is completely dead. Based on last season’s experience, we’d have to give Alta the slight upper hand on aprés thanks to lively vibes and occasional live music at its Peruvian Bar. Snowbird’s marquee Tram Bar has been temporarily closed for a few years now, but the venue is expected to reopen for the upcoming winter, which could rejuvenate some of the vibe at the base there.
Pass Access
Advantage: Snowbird
One of the best parts about Alta and Snowbird is you don’t actually have to choose between the two. The two mountains are actually interconnected, with multiple gates allowing access from one resort to the other. Visitors can ski both mountains on the same day with an AltaBird ticket, an eligible Ikon Pass product, or by using a day at each mountain on the Mountain Collective. If you’re planning a weeklong trip—and you’re not a snowboarder—it probably makes sense to split your time between the two resorts, rather than sticking exclusively to one.
But one important change from previous years is that Alta is no longer included on the Ikon Base Pass. Instead, guests will have to upgrade to the Ikon Base Plus Pass or the full Ikon Pass to get Alta access—and therefore full AltaBird permissions—through this product. On the other hand, Snowbird remains on the Ikon Base Pass, offering 5 days of access with holiday blackouts for those who opt for Ikon’s cheapest offering. Those who opt for the Plus pass will get 5 days of holiday-blackout access shared between the two resorts, while those who opt for the full Ikon Pass will get 7 days of shared access with no holiday blackouts.
Snowbird is accessible on the Ikon Base Pass, but Alta is no longer included on this entry-level product.
Pricing
Advantage: Unknown (as of Oct. 2022)
Last year, ticket prices were pretty comparable. Alta hasn’t released their ticket rates for the upcoming season yet—they’re typically one of the last major resorts to do so—but Snowbird is hiking their rates across the board.
It remains to be seen whether Alta follows suit or becomes a better value prop than Snowbird for the upcoming season.
Unreleased for 2022-23 season
Adult 13-64: $142-$196 (15-22% increase)
Child 7-12: $85-$118 (15-21% increase)
Senior 65+: $121-$167 (15-23% increase)
Child 0-6: Free
Verdict
So when it comes to booking a Utah ski vacation, Alta and Snowbird present compelling packages for different groups. Alta has far more options for groups of different abilities and a footprint that feels just a little bit more superb, but Snowbird is slightly bigger, specializes more in terrain for aggressive, expert skiers, and actually allows snowboarders. But if you’re looking to make a vacation out of either mountain, they’re both top tier resorts.
Snowbird just edges out Alta in our Size, Challenge, and Lifts categories, while Alta has the slight upper hand in Resiliency, Terrain Diversity, Crowd Flow, and Mountain Aesthetic. The resorts score incredibly closely in our overall rankings, with Alta having a one-point edge over Snowbird, boasting a PeakRankings Mountain Score of 80 vs. Snowbird’s score of 79.
In our overall rankings, Alta earns our silver medal, ranking 2nd overall, while Snowbird isn’t far behind in 4th place. Both resorts outclass competitors across both the state and the country, with Snowbird earning our highest possible score for challenge, Alta earning our highest possible score for mountain aesthetic, and both resorts earning our highest possible score for snow quality.
For more information on these resorts, check out our comprehensive Alta and Snowbird mountain reviews. If you’re interested in seeing how they compare to other similar mountains, check out our Rockies, Utah, and full North American rankings.
