We've done the un-guided snowmobiling twice now with Nova Guides. Both times staff was very nice and helpful. This last time we planned a 3 hour ride but were running behind an hour, so we figured we'd only get to ride 2 hours. Luckily with the sleds we got they were able to push our time back and give us that extra hour without us even asking.
Knowledgeable, friendly, safety-first staff. ATV ride was a blast. Views spectacular.
The best snowmobiling in Colorado Our guide Demetrie was so awesome and helpful !!! Beautiful scenery, great well manicured well worn trails , 2 hrs of absolute fun and adrenaline!! don t go anywhere else !!!
Even though we arrived an hour prior to closing we were well accomadated with true professionals. The ATV ride/ adventure exceeded our expectations. Definitely will be back for the fly Fishing and Archery.
I did my booking online and didn't have any issues with it. I had Dave as a tour guide who was awesome. It was an all day tour and I was the only guest. I thought it would've been cancelled but to my surprise it wasn't. Dave was a lot of fun and a wealth of knowledge about the area. Especially the 10th Mountain Division. I wasn't sure what to expect but had a lot of fun. Even when the weather was very windy (20+ mph) and below zero when accounting for the wind chill.
As someone who used to be a tour guide in the past (for an unrelated activity) I was very impressed with Dave. I would definitely do it again but might go for the more sporty snowmobile in the future. The 600 was a bit underpowered for me but I'm a pretty big guy so I'm sure that wasn't helping. I should add you should know your limits and not get to sure of yourself. Take things slow until you get a feel for what you and the machine can do
I can't speak any higher of this great business and its staff. They truly have a great thing going on. I strongly recommend them to anyone in the Vail area looking to have a great experience. My family and I enjoyed it so much we went back twice in the same week. The staff are outstanding, the trails and scenery are awesome and we had a blast riding the 4 wheeler's up the mountain. I wish I had more hands so I could them 4 thumbs up!!!
Keep up the good work guys, we'll be back when we go back to Colorado.
The snowmobiling here in White River National Forest was perhaps the most fun I've had in my life.
Our family had a great time. Justin, our guide, was informative and attentive throughout the tour. The staff was friendly and patient. We are looking forward to our next visit.
Great location to ride ATVs they have a beautiful venue and outdoor area. Almost fariy tale like
We went snowmobiling here and the staff was very helpful and accommodating. The machines worked flawlessly and the scenery was breathtaking. We ended up watching some March madness afterwards in their dining room and found the food unexpectedly delicious!
The best experience with the most knowledgeable staff. We ve rented from them in the past and have had the best experiences every time. If you follow the rules you will have the best time.
Amazing year-round activities. I went here in the winter for snowmobiling. They also have ATV and Polaris RZR in the summer. If you are doing snowmobiling, DRESS WARM!! It is way up in the mountains, and you're going fast, the snowmobiles do have heated handle bars, but your face, snd body, you need to keep warm, as well. Really nice staff, they provide helmets for you. They offer guided tours, where you join a group, and a guide takes you on a tour. You can also do self guided, where your group takes snowmobiles, a map and goes out and rides around. Highly recommend
Our group paid for "high performance Polaris" sleds, but were given standard BRP snowmobiles without any explanation or refund. The trails are just roads that are snow covered. There is no ability to play in powder or free roam. One member of our group was aggressively lectured (yelled at for about 5 minutes) by their staff for going too fast on the roads. I was behind him and we were just moving at a fun pace, not at all unsafe. This caused us to cut our day short, as it's no fun to put-put along snow covered roads.
Conclusion: if you want to ride standard snowmobiles on roads at a slow pace, then you'll have a good time. Their lodge area is pretty nice, so you can get food, O2, etc. Know that it is a difficult location to get to.
We attempted to schedule a tour with Nova Guides. When we called we were told that there was a 4-seat minimum and as there were only two people in our party they would not be able to assist us today. We offered to pay for all four seats in order to fulfill the minimum obligation. Staff told us they would call us back in just a few minutes as they were sure they can make that happen they just wanted to get in touch with the operator.
After just under an hour we called back to determine if there was an issue before we started heading that direction. The same staff member answer the phone informed us that there was no tours available today and there would not be any tours available today and that we could only be on for tomorrow.
After briefly recapping the previous phone call that we had had we were informed the exact same information.
Waste of time. Literally.
$600 sale not worth a phone call back.
Cheers
With the exception of our guide and the service in the restaurant, the people at check in are about as rude as you might imagine. If you have neck or back issues - nix this place - the trails were not groomed and the ride is aggressive and could be dangerous. I ended up with $600 worth of chiropractic work after our tour - the trails were horrible and even the employees were talking about how horrible the grooming was. That all said, the views at 12,500 feet were amazing. If you can make it back in one piece it is worth it?
It s great and all that they bought brand new ATV vehicles but I never could imagine being charged over $400 for scratching an ATV. Terrain was also subpar.
Had an incredible time on the half day snowmobile tour. Guide Chris took us from 9000 feet to 13000 feet high in the Rockies. Must try experience.
Favorite thing we did in Vail... Ride ATVs. Everyone was super nice and cool and we had a blast!
Buyer beware. I rented a snowmobile January, 2017 from Nova Guides, Inc. The snowmobiles that Nova Guides, Inc. rented looked nice. The terrain in the area was beautiful with flat cruising areas and verdant mountain trails. The trails themselves were rough and bumpy, which made the experience interesting and fun. However, when I returned my snowmobile I was charged $353.75 for ski damages on top of my 3 hour rental $198.09, totaling $551.84 by a big strong scary looking man at the front desk for a bent right ski. Buyer beware of coercive tactics Nova Guides uses to collect their extra money. The terrain is rough, but the snowmobiles rented apparently cannot handle the terrain. Nova Guides, Inc. is happy to try to bridge that gap by making customers pay for any and all snowmobile repairs when returned.
Wonderful time Snowmobiling. Greg and 'Spoon' and the entire staff were easy to work with and the snowmobiling was fantastic! Lots of terrain so decide if you want to make a day or 1/2 day of it. Lots of fun on the sleds!
This was our 3rd trip to ATV at Nova Guides. Always a great time, the area is beautiful. Staff is great. Thank you!
Oh my gosh I love snowmobiling! This outfit in Colorado is top of the line. They are legit!
Super informative and friendly. They really understand the different levels of fun!
My friend and I did the high performance guided tour last week with Derek. He was a great guide and very knowledgeable of the area and the snow mobiles. We were treated like we had known him our whole life and just met up as friends to go ride. The only downside is that 3 hours goes by extremely fast when you are having this much fun. Cheers Dereck! See you next time.
we did guided snowmobile tour with Perry, he was awesome! the views were incredible, went with kids 14 and 17 and felt safe for them to drive. would love to come back in the summer.
Great ATV Tours and beautiful scenery. Worth every penny.
Exceptional location surrounded by 14'ers. Friendly, helpful, knowledgeable staff. Utv & cabin rentals. Some of the best 4wheeling in Colorado with georgeous views
We had a great time. Stan was our guide and he was funny and helpful.
Went for a wedding and it's was perfect. Beautiful surroundings and great service.
Went snowmobiling on a guided morning tour with park ranger Bob. He picked us up at our hotel on time and transported us to Camp Hale. We got an informative history lesson about the area during the van ride. At the location he fitted our group with boots, helmets and snow suits. The tour was amazing and to date the most fun and breath taking views I have ever had. Bob gave great instruction on how to operate the machine which calmed the initial nerves. We were in Beaver Creek 7 days and this was the highlight of the trip. The lunch was very good as well.
Friendly ,very fun, great instructors, family fun for everyone scenery was amazing
Excellent day!!! Great people!! Fun place fun tour loved it!!!!
Such a present time here! It s a fun ride. The view is so nice too. Derek was a great guide. He took care of everyone in the group.
ATV rides and beautiful scenery. Great guides. Don't miss the bailey's hot chocolate afterwards
We did the half day snowmobile ride with Tori, and it was amazing! We had a nice, clear day, so we got some awesome views! Tori was a great guides - always making sure we were comfortable, safe and having fun. It was my first time ever on a snowmobile, and our group covered ~25 miles in our 3 hours together. Amazing! We got to see Machine Gun Ridge, and it was beautiful at about 12,000 feet.
The tour was one of my favorite, and I highly recommend. If you re on the fence at all....do it!!
Had a great experience booking direct with Nova Guides. Slight miscommunication on a discount I thought I had with them. After sleeping on it, I now realize I was being an entitled brat. So if the manager from 1/19 sees this review, I m sorry. I will absolutely do business with Nova Guides again in the future.
Great experience and Jacob was an amazing guide on our guided snowmobile tour.
I took a side by side tour. The equipment was good. The lunch was good. However what made the entire experience was our guide Chuck. He was extremely knowledgeable and so passionate. If you have him as a guide there is no way you will have a bad time. The tour was worth double what I paid. I am booking a trip back in the winter solely to go snowmobiling with him.
We had the BEST time yesterday in the RZRs! There was 7 of us ranging in age from 13 to 60 years old and everyone had fun. The trails were easy to follow and varied in terrain. The views were amazing and the vehicles were SO exciting to drive.
Had a great unguided side by side experience! The vehicles were great, service was excellent!
This place is awesome! We come every year to experience the snow mobile adventures they offer! Super friendly staff and they have food and hot cocoa or coffee for after. We can t wait to go back!
My husband and grandkids stopped in to reserve an excursion for this coming weekend. He decided to have the grandchildren give snowmobiling a try. The guide was AMAZING with the kids. So patient and the children had a wonderful time. We are excited for our adventure this weekend. The lodge and the staff are friendly and helpful. A must if your visiting the area.
Watched one of their drivers motoring eastbound on I-70, mile marker 174-5, 8:15am, 13 Dec 2017, with a burrito in his left hand and a smart phone in his right. What was guiding him?
I would very easily give this place a one star.
I give it a 5 because luckily everything turned out well and things worked out quite fairly.
We had a party of six unguided with reservations.
The staff isn t really the friendliest, they don t really seem to care about the customer service, but they sure want you to know all the fees they look forward to charging you.
They do a visual check of the snowmobiles before sending you out but one of ours was missing a coolant cap which led to coolant spilling and engine overheating.
There is no way to communicate with the HQ once you re out since there is no reception and they don t give you a walkie.
3 hours into our ride, one bike shut off due to overheating and a couple of us rode back to base as fast as possible to get help and they took over an hour to head out(because fees apply the longer were late).
They also accused me of breaking 2 metal bolts on my bike from using the lift bar they specifically told me to pull on if i got stuck in snow. Either those are some weak ass bolts or they didn t have them set right.
The mechanic who knows Ted my bike wanted to charge me for that before even going out to look for my sister and the rest of the squad.
Luckily i asked for the owner and he was much more reasonable.
After 3 hours of waiting, the employee finally brought my friends back and realized that the damage was not due to our negligence but theirs, so he wasn t able to charge us like he wanted too and he even gave us a refund for the one damaged bike.
Again, because we ended up paying less and didn t get screwed with their enormous fees I ll give them a five and also i had a blast out there.
But the staff sucks.
Luckily their owner is a smart business man.
If you re going, just make sure to stand your ground before they screw you.
Very professional staff, great equipments and gear.
Great experience.
Full marks to the Nova Guides crew. Machines were new, briefing was good and pre-departure damage assessment was detailed.
It isn t cheap, and we also took the optional insurance as some of the previous reviews were less than complimentary on the owner s attitude to damage and cost. However, never done it before, so it was money well spent.
We didn t take a guide and went off by ourselves for 2 hours of extreme fun. In that 2 hours, we pretty much did all of the prepared trails. Although it was cold, strongly recommend getting out early in the morning.
The machines aren t amazingly quick, or nimble, but for the trails that we were on, perfectly adequate. For beginners, there is probably more than enough power.
Full marks to Boomer who briefed us on the way out and did the damage check when we got back. All the staff were engaged and informative, but Boomer was the star of the day.
Our guide man was super cool from the time we got on the transportation van all threw the tour!! Shout out to Kyle
Friendly and professional staff. Beautiful views and very accommodating.
Went on the snow cat tour we were bored out of our minds. The ride up took forever with no narration on the area of Camp Hale. Extremely over priced not even worth half of the 500.00 we paid. We were charged for a 2yr old and the cat wasn't even half full. The only highline was the stop at the top of the mountain altitude 12,700ft. Lunch was good but not needed either before or after the boring tour. Don't do it as far as the 5 adults we had on board.
balls to the walls fun snowmobiling today will be back asap.
Fantastic trip with Nova Guides! Our first time snowmobiling and they made us feel incredibly comfortable. Friendly staff, great instructions, and top notch equipment. Views are beautiful and trails are fun to ride. We'll be back!
ATV Tour With Dave and Pete was awesome. They took excellent care of us from the time they pick us up until they dropped us off. Gave us lots of info about the local points of interest and history.
This guide service has it all. Excellent adventures at Nova Guides
The tour guides are awesome!!! Excellent experience and our guide Matt offered many laughs.
Wow what an amazing experience!!!!
Very affordable for what you get!!! The equipment was brand new!!! Highly recommend
The tour started 2 hours late and we sat around waiting without explanation. Additionally, the time
on the mountain was much shorter than advertised (only 2 hours in length). Although many told me that discounts would be given to active duty soldiers from the 10th Mountain, the manager was more concerned with making a buck and stated no discounts during the Holiday season (when soldiers have leave). If you are looking for a historic tour of the 10th Mountain you would be better served to grab some skis or snowshoes, self study, and do the tour yourself. Very little was covered and the remains of the main camp structures were not even driven by. Great scenery, very friendly guide, but the management was not interested supporting active duty soldiers on a quest to learn more about those that founded the 10th Mountain as they had advertised.
There guides are extremely fun and kind and the experience was amazing! Snow Mobiling was surprisingly easy to pick up. I would recommend this to anyone visiting Colorado.
An excellent experience!! Great team, great fun, amazing location. Shane was the perfect guide for our team building ATV outing and exploring.
amazing! we took a unguided SBS rental for 2 hrs. and it was lots of fun. nice staff very friendly, lots of trails. nice and cold up there.
thanx so much.
Rented snowmobiles with a couple buddies and had a great time. Staff very helpful and nice. Great views all around.
Freaking awesome. Beautiful snow biking in the winter. It was a nice snowy day perfect for snowmobiling the trails.
The management/ customer service at this place is TERRIBLE! This is the most unorganized bunch of people I have ever been around. We arrived 1 1/2 hours prior to our ride time (they recommend 30 minutes) and it took 2 hours before we were able to start our ride. The outfits, boots and helmets are a JOKE that they provide. We paid $425 for 2 people and we wore rags! If I would have known this we could have packed our on clothing, etc. All they care about is collecting money and getting a signature so you don't sue if you get hurt. While we were there a member of another party came up missing, they told the group to go look for the person themselves instead of helping. If they have to come help you they charge and outrageous price per hour. IF you decide to go with this group make sure you do the self-guided tour, once we got away from the cabin/post we had a great time. I would recommend going with a different group to rent, it was such a disappointment to travel across the country for this.
Hands down the best tour of the mountains and the changing leaves of fall. Dimitri was an awesome guide, he had some great stories to share and was very knowledgeable about the region. He stopped at a lot of the great lookouts and called out the mountain peaks and different valleys. We took the jeep tour, had the windows off and roof open, we were able to really take in the beauty of the land. The food was great and the lodge was cozy and welcoming and had a little store as well. Perfect way to end the trip, thanks Demetri and Nova Guides!
Fred was a fantastic guide and the lodge was beautiful. It was a wonderful experience.
Had a great time with the family driving the Polaris side by sides. Professional outfit.
What an awesome rafting experience! Paul and Grant were really cool and fun to have as guides and provided interesting and comical dialog throughout the entire trip. I HIGHLY recommend Paul as a rafting guide as he knew exactly what he was doing the entire time and managed to help all of us on the raft have a great time. Nova stops to let the customers do the extra stuff like checking out the hot springs, having lunch at a nice, scenic, and covered gazebo, and swimming in the quiet parts of the river. I couldn't stop smiling and laughing. I would go again in a heartbeat.
Great snowmobiling. Not that great of service. Made me feel like a tourist & they were bothered by us. Good trails & average machines.
The ATV tours are fun! Take off for a few hours and tour the old 10th Mountain Division base, or head up the mountain and get a sweeping view of the mountains and valleys. My friends who were reluctant to try an ATV were instant fans.
We went as a family and everyone had such a great time. Our guide Peter was knowledgeable and his love for what he does was contagious. We had such a great time.
on a scale of 1-10 this place is a 2 at the best.. the trails are for kids... we actually ran out of places to go, good thing we only had a 3 hour plan. speaking of that...DO NOT try and change your time.. he hit us for a 100.00 bucks ! this is NOT worth the drive .
Great guys! I buried a Timber Sled near Nova's rental center. We had rented from another provider about an hour away. My son got them to come out and help me out of a deep snow drift. While they could have easily ask us to call our rental company which was over an hour away or charged us, they were very friendly and help us out of the hole and refused payment. Great service and we will use them the next time we are in the area and need snow mobiles.
I did the 2 hour Tiggy snowmobiling trip, the 6 hour "Top of the Mountain" snowmobiling trip, and the snowcat ride. All three were awesome, but the 6 hour sled ride was one of the best times of my life. Riding through powder at 60 MPH while looking at the most beautiful landscape in the world held an almost dreamlike quality for me.
The staff is amazing and friendly (ask for Spoon or Tony, they'll take great care of you!), and the burgers were delicious. The cabin itself is a site to see.
I'll be traveling here every year moving forward.
I don t understand what the negative reviews are about. These guys are awesome! They were so informative. The ride was fun and the views were stunning. We even saw three elks on our way
Omg we had a blast here! Our instructor was a lot o fun. And not to forget the food was really good the best chicken sandwich and fries ever! Definitely a bucket list.
My daughters and I took a tour two weekends ago and for the most part we had a good time. The route was very pretty, guide very helpful and friendly, and the snowmobiles were in great condition.
I would give a 5 star rating except for the fact that we had to wait for part of the group who was late in arriving. Our reservation was at 9. We got up early and made sure to arrive by 8:45 so that we would be on time. There were other people in the group who arrived on time like we did.
Then we all ended up having to wait for some other people who were late and we finally departed around 9:40. I had planned to be leaving by 11 as indicated on their schedule but really it was almost noon until we were done. We had plans to meet people for lunch and also for the rest of the day and everything had to get moved back due to the delay. So I know it's tricky because they have one guide for the group, but I don't feel it's fair to hold up people who arrive on time to wait for those who cannot be bothered to make the effort to arrive when they are supposed to. Or if it's going to be like that, then some notice needs to be provided on the website so we know we might have to wait for slackers (in which case I would have slept in too).
Got to go on roads that a car can't take you. Beautiful scenery. Great guide.
Best place in Colorado to go snowmobiling .
The staff is very cool friendly , the owners work side by side with their staff and they have real log cabins we are staying in cabin three , and has it's own name FIR
Very well organized and efficient. Guides are knowledgeable and willing to help.
While in Colorado, we made the best of our time since the ski slopes were closed. We had done a ski mobile guided tour with another company the day before and we did Nova Guides for our 2nd day of unguided snowmobiling. The machines were really nice and we had a great time, the only complaint I have is that my daughter and myself had hit some soft snow, trying to turn around in a dead end area, next thing we knew we were sideways in the snow with the snowmobile on top of us. Our windshield had come off, otherwise everything was just fine. However, we had three staff people who were aware of the accident and not once did any of the staff ask my daughter or I if we were OK. They were so focused on assessing the extent of the damage to the windshield and getting us an estimate for the the repair for a couple of broken brackets on the windshield. The repair was minor, but the lack of concern over us as the patron was disheartening.
Great snowmobile rentals!
We did the self- guided 3-hour experience. There were plenty of trails to keep you occupied for the entire 3 hours, and the views were fabulous!
If your legs and arms are out of shape, you will feel it the next day!!!
We had a blast!!!
Had a great time. Everybody was fabulous, equipment perfect, staff incredible and the Reuben they served was the best we've ever had. Cabins were more luxurious than home!! Win win win!!
This was by far THE WORST rental experience I have ever had. NEVER will I return to this place or ever recommend it to any one. PLEASE, PLEASE do yourself a favor and find a place that cares for their customers and their experience. I personally enjoy doing things that you don't normally get to do on a regular basis and I rarely pass up an opportunity. This was one of those opportunities, but I CANNOT believe how POORLY we were treated and how they operated their business with their customers.
We were a group of 9 and we drove about 2 hours to rent snowmobiles from our hotel. We rented 5 snowmobiles. For just 1 hour of rentals, we paid them about 750 dollars.
From the get go, the lady at the desk was constantly rude. We are there to have fun and have a good experience, it's hard to do when the staff isn't very friendly. What really surprised me was how over priced their fees were: Rescue fee- 100 dollars an hour per employee, Late Fee- 30 dollars for being late plus 30 dollars every 30 minutes you are late, and Damage Charge- 75 dollars an hour for labor plus parts at retail price plus a next day rental fee of 1000.00 dollars. This blew my mind, I could tell they were in it for the money.
Regardless of the fee and the lady's horrible attitude towards us, I still decided to go ahead and rent because we had drove 2 hours and it was a new experience none of us had ever had. Before we were able to ride, they went over how to drive the snowmobile and where to ride. Never did she explain what to do if you get stuck, how to get help (there is no cell phone service out there), or how to get unstuck. Well, I took my little sister with me and we went out riding. Coming towards the end of our hour we began to head back. It was just my luck that we got stuck heading back to the rental cabin. Now, the area we got stuck in was an area with a lot of snowmobile tracks, so it wasn't like we were out in the middle of no where (I could even see the cabin from where we got stuck at). The more I tried to get the snowmobile out, the deeper in snow it got. I was stuck with my little sister for about 20 minutes on our own trying to get the snowmobile out. Finally someone from the rental cabin made it out there. He only ASSISTED us on getting it out (he didn't do it on his own) for no more than 15 minutes and we were able to get out. I was sweating like crazy out there in the cold lifting and pushing that heavy snowmobile on my own, while I constantly sank deeper and deeper in the snow.
We rented the snowmobiles at 4 pm and made it back to the rental cabin by 530 pm. Once we got there I was charged 160 dollars for basically 15 minutes of 1 persons assistance. That was outrageous!!! For the gear rental and the snowmobile rental for 2 people it cost me 150 dollars. Now, I was getting charged an additional 160 dollars.. Unbelievable.
When the gentleman was assisting us in getting the snowmobile unstuck, I asked him, "Does this happen a lot?" He replied with a smirk," Oh yes"
To top off this AWFUL experience, when the rest of our group was waiting in the cabin for us to get back, an older man told my group that I was "a FOOL" for not coming back on time. Those kinds of comments were so unnecessary.
What kind of business treats their customers like this... Nova Guides, a place I will never ever go back to and will never recommend to anyone.
I was SO UPSET when this all happened, that it ruined the rest of my trip. I waited a while to write this review because I didn't want to write this review out of anger. I wanted to tell my experience exactly how it happened and made sure I had a clear head before I did.
Fun location for snowmobiling. Can do guided or unguided.
Absolutely the best 3 hour self guided snowmobile trip we could have expected!
Every person we encountered at Nova Guides was courteous and professional. Our group of 19 had done guided snowmobile tours before, but we were a little nervous about doing an unguided snowmobile tour. The guides put us at ease with their pre-tour talk covering operation of snowmobile, which trails to take and what was allowed and what was not allowed. They do warn you multiple times about damaging the snowmobiles and what the cost could be, but I understand that they must do that so that you understand that you are responsible for the snowmobile. Hay, snowmobiles are not cheap!
What beautiful scenery and the views from the summit were breathtaking. At the top on the mountain there is a wide open area to test out your skills and have fun with the machines. The snowmobiles were new/like new, fast and easy to operate.
Pros: Fast snowmobiles, beautiful scenery, challenging trails, courteous staff.
Cons: 3 hours goes by extremely fast when you are having the time of your life!
Rented snowmobiles from Nova Guides yesterday. I stayed on their "16 foot" wide trails the whole time. Came back and they said that I damaged their machine and that I had to pay for it. The manager - Shawn - told me he was doing me a favor by not charging me for the next days rental fee to repair the damage I had done. My suggestion - find someone else in the area to rent from. Beautiful area to ride, but these people are just out to rip people off!!
Very professional service. Nice restaurant in site.
novaguides.com