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Kirkwood Mountain Resort

4.6· 951 reviews
Average ratingExcellent
4.6/ 5

Based on 951 reviews

582%
414%
31%
20%
13%
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What reviewers say about Kirkwood Mountain Resort

Generated with AI from 951 reviews on Trustburn · updated 33 days ago

Customers generally describe favorable conditions and terrain, with the cross-section reviews often praising the variety of slopes, fast lifts, and family-friendly atmosphere; reviewers who left lower ratings tended to cite icy or ungroomed runs, limited restaurant options, and crowded entry conditions.
What does Kirkwood Mountain Resort do?

Discover Kirkwood Ski Resort, as described on file, is a ski and snowboard resort that also offers summer activities such as mountain biking, hiking, and a rock climbing wall. The listed excerpts focus on its slopes, lifts, lodging, and on-mountain food options.

What are the most common complaints about Kirkwood Mountain Resort?

The critical reviewers on file most commonly describe long waits, disorganization, and poor management at the entrance, along with complaints about high prices, lifts or runs being closed, and run conditions or snow quality they considered poor.

AI-generated from reviews on this page. Verify anything important with the company directly.

John Bozek
Reviews 1

Still my favourite after all these years! Even though it's been bought by Vail Resorts, they've managed to maintain the small ski hill feel while improving the amenities. The only draw back is the drive from Tahoe, about 40 mins vs 10 for Heavenly. The drive is super pretty though, through the Hope Valley, when the weather isn't stressing you out!

Jiyao KK
Reviews 1

Do not go here! Try heavenly and north star instead! This resort is lack of basic organize. You have to wait FOUR hours from the entrance to actually get to the mountain because of the bad management. They even blocked the highway 88 for 45 minutes which is ridiculous.

Ravid Lazinsky
Reviews 1

This resort is good, and has variety of slopes for all ski & snowboard levels. The runs are long enough to enjoy. Some of the slopes tend to be icy as the slopes are not groomed. The lifts are very fast here, and the lift operators are not always very attentive, so if you are a beginner or skiing with kids, make sure to ask to slow down the lifts.. The food in the restaurants is total junk, so make sure to bring your own food if you don't want to eat pizza/ hot dog/ french fries. Always expect traffic at the entrance, and plan accordingly.

John Regan
Reviews 1

Great snowboarding, with varying terrain. The Wall, Cornice Express and the Backside provide some epic advanced boarding with decent fall lines.
My only gripes are:
A) the age and speed of most of the lifts, they seriously need some updates.
B) the lack of souveigneers. I know this sounds trivial, but every resort I go to I buy a T-shirt, magnet, sticker and Christmas ornament. The options at Kirkwood were slim to say the least.

jarrett
Reviews 1

Great place to ski! They had a nice beginners area but the beginner runs weren't very long at all. I feel as if the place is a little more catered to advanced skiers and snowboarders. I also went two days in a row and noticed alot of ice patches. I don't know the logistics but 0 snow machines were places near the ice cause a few slippery spots.

Dinesh Yalla
Reviews 1

This is one of the top 5 ski-board resorts in norCal. The lift tickets cheaper on the higher end considering the service offered it isn't expensive. For rentals and ticket pick ups there is absolutely no waiting and service is really good. This place has good slopes for beginners at timber Creek and couple of intermmediate slopes also. Several other intermediate slopes are present on the side along with advanced n terrains spread across. Shuttle service is available every 15 minz. Overall this place is worth it's price.

Randy Tanaka
Reviews 1

With kids now Kirkwood is our mountain most frequently visited. They have great terrain for everyone, parking can get busy on weekends if you show up late, but it is better than or other pass options of Heavenly and Northstar. Having worked at Heavenly I still know that mountain better, but as time goes on I'll probably get to know KW better.

Charlie Shaeffer
Reviews 1

Not nearly as crowded because it's a bit further. The runs are solid blues to blacks and the people who come here are usually more experienced as a result. The lifts are not all express lifts but with the usual experience of almost no line it doesn't seem like it takes that long. One of my favorite places to go, definitely for those who want to avoid the crowds and don't mind driving a bit further to do it.

Andrew Chang
Reviews 1

Great terrain. Most snowfall in the region.

It's not super crowded . . . a little off the regular Tahoe beaten path may account for much of this.

Flip side is not a ton of dining options or night life so a schlep to South Lake Tahoe might be needed depending on what you want to do and eat.

michele browning
Reviews 1

It was an amazing place. It was already closed for the season, the little grocery store was still open. They make the best hot sandwiches on a snowy day. So much snow for the kids to play in. And the people in the store a super friendly and helpful. Need to go back when everything is open.

Russell Hudson
Reviews 1

Kirkwood is simply a great ski area. The mountain, the people, the amenities are all up there with much high priced resorts. There isn't a restaurant on top of the mountain or a gondola but the lift prices are way less that the big resorts. It is very family friendly and if you want the party atmosphere there is that too in the evening. I recommend.

Devon Waldron
Reviews 1

Pretty cool spot, a little south of Lake Tahoe with a nice variety of terrain. A little less expensive, a little less crowded, a little less bourgie than most of the Tahoe ski areas, though still a Vail resort. The conditions weren't great, but it might just have been the year, as most of the snow was "Sierra Cement," not very conducive to quality turns and laid back lines. Weather is weather, so I can't dock stars in good conscience for that.

Dale Ramsey
Reviews 1

Kirkwood is my favourite amongst the local Vail-owner resorts of Heavenly and Northstar. While I found the lifts somewhat antiquated, I did however like the fact that they ve stuck with them because the resort remains limited to a maximum of skiers at one time. The Wall was fun, the Sunrise bowl had so much variety and the options available to go for a walk to get better snow was amazing. The staff were great, the snow awesome when it s in plentiful supply and the terrain just fantastic. However, the village doesn t make sense if one can call it a village, the food is expensive and when a fresh dump arrives half of San Fran and Sacramento are in attendance. I hope to back again one day. WIFI access was great.

David Collins
Reviews 1

This is my go-to resort as someone who primarily does day trips from San Jose on weekdays either during light snow or the morning after a storm (not sure how weekends are). There's always parking near the lifts, and the lifts themselves usually have no wait time. Favorite areas: cool creek-pipe section under Solitude, and the Bowl area top left is a lot of fun especially on powder days. Staff is welcoming.

No Sacramento traffic, watch out cuz hwy 88 is frequently closed so check CalTrans and watch storm patterns before commuting from the west!

Caitlin Smith
Reviews 1

This would absolutely be 5 stars if it weren't for the fact they only had one person selling tickets. We waited over an hour just to get on the hill. Mountain is beautiful, nice range of runs and terrain. Staff was helpful and seemed to genuinely care that everyone was safe and having a good time.

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About Kirkwood Mountain Resort

Discover Kirkwood Ski Resort.

Address
675 north 1st street