What constitutes a great ski town?
If you're 23 years old and single the answer is different than if you have a couple of youngsters zooming over the snow with you.
But there are ski towns that meet everyone's needs, places you want to wake up in at the start of the day, dine in after hours on the slopes, and do whatever the evening suggests.
Let's start with the premise that good snow is good snow, that all the resorts herein produce a fairly similar product. But if only seven hours maximum are spent on the slopes, what about the rest of the day? Here is a review of seven great ski towns in this country.
Burlington, Vt.: Most savvy ski parents want to send their kids to a college town that they want to visit with an eye to skiing themselves. The University of Vermont is therefore a good goal for the kids. After all, a cheap season ski pass is the least they can do to pay back their parents' sacrifice. There are seven ski areas within an hour of this lakeshore city, with the jewel being Stowe, a natty ski town in its own right. Burlington is served by a small but serviceable airport. The nightlife ranges from a few dozen excellent restaurants to some clubs that get rolling on the weekend with good live music. Of course, you'll be sharing it with the college crowd.
Stowe, Vt.: Despite its rather glitzy image -- as supported by a number of first-rate restaurants and upscale shops -- Stowe is much grittier than it seems at first look. With the daunting Mount Mansfield in its midst, Stowe has been an outdoor sports town for more than a century, and caters to a fly-fishing crowd once the snow begins melting into the nearby trout streams. The ski accommodations range from bunkhouse-style to high-end inns, and average motel rooms. But for those who like fine dining after a day on the slopes, this is the town.
Woodstock, Vt.: This is one of the preppiest, prettiest, picture postcard towns in all of ski land. Despite its magazine image, Woodstock is an old-school area where skiing first began. Suicide Six, just outside of town, had the first lift-operated skiing in the country, and areas ranging from the historic Ascutney to the huge and all-purpose Killington are well within reach. Woodstock and its environs have decent dining, with a true first-class restaurant at the famed Woodstock Inn.