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Beaver Creek Ski Resort is the fifth-largest ski resort in Colorado, within the United States. Known by locals and regular visitors as ‘The Beav,’ the resort is notable for its excellent terrain mix and luxury reputation. It abounds with excellent beginner and intermediate terrain but also offers steeps and deep glades that generate plenty of excitement amongst strong skiers. It has 187 named runs of 93 mi (150 km) covering a skiable area of over 2,000 acres (809 hectares) and 25 ski lifts. Beaver Creek opens in late November and closes in mid-April, conditions dependent.
Beaver Creek Ski Resort is in Eagle County, Colorado, US, in the Sawatch Range of the larger Southern Rocky Mountains. Most of the resort’s terrain is north-facing, providing excellent views of the nearby Gore Range and improving snow retention and quality.
The Holy Cross Wilderness Area and the massive White River National Forest surround the resort. Mount of the Holy Cross (14,009 ft / 4,270 m), one of Colorado’s many 14ers, is a nearby peak presenting a challenging but rewarding climb for summer visitors.
Getting to Beaver Creek Ski Resort is easy, not only if you are in Colorado but also from other states and abroad — such as Canada, Mexico, or even Latin America and Europe.
Denver’s airport is 128 mi (206 km) to the east. The Eagle County Airport (EGE, typically called the Vail or Eagle Vail Airport) is 25 mi (40 km) west of Beaver Creek, also along Interstate 70. Both airports receive flights from all over the country and, in Denver’s case, the world.
Interstate 70 (I-70) connects Avon, the town next to Beaver Creek Ski Resort, to Denver, the largest city in Colorado. The resort is 105 mi (169 km) west of downtown Denver.
Those not staying in the area can pay $15 to park for 1–3 hours in one of two garages near the base or $35 for a full day. A cheaper option is to park in the Bear and Elk lots, which costs $10 for a full day. There’s a bus every 10 minutes to take guests from these lots up to the Lower Beaver Mountain Lift.
Denver and EGE airports offer shuttle services to Beaver Creek via Epic Mountain Express. If you’re landing in Eagle, this will cost $49 compared to $129 for those arriving in Denver.
During the winter, four daily Bustang buses of the Colorado Regional Bus Services take passengers from Denver’s Union Station to Avon. The fare is $19. Light rail carries guests from the airport to the bus station. Those arriving from EGE can take the hourly Eagle County Bus (ECO bus) to Avon for under $10.
Beaver Creek Ski Resort has three main base areas: Beaver Creek, Bachelor Gulch, and Arrowhead Village. All three are directly connected to the much larger Avon area. Free buses carry locals and guests through the central district to the base ski lifts in minutes.
Like other Colorado ski resorts, Beaver Creek tends to open in late November and close by mid-April. It’s also not unique in that it gets busiest between Christmas and New Year, with another bump in the crowds during MLK and President’s Day Weekends and the March spring break. Weekends are busier throughout the season as day skiers come up from the cities.
Nevertheless, Beaver Creek is much quieter than Vail and Breckenridge. Even during peak winter, you won’t encounter many lines outside a few base lifts early in the day.
The Beav gets the light, fluffy snow that makes Colorado legendary with all sorts of skiers. Colder overnight temperatures, low relative humidity, and less wind combine to produce light snow that is dryer and less sticky. Whether you love fresh powder or groomers, the Colorado cold smoke’s texture will make you smile.
It snows consistently from mid-December through the end of March. As a baseline, you can expect 44–52 in (112–132 cm) fresh snowfall per month, although this can vary drastically. Warmer temperatures and a lower base depth will mean exposed objects in the late and early seasons, but these seasons are few and far between at Beaver Creek.
Skiers can also expect a good deal of sunshine all winter long. From December through April, Beaver Creek gets well over 50 more hours of sun a month than, for example, St. Moritz in Switzerland.
In terms of temperature, it doesn’t tend to get particularly cold. January is the coldest month, with average high temperatures just below freezing. It tends to get frigid at night, often in the single digits (Fahrenheit), but the air feels warmer due to the low relative humidity.
The Beav resort has expanded its snowmaking capacity in recent years. Almost all of this is near the bottom of the mountain and in busy areas. Like many Colorado resorts, the management has invested in snowmaking to ensure the resort can open earlier in the season, close later, and act as a saving grace in years with meager snowfall.
Like almost all ski resorts in Colorado (Aspen is the notable exception), Beaver Creek is a contiguous ski area. You get from any part of the ski area to any other without walking or taking transit lifts between the separate peaks.
Beaver Creek comprises two halves:
The resort’s altitude ranges from 7,400 ft (2,255 m) at the Arrowhead base to 11,440 ft (3,488 m) at the top of Beaver Creek Mountain, so the maximum vertical drop is 4,040 ft (1,231 m).
The Strawberry Express connects these two parts at the base, while the Larkspur Lift connects them higher up. Fortunately, neither of these locations are bottlenecks. They are easy to navigate, even if you aren’t familiar with the names of runs and lifts.
Generally speaking, beginner and intermediate terrain is found in the east and west, while experts prefer to ski the upper mountain in between.
A sizable part of the mountain between Beaver Creek Village and Bachelor Gulch is primarily private land. This area is packed with large houses and crisscrossed by roads (for both skiers and cars). It’s a fun way to get home at the end of the day (you can pick up some speed if it isn’t too crowded), but not part of the main ski area.
The best thing about the Beav is its excellent mix of terrain — there are many great runs for skiers of all abilities. About 19% of runs are for beginners, 43% for intermediates, and 38% for advanced skiers.
Beaver Creek follows the standard North American color scheme when grading the difficulty of runs (different from that used in Europe). Here’s how to make sense of it:
The resort has three main base areas: Beaver Creek Village on the east and Bachelor Gulch and Arrowhead on the west end. A fourth base area at the Lower Beaver Mountain Lift is known as Beaver Landing, but there isn’t much there, and the only skiable terrain leading to the lift comes in the form of long roads. However, the landing connects to Avon via a short gondola over the river.
Despite it’s pension for luxury, The Beav is the local favorite mountain on a powder day. There’s much more steep terrain and far fewer crowds than neighboring Vail.
Beaver Creek Village has a beginner area serviced by a gondola and a chairlift. It’s also home to the Centennial Lift (a ‘chondola’ which runs both six-seater chairs and, after every sixth chair, gondola cars). Centennial is usually one of the busiest chairs on the mountain. Skiers can take several blue or black runs down to the base or ride up the Cinch Chairlift to Beaver Creek’s highest point. From there, you can ski all 2.7 mi (4.4 km) of the Centennial run down to the base.
Other notable parts of the easternmost end of Beaver Creek include the beginner area served by the Red Buffalo Lift, which ends next to Cinch at the summit of Beaver Creek Mountain, and the more advanced runs in the Rose Bowl.
The Stone Creek Chutes are a powderhound favorite and some of Beaver Creek’s most intense slopes. Though seldom open (they need a lot of snow and present avalanche danger), the chutes can be the highlight of an expert skier’s day if conditions are right.
The Strawberry Park Express connects Beaver Creek Village to the western part of the ski area. It serves a handful of black and blue runs. Thresher Glade is a highlight and a great place to find powder amongst the aspens and connects to McCoy Park, an excellent beginner area that doubles as an on-mountain cross-country and snowshoeing zone.
Bachelor Gulch and Arrowhead are below the McCoy Bowl.
My favorite part of Beaver Creek Ski Resort is the area between Beaver Creek Mountain and Bachelor Gulch, where three chairs meet at Talons Restaurant: the Birds of Prey, Grouse Mountain, and Larkspur Express lifts. Each gives you access to a different face dominated by advanced terrain.
Birds of Prey is probably the most famous Bowl in Beaver Creek. Hosting over a dozen World Cup events, Birds of Prey is long, steep, and usually quite bumpy. The lift rises a whopping 2,160 vertical ft (658 m) and accesses the base of the Cinch chairlift.
Grouse Mountain Express serves similar terrain. Every trail down is black or double-black. Not quite as long as Birds of Prey, Grouse Mountain is nevertheless an excellent area for experts looking to improve their technique in the moguls or go fast down steep cruisers. It also serves Royal Elk Glade, an excellent tree run and a great place to make fresh tracks even when it hasn’t snowed in days.
The Larkspur Express serves more intermediate terrain: it has blue runs alongside blacks. The Larkspur run (a blue) is a great cruiser to do laps on — it’s usually much less crowded than Centennial or Arrowhead. You can access the McCoy Park area from the top of Larkspur or ski down to Arrowhead and Bachelor Gulch. Expert skiers comfortable in the backcountry will surely want to try the out-of-bounds run at the top. Go left along the short road and exit through the gate.
I like to take turns riding each of these three ski lifts. They offer an excellent terrain mix and conveniently start at the same place, so you don’t waste time moving around. Talons Restaurant is a great place to take a break (you’ll need one if you spend much time skiing Birds of Prey). In addition to the bar and cafeteria fare, it has a large and lovely sun-drenched patio with plenty of seating.
Here’s a summary of the slopes, ski lifts, and other features of Beaver Creek Ski Resort:
Slopes
Ski lifts
Other features and services
McCoy Park serves as Beaver Creek’s nordic and snowshoeing center. It has about a dozen miles of trails. The area also has its own ski school for those who want to learn Nordic skiing. You can rent gear at the Nordic Sports Center at the bottom of the Strawberry Lift. It’s possible to spend the morning downhill skiing while having a go at cross-country in the afternoon.
Those who take a break from downhill skiing and take things slow on McCoy’s tree-lined trails are rewarded with spectacular views of the Sawatch and Gore Ranges. The vistas are some of the best in Beaver Creek.
Though not as plentiful or varied as the routes you’ll find a few miles (kilometers) down the road at Vail Ski Resort, Beaver Creek does have options for backcountry skiers.
Beaver Creek is on the Epic Pass. It pays to plan ahead if you’re considering purchasing a pass. Pick one up before Labor Day (the first Monday in September), and you’ll pay $859.
There’s also a cheaper option called the Epic Local. It goes for $639 when you buy before Labor Day but is blacked out at Beaver Creek between Christmas and New Year’s Day, as well as a few other holidays throughout the winter. Epic Pass holders get a 20% discount on lessons and food at on-mountain eateries.
The price of day ski passes varies quite a bit, but you can save if you buy early. The dates vary, but buying day ski passes before the first week in December can save as much as $90 a day.
You don’t have to choose your dates — pick the number of days you want to ski, and you’ll pay significantly less. At peak winter, one-day lift tickets cost as much as $280, but this can decrease substantially with an advance purchase, especially when you buy three or more tickets.
Nevertheless, it’s crucial to consider why the resort offers a discount for these advance purchases. They realize that unforeseen circumstances can often affect ski trip plans, not to mention snow conditions.
Beaver Creek’s tourism office is managed through Visit Vail Valley’s Avon office.
Visit Vail Valley
101 Fawcett Rd., Ste. 240, 81620, Avon, Colorado, United States
+19704761000
There are several places to eat on the mountain at Beaver Creek Ski Resort. The Spruce Saddle Lodge, Talons Restaurant, and Mamie’s Mountain Grill offer cafeteria-style dining. You will find a bar, snacks, hot food, and grab-and-go options at all three.
Unfortunately, Beaver Creek’s on-mountain dining has taken a turn for the worse in recent years. You can still get a great burger and hot chili, but there used to be many more options in terms of cuisine. The Broken Arrow at the base in Arrowhead has a broader range of options, but it’s a bit out of the way unless you’re skiing in that area. Still, no one batted an eye when I ordered an Impossible Burger with bacon.
Beaver Creek also used to have more options like the decadent and members-only Zach’s Cabin, but it is no longer open for lunch.
Avon has a few large grocery stores and a Walmart, so finding something to eat when you’re not skiing is simple enough. Plenty of exemplary restaurants exist in town once you’ve put the skis away. Rocky Mountain Taco is a local favorite for Mexican fare, and Sauce On The Creek has superb Italian food. Nozowa has a great deal on an après ski bento box and quality food.
Beaver Creek Ski Resort has a reputation for being posh and expensive. Bachelor Gulch in particular is awash with large ski-in / ski-out homes, some of which are available as vacation rentals. It’s also home to a Ritz Carlton. Arrowhead feels more homey and less like a resort, but it doesn’t have the hotels that Bachelor Gulch does. Beaver Creek Village has a few hotels within walking distance of the slopes. These are cheaper than Bachelor Gulch but still pricey.
But don’t worry: you will find more affordable lodging options in Avon. Obviously, these won’t be ski-in / ski-out, but the area has an excellent free bus service, so it won’t take long to get going in the morning. Some are even within walking distance of the Riverfront Gondola that takes you to the Beaver Landing base area.
The après scene in Beaver Creek Ski Resort is relatively low-key. The village has a handful of bars, but they aren’t particularly lively — it’s more of an upscale place. There are certainly good times to be had, but don’t expect any late nights or dancing (if you’re looking for that, Bridge Street in Vail Village is the nearest option).
In terms of events, Beaver Creek does Christmas and New Year’s events. It even has a weekly light show with fireworks called Thursday Night Lights. What’s more, the whole area is ablaze with fairy lights for most of the winter season.
Beaver Creek also regularly hosts events for the World Cup and other professional sporting events.
Beaver Creek is quite close to other great resorts. As I mentioned, Vail is the most notable one, just a few miles down the road.
