Vernon Valley/ Great Gorge Ski Area Reviews

Definitely try it if you can, but not a must do. I'm glad I did it once, but probably wouldn't go back. You do go really fast, but it's repetitive.

This water park has rides for pretty much all levels. Though not as extensive as the one on Long Island, it was a pleasant experience not having to wait on long lines to get on a ride. I would visit again with family and friends

Staff is super helpful and nice, but you can tell management changed

Reply; just from the wristbands changing from the automatic gates, to less breakfast options, the new changes are for the worse in our opinion. Staff is still super friendly, just structurally the changes aren't great compared to what it used to be.

For one, my dads snowboard got stolen there, but for two it's just not very nice there. It's over crowded, there isnt a place to change if u brought clothes rather then wearing them the locker room is very close together so it's hard to maneuver when your trying to get dressed and put together. It has good runs and the actual boarding/food is good but it depends on if that's enough for you.

Many different levels of riding. Food outside is very good.

My kids loved it. Great for the family or just friends.

WORST PLACE TO GO!!! Tickets are non refundable for any reason!!!!! If you plan on going with small kids they do not tell you that if you need to change ur dates for tubing or snowboarding or skiing you can not!!!! Worst staff and policy s in the state!!! Plus they hide records of people who have gotten hurt or died on the slopes!!!!

Lots of what to do! And the wine glass painting class was fantastic!!

Had a problem with my triple play pass that I buy every year. I called 2 days in a row each time trying different departments and waiting for about 20-25 minutes per department, no one ever answered there phone....if you use there "live chat" feature on there website its literally a bot that recommends you call no matter what you asked so I sent them an email using there system....and of course I never ever herd back from them. Basically waisted the money on the pass, I will not be going to mountain Creek again. The actual mountain isn't terrible it's only clam to fame is it's basically the closest place Long island but it's not worth spending money at a place where it's impossible to speak to someone if your having an issue.

We visited Mountain Creek 7/2/2020 post COVID19-- it was extremely disappointing. The visitors should have been informed that not all the slides were going to be open because we drove almost 2 hours to this location. The lack of emphaty from the staff named Evan was beyond words. They were unwilling to assist and help-- go to another waterpark.

Awesome mountain bike park...nicely staffed..not too intrusive..but there if needed

Oktoberfest this year felt like a scam!!! Only 1 German beer, NO Polka dancing, they just had a bunch of drunk kids who do not know the meaning of Oktoberfest, there was nothing that represented Oktoberfest this year, plus a like of American Craft Beer, plus everything was Stupid expensive this year... NO MORE!!! I am done with Mountain Creek, they just lost a very valuable client. They just want to make money by pretending to have a festival, what's next? Cinco de Mayo? Well it will be easy for them to get a donkey and coronas for the celebration. I'm just done with this place.

Mountain Creek Waterpark is a blast! Kids especially enjoy it. Its a wonderful place for a family to enjoy or even just go enjoy with friends. Its a lot of fun!

Such a great place to learn and their lessons are amazing!! So helpful - cant wait to go back!!!!

Best night skiing around. I get pass every year and never disappointed. Terrain Park staff does a great job making fun and challenging obstacles to play on all season long.

The best place water park I have been to this summer many great attractions. All the employees are attentive and great at what they do. My only advice is it is still a mountain so if you re out of shape i don t recommend going because it has steep gradients and it gets people winded after going from ride to ride. But, definitely recommend trying at least once will return during the winter to experience the ski slopes. During the summer the ski slopes has mountain bikers all over it doing some pretty cool rides also want to try that.

I'm not sure why this place has a reputation for not being good. I don't work on Fridays so I went about 2 weeks ago and I have to say, even though it rained a LOT early in the week that week, the conditions were very good. I had just been up to Vermont two weeks before that and it was like riding on concrete with a centimeter of snow on top. Terrible. Mountain Creek was less than half the price, an hour from my house and 7 miles from a Winery which I went to after snowboarding from 10-4. Of course I'm sure it gets crazy on the weekends because of these reasons. The ticketing process was super easy. You keep the lift ticket in your pocket and just go through the gates. Loved it. And I liked the bucket lift, as a snowboarder. I don't mind standing. Saves my right ankle from the torque of the board hanging off. Bar had some really good craft beers. I'm spreading the word, Mountain Creek, that NYC people shouldn't knock it until they try it...especially on weekdays.

Ski trails are short and inaccessible. Slow lifts, and standing lifts and dumb as hell

Went for a spartan race,it was cold and rainy with lots of mud. Ideal conditions. Arooo

This was my lunch last summer. Took too long to post this. I emailed Keith and he never answered after 2x. Said I couldn't get any refund because I asked months later. Stood online for 20 min and waited for my food for another 30. Worker claimed their boss quit. What a great excuse. SKINNY piece of watermelon, bread not even edible because they put the meat on top. Also a slice of white bread? LOL.

They close the rides at the water park 5 min early all the time which is bs. They close the ice cream shop ON THE DOT.

Two stars cause I always go to the water park and mountain for snowboarding and prices are pretty good.

Great Theme park. Very versatile. Good snowboarding/skiing in the winter. Then moutainbiking and water park in the spring/ summer. Good for groups and families.

It's an amazing place. The staff and the administration is really workable with them.

The location was great, especially being that similar establishment are typically closed by 4 or 5pm, this one was open til about 830pm. All ages WELCOMED!
Secondly, they are pretty popular for the wings a truffle fries, unfortunately i didn't get to try neither because it was obviously a busy weekend but the manager didn't have no problem providing us a drink on the house for the inconvenience.
Next, AGAIN, all ages are welcomed! there's different level to train for beginners, intermediate and professional levels. ANOTHER plus. .
Lastly, is really cool and has a hotel attached if you don't wish to drive after that workout.

I would like to rate as 0 star if I can. We ve been waiting in line for 2.5 hours and still not get our rentals. Don t come!!!!

It s falling apart. Not much to do for the still high price. Went for summer 2019

Great room but a few minor things needed to be taken care of.

This is a nice place to have fun. There are many things to do here no matter what season it is. They have a waterpark, skiing, snowboarding, and so much more. Great location if you like to be outdoors.

It's a great workout day walking up hill makes your muscle work serious.

Solid ski spot. More advanced beginner runs. Had a lot of ice on final slope of beginner course which is absolutely terrifying.

Certainly not Vermont or Colorado but given proximity to NYC, not bad. Crowded and a lot of people who do not the sense to not sit in the middle of a trail texting.

Took the kids skiing here for the first time.Two excellent bunny hills for begining skiers and snowboarders alike.

I love it here. Everyone loves to say nasty things about the creek, but it's awesome. Sure the runs are short and the conditions are sketchy, but it's FUN

Had a great day with my 3 older son,24,18,and 17. Priced right and boys had plenty to do.

I really wanted to go skiing just one more time this year. The weather just wasn't cooperating. We wasted our passes. I went one night and they closed early without posting it early enough. The next night we drove over again and got two runs in and they shut down the slopes. I was so disappointed.

Great gorge golf course is great...all 3 nine hole courses

Lots of fun snow tubing on a Friday night. And surprisingly, the lines weren't bad at all. Loved it!

Visited for snowboarding,its an ok mountain but long lines that were quite an unorganized mess. The trail map could've mentioned flats and some uphill sections. The black diamonds were blues at best. Even after a fresh snow a lot of trails were hard packed. Not a bad place if you're close but I wouldn't recommend traveling just to hit the slopes

Mountain Creek is the best hill in northern NJ. Top be fair there are about 3 in northern NJ. Their kids camp is fantastic, the instructors my daughters had were awesome. The only reason that it gets 4/5 is because those same classes get to cut the line on the magic carpet. This means that after my daughters lessons I had to wait quite a while (sometimes 10 minutes+) in line supporting my girls while the line was repeatedly stalled letting lessons on. I get it, it makes financial sense, but line cutters are a big pet peeve of mine, and it was hard to view them otherwise.

Love South Peak. Feels like home in the winter. Not a family place though. That's more the North side. Just be careful if you're new to the sport. There aren't many rules and some people go fast.

It was good but Covid 19 has only let half the rides to open

The trails could use some love! Braking bumps were present in every last berm. Some of the lips on the jumps are just too harsh and the landings are too short. Most of the jumps are huge and the drops are serious. Some of the trails have way too much gravel and sand. The trails are better when it s damp outside. There are several cool RedBull features that are actually doable. The green trails are really blues so you need to have some experience before you attempt a park like this. The lines were ridiculously long but the waits weren t that bad weird enough. The lifts move fairly quickly to the top. They need more choices in the area for lodging.

I love Creek been going here since it was vernon valley nice mountain great park but as a resort filled with beginners so 5 stars for weekdays don't go on a weekend

Already waited for three hours, still didn t get my snowboard, correct boots size out of stock bad experience

After blowing up a wheel mere FEET into my second run, I had to walk my bike down the mountain. 45 minutes later, I stopped into the retail store/guest services and spoke with Abby about what happened. She was super awesome in listening to me and issued me a day pass to come back next weekend. I m very thankful for Mountain Creek s awesome customer service and consideration for their guests. Thanks again Abby!!

Great for downhill mountain biking. There are an number of different runs graded from green to black.

The lift is fairly quick and it s easy to get bikes on and off.

There are bike hire places both in the main center and also on the outskirts.

Body amour is a good idea as is a protector case for your phone!

Fun place to ski with friends, nothing compared to the west though.

I would definitely return as the main reason for the trip - skiing - was great. Mountains are well maintained, conditions were great despite no natural snow on the ground, lifts have short lines and moved along great. However, the rental process is a total nightmare. Between check-in, rentals and returns, the entire process was about 3 hours and I got to the mountain a little bit after 9am. If you are a first time renter, you wait on an initial line to check in (enter names of party into computer and sign waivers); you then move to a second line to get your tickets and provide security deposit; next line for helmet; next line for boots; next line for skis. Not sure why you can't do the sign-in, waivers and deposit on-line when you purchase your tickets (I purchased before I went and saved zero time). A lot of people jumping ahead in line and not enough staff to monitor. If you return and rent again, you get to skip the check in process, but those people are just mixed into the first time people when you move to the area to pay and they get in front of you, so the process it just really, really slow. Also, during the check in process if you happen to get assign to a computer towards the pay area, you can just turn around and step into the line right there. Those assigned to a computer towards the rear end up on the back of the line. I seriously think I will just buy skis so I don't have to do this again. My kids were DYING.

Awesome spot for beginners... they have two trails that are the best if your a beginner and learning... Overall its a nice spot... Looking forward to the ski & snow board season... Lots of fun!!

the gondala lift was nearly a free for all, but had a fun day

Nice and close mountain with OK trails. If you don't go after fresh snowfall it's usually very icy

If you pay as much as people do for a ticket you all can at least resurface the paths for us to walk since you pretty much have to be barefoot on the rides. Just a thought

Purchased tickets online to skip line, but still had to wait on a VERY long line to get in.
Ski instructors were OK, although it would be better if they are more prepare when it comes to group up people for lessons.
It would also be great if they had more people, so clients can take private lessons.

The rides were amazing I definitely recommend the alpine roller coaster it cost an additional 6$ to ride but it is well worth the money. And the water rides are amazing the sheer thrill of these rides are heart stopping. Only recommended for people who don't have heart problems.

Good place but water park was been closed so returned

I paid for the package which i was told included an intermediate lesson......
Do not be fooled on emailing to ask why I was in the beginner group this is what they came back with - (said another way the package is misleading and doesn t include an intermediate or expert lesson!)

Hello Samantha,

The Go package is your lift ticket, rentals and you have access to the terrain based learning area which is Station Teaching. It is a self guided lesson(6 stations), there are instructors in the area if you need help.

Max 5 is a semi-private lesson, there is no more than 5 people in a group and it's a 2 hour lesson. We book them age appropriately, the cost is $85.59 which does not include your lift ticket or rentals.

Thank you,

The lift is included!! Best ride in whole place beautiful

Very good and enjoyable place but the paths should be repaved. Really painful walking around

Nice resort and overall great conditions the majority of the time.

It was one of the best places to go with family to have fun.

Really fun place. Have to get there really early to get a spot. Annoying that they don't allow food inside as we keep kosher and they had nothing inside for us, so we had to come out. Clean pools, would love more shady spots...

Great place to play hooky. It's geared for winter sport novice/ family. small place, so go in with those expectations. Cafe gives sticker shock: 3 hard-boiled eggs @ $8, tuna sandwich @$12.

It's a very nice mountain to go and have a fun day with friends and family

Awesome place.. rent your ski equipment and receive free ski lesson

Word if warning. Do not go!!! Take the drive to Camelback, Shawnee or take the drive and go to another resort somewhere in upstate NY. Worst experience ever on my first day!!! Started the day where someone stole my gloves. Ok. Chalk it up to bad luck. Then, the runs were icy and wait staff was rude. Then we leave. Go inside to get stuff out of our locker. 10 minutes later come outside, my board is stolen. Go inside to file a report and two other people having the same issue. The person taking the report says this happens every day. I ask him about the cameras pointing right at the snowboards and he says they dont work. So if this happens every day, why dont they work!? I file a report and at the end he starts to say how it is MY fault that it was stolen. He said that I should have locked it up because then security would have seen someone breaking the lock. That's when I remind him it was locked! He then tried to backtrack and say that he confused me with the other reports! I will never go there again!

Had a very fun day at Mountain Creek! Great place to learn as a beginner because they had gentle slopes and it wasn't very crowded even on a Sunday. Rentals can be made there from your clothing gear to ski/snowboard equipment.

If you are going to mountain Creek & need to eat, it's definitely worth going to the restaurant upstairs so not to deal with crowded cafeteria or overpriced food downstairs. Upstairs is sit down service that has good food, beer & service.

Visited for a catered wedding. Started with a gondola ride to the summit for the ceremony; then back to the lodge for the reception. All events were well run with attentive staff everywhere.

Excellent ski resort, not the largest mountain but they do a great job with snow coverage and the terrain park is definitely a huge plus!

Our only Mountain Bike Park in NJ and boy we have a good one. Theres is everything here from Green trails to Double Black trails, Everything to have a good day riding pure fun downhill.
Also for those interested they hold classes and camps for kids/adults, which is great for those who would like to get introduced to the sport and have some guidance.

A good skiing resort plus it has plenty of trails. Very convenient when driving from New York city. They offer reasonable price for equipment rental. The only thing is, their parking lot is too far.

Runs like a machine, plenty of space to do your own thing, has challenging trails and something for everyone. Great place to give DH riding a try or hone some skills.

Great place to ski/snowboard! Tickets are cheaper if bought online in advance

DO NOT COME TO THIS PLACE! At least not on the weekends.
Me and my family have had a terrible experience here yesterday. They oversold the tickets and did not have staff enough to take care of the situation. The restrooms and the "food court" were disgusting, I took a lot of pictures of it! Almost 4h in line to get a ski rental, unacceptable.
We drove 2h to get there, so I could not just go back home once I was there.
It is sad that NY/NJ people's need to face this situation to have some fun.

We wanted a new water park to visit...we usually do Splish Splash. Unfortunately for us it rained on the day we went. Cannot give fair opinion, since the kids really could not enjoy the full park because of weather. Have to say I'm more impressed with Splish Splash cabanas...better furniture and more spacious. Just an FYI...better to get tickets when you get there than on-line...online tickets are locked in...no refunds or alternatively date. With water parks you need a nice warm day... purchasing when you get there gives you the option of changing your plans for whatever reason.

Being the closest resort to the city is a major advantage. And they have night skiing with well lit trails. Went there recently for the fresh powder following a snow day and had a great time especially since some of the trails were left ungroomed. Staff is very friendly and the rentals were in pretty good shape. While two of the peaks are straight trails the south peak is basically all terrain. Seems like a lot of people go for that if that is what your interested in.

Went there and south peak lift was no operating. Mind you this is beginning of february. Then the prices of lift tickets are extremely high for what they have on mountain open. I rather go to cammelback and pay half the price(not kidding). Ended up paying almost $100 for a day lift ticket and left in 3 hours due to closed lifts.

The parking was advertised free but wasn't free. Everything else was very good.

Bike park is second to none. Enduro race was an absolute blast with some insanely high quality trails. It's a shame we can't ride them regularly!

As bad as this winter has deprived us of our loved snow MT creek has come thru with plenty of made snow for us skiers to enjoy, even plenty for snow tubing thank you