Hello....Can anyone help me. I want to go skiing or snowboarding at Mammouth with my daughter. I have looked online, and it seems that they have their own little village there! and that you have to stay there, in order to actually take part? Has anyone been? and if so, can you give me any advice. The hotels in Mammouths village are really expensive, way too much for our budget, so I was wondering if you can stay outside, and then use the facilities? (obviously pay) We%26#39;d like a lesson or two...but it all seems bookable, only if you book their hotels. We have never done this before, and are absolutely in the dark on this. Any help would be great.
Thanks....
Skiing %26amp; snowboarding at Mammouth CA...need help
We go to Mammoth every summer but we actually went for a week over the MLK holiday. While it%26#39;s true that there is a little village area I wouldn%26#39;t say that very much goes on there. The housing/condos are on the upper floors and the bottom floors have the shops and restaurants. It%26#39;s not yet that robust becuase it%26#39;s still being built up. There is a gondola that leaves from the village and dumps you out at the Canyon chair lift. That lift area gets pretty crowded. We actually stayed really close to Juniper Springs which is just next to the eagle express which is a much faster load area. We stayed at the Summit Condos and it was easy ski in and out. It is up the street from the Town as is the village area. I would not nor have I ever stayed at the Village. I would not nor have I ever stayed at the top where the Mammoth Mountain Inn is located as it is too far up and the drive to town is required to do anything. The eagle express chair lift is pretty close to the Village so if you wanted you can certainly go there. There are free shuttles all day to drive you around.
Here%26#39;s the link to the Mammoth Mountain wher eyou can get info for tix. My daughter took group lessons for snowboarding and we didn%26#39;t stay in the village.
http://www.mammothmountain.com/
We rented through Mammoth Premiere:
Here%26#39;s one of the units our group rented:
mammothpremiere.com/properties/鈥u67.shtml
It has an awesome view and is super close to the eagle express. We just walked over every day. Also free covered parking which is important.
We have also stayed right at juniper springs though this guy who is great:
http://www.summitgateway.com/
We have also stayed at Mammoth Greesn but that is a little further away, not much, but is pretty expensive.
Need more info?
Skiing %26amp; snowboarding at Mammouth CA...need help
Check out the TripAdvisor for hotels at Mammoth as they indicate an ';average'; price per night. With that, then check to see how close it is to a shuttle to take you where you want to go. Once you get there, I%26#39;m sure there will be plenty of answers to your questions.
Google ';Shuttle at Mammoth Lakes'; and you will find a map of the various routes.
Go to www.visitmammoth.com and click on lodging to see all the lodging in Mammoth. There are many, many, many options other than the mountain-owned condos.
There%26#39;s an Econo Lodge, a TravelLodge, etc, as well as many condos and inns.
Thank you so much for your messages. I will look at all the links. I cant actually visualise anything (probably my age!!) I am finding this so hard to organise. I actually live in the UK, and my daughter is in CA, I am going to visit her in 3 weeks time, and I asked her if we could go snowboarding (I am nearly 60 and want to try it before I am drawing my pension!!) She is happy to take me, but doesnt have time to research anything, due to a very busy work schedule. (she has never been before either) Is the Mammouth mountain a free space? I mean here in the UK if you want to go to a mountain, it belongs to no-one, and you can climb, ski, do anything. So...is Mammouth owned by the complex? or is it just a mountain, anyone can go to, and companies have places hotels and shops there. Also, I dont know what a gondola is? It is a boat in the UK, so I am guessing you cant drive all the way? I keep seeing this on sites re this mountain. Do you have to get a boat to the mountain? or is a gondola something else in the US? Maybe a gondola is the lift thing that takes you up? We have no equipment at all, and will need it. Will they have everything to hire, even gloves? and trousers/jackets do you think? Also, do you know if there is snow all year round, or just in the winter months. I am so sorry I sound stupid! Thank you all for your posts, its really kind of you.
Actually, what is really confusing me, is this.
Do I book and pay for a couple of lessons first. Book equipment first. Book accomodation first. It is all a catch 22, because if I book a hotel or motel, and they dont have room for us to ski or snowboard, then its a waste. Or, if we pay lessons thencan find anywhere to stay, we lose the money. I just dont know what I should do first, Their site is not cleat to me. I looked again on the mammouthmountain site, and it doesnt have a %26#39;contact us%26#39; link - nor does it let you book lessons, ?
The mountain does not sell out, nor do they sell out of rental equipment, so don%26#39;t worry.
First, book your hotel. Many of the condos and hotels on the site I suggested, www.visitmammoth.com, offer free lift tickets with your stay - be sure to click on the special offers area of the site.
Don%26#39;t worry about anything else until you get to Mammoth. As far as being an open mountain, you cannot hike the resort itself and not pay for a lift ticket (you can hike to different chutes and runs from the top of a lift). There are other mountains in the Mammoth Lakes area that you can hike and ski for free - but you have to be an expert and have some avalanche knowledge.
I also recommend visiting the mammothmountain.com forums and asking questions there, the locals (like me) are very helpful. There is also a direct phone number (rather than a 800 number) for the Mammoth Visitors Bureau on the visitmammoth.com site.
The MLK holiday is one of the really crowded times and we had no problems booking accomodations, equipment rentals, and lessons. Mammoth Mountain is actually quite large with like 26 chair lifts and dozens of runs.
You should decide what you want to spend first and then find a place that%26#39;s suitable. A condo is perfect as you can eat in if that suits your budget better than having all your meals out.
To help you visualize the whole village thing let%26#39;s start with the town of Mammoth. It%26#39;s like lots of mountain towns in that it has shops, restaurants, a grocery and movie theater, etc. The Village is but a small area west of the town. The gondola is an aerial tram that takes skiers up the mountain for skiing.
Unless you have GPS I%26#39;d rule out hiking in the winter. The snow was very deep when we were there in Jan and it has continued to snow. As stated before there is avalanche danger in areas not maintained by the resort.
The ski lifts and runs are built and maintained by a private company so you must pay to use them.
You will have no problem getting lessons or renting gear. Not only does the resort rent gear but there are businesses in town that will also rent you gear. You can even wait until you arrive to make these arrangements if you feel the least bit aprehensive. Mammoth Mountain has a huge staff.
Thank you SO very much. This has been really helpful to me. I am going to stop worrying now, book my flight to LA, book a hotel (it%26#39;s only going to be for 2 nights in Mammouth anyway) I can actually understand the whole thing now. I just thought it was a mountain (a single mountain) you parked at the bottom, and were taken up, possibly by the hotels services.....THATS why I thought I had to use one of their hotels, and bearing in mind I though it was one little mountain.
My daughter, as she was busy, sent me the link to mytripadvisor, and I had no idea people were so helpful, I cant thank you enough.
This will be so much fun! I tried surfing twice, and broke my wrist ....lets see what I break this time! but you know, it%26#39;ll be worth it - I dont want to have any regrets in my life, I want to try everything. Nothing like this was available when I was in my teens, you couldnt even fly to America unless you were rich....people went by boat. So,,,,I am not going to let any opportunity pass me by - I wont be hiking, but I have to try a snowboard and ski%26#39;s - now to find a warm hat on ebay!
Thank you SO much. Maggi from Berkshire, england.
Maggie, be sure to rent wrist guards with your snowboard. I%26#39;m sure you can rent ski clothing, but I don%26#39;t know where. That%26#39;s a question for the visitors bureau or the Mammoth Mountain Forums (like this one, but attached to the official Mammoth site -
http://forums.mammothmountain.com/forum)
And by the way, Mammoth is by no means a small little mountain. It%26#39;s one of the largest ski resorts in America with over 30 chair lifts (including the gondolas - which is an enclosed small tram-like car that takes you to the top of the mountain). The ski resort is huge.
The town itself is small, with lots of restaurants, cafes, shops (some discount outlets like Ralph Lauren and Coach), movie theaters.
Mammoth Mountain Resort will rent you clothing as well. Specifically they have the Bib and jackets for children and adults.
Here%26#39;s the link for rates:
mammothmountain.com/ski_ride/鈥?/a>
At the bottom of this page is a more complete list of gear rentals including wrist guards and clothing:
http://www.skirentermammoth.com/rates.html
