Our Ratings Thresholds for Each Mountain Score Category
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To give each resort a Mountain Score, we assess 10 equally weighted categories that paint an overall picture of the typical mountain experience. Each category is rated on a 10-point scale, with a score of 1 indicating profound flaws and a 10 demonstrating an impeccable experience in that category. While a mountain could theoretically get a perfect score of 100, we don’t expect resorts to be good at everything—even a score of 70 is quite impressive in our book. Below are the 10 categories and our general criteria for their corresponding scores:
Snow
10
The resort gets top accumulation and snow that forms in a way that feels light and powdery all the time.
9
The resort sees very good accumulation and gets powder that takes awhile to track or feels notably light.
8
The resort sees very good snow accumulation each season that tends to stay powdery for several days in a row.
7
The resort sees very good, powdery snow accumulation each season, but powder doesn't always last long at certain places in the resort.
6
The resort sees good accumulation that forms a solid base each season and sometimes sees powder but sometimes suffers from variable cover.
5
The resort sees decent accumulation each season but sometimes suffers from variable cover and rarely sees powder.
4
The resort sees okay accumulation each season. Non-snowmaking trails regularly suffer from thin or variable cover.
3
The resort sees mediocre accumulation each season. Thin cover is a given on all non-snowmaking trails.
2
The resort receives poor accumulation each season and must heavily rely on snowmaking to stay open.
1
The resort would have little to no snow if it weren't for snowmaking. If you're not on a trail, you probably don't see any accumulation.
0
The resort doesn’t get any snow.
Resiliency
10
The mountain can quickly recover from the worst conditions and deliver the exact same experience as on a good day.
9
The mountain can quickly recover from almost any poor conditions thanks to excellent poor snow and weather mitigation.
8
The mountain successfully mitigates snow or weather issues in nearly every mountain area and across all terrain categories. A few parts of the resort may occasionally see significant impacts.
7
The mountain successfully mitigates snow or weather issues in most mountain areas, but some parts of the mountain are highly affected by inclement weather or poor conditions.
6
The mountain successfully mitigates snow or weather issues in many mountain areas, but other parts are highly susceptible to inclement weather or poor conditions.
5
The mountain has some capabilities to avoid inclement weather or poor conditions, but struggles to mitigate poor conditions in many mountain areas.
4
The mountain has some capabilities to avoid inclement weather or poor conditions, but is regularly forced to close a few major parts of the mountain. Under severe circumstances, the mountain may be forced to completely suspend operations.
3
The mountain has some capabilities to avoid inclement weather or poor conditions, but is regularly forced to close multiple major mountain areas. Occasionally, the mountain may be forced to suspend operations completely.
2
In the event of any inclement weather, the mountain loses most of its skiable terrain, with restoration regularly taking several days or weeks. A few small runs may stay open.
1
In the event of any inclement weather, the mountain loses its entire skiable footprint and may take weeks to recover.
0
Any inclement weather issues are season-ending.
Size
NOTE: We ensure the accuracy of each resort’s skiable acreage measurement by employing an acreage calculator. See more here.
10
7000+ skiable acres
9
3500-7000 skiable acres
8
2500-3500 skiable acres
7
1800-2500 skiable acres
6
1200-1800 skiable acres
5
800-1200 skiable acres
4
500-800 skiable acres
3
250-500 skiable acres
2
100-250 skiable acres
1
1-100 skiable acres
0
0 skiable acres
Terrain Diversity
10
The mountain has an abundance of terrain in all categories for all ability levels.
9
The mountain offers multiple options in all terrain categories you'd typically find at a ski resort.
8
The mountain offers at least some options in all terrain categories you'd typically find at a ski resort.
7
The mountain offers terrain in most categories for a range of ability levels, but may fall short in one or two areas.
6
The mountain offers terrain in many categories but either falls short or lacks terrain in a few others.
5
The mountain offers terrain of varying lengths, gradients, and widths but lacks terrain in multiple categories.
4
The mountain offers similar terrain of moderately different lengths, gradients, and widths.
3
The mountain offers similar terrain of slightly different lengths, gradients, or widths.
2
The mountain consists of runs that are similar to one another but vary slightly by difficulty.
1
The mountain only consists of runs that provide nearly identical terrain experiences.
0
The mountain has no terrain.
Challenge
10
The resort boasts truly extreme terrain across several prominent areas. Any double blacks should not be attempted, even by experts, without using extreme caution.
9
Select resort areas boast some of the most challenging runs in the world. The most challenging terrain should not be attempted, even by experts, without using extreme caution.
8
The mountain boasts extremely demanding terrain with sustained pitches, cliffs, drop-ins, and/or tight turns.
7
The mountain offers a range of very steep, ungroomed terrain with features like cliffs, drop-ins, or tight turns.
6
The mountain offers a range of steep, difficult terrain, with expert features like cliffs in some places.
5
The mountain offers some fairly steep groomed and ungroomed runs.
4
The mountain offers some steep runs but very little ungroomed terrain.
3
The mountain primarily offers groomed terrain with moderate pitches.
2
The mountain offers mostly gently-sloped terrain.
1
None of the mountain's terrain is more difficult than a typical bunny hill.
0
The mountain is completely flat.
Lifts
10
High-speed lifts exist across every mountain area. Helper lifts are high-speed as well.
9
Most lifts are high-speed, with only a few areas serviced by helper fixed-grip lifts.
8
All but a few areas are accessible by high-speed lifts. Helper lifts may be fixed grip.
7
Most areas are accessible by high-speed lifts. Helper lifts are fixed grip.
6
Many areas are accessible by high-speed lifts, but some are only serviced by fixed-grip lifts.
5
About half of areas are accessible by high-speed lifts.
4
A few areas are accessible by high-speed lifts, but most areas only see fixed-grip lift service.
3
All lifts are fixed grip but some are at least modern.
2
Lifts are extremely old or low-capacity. Some places are only serviced by surface lifts.
1
Surface lifts only.
0
No lifts.
Crowd Flow
10
The mountain's infrastructure is perfectly set up for crowd flow and capacity and does the best possible job to mitigate crowding.
9
The mountain's lift infrastructure is mostly direct and well-placed with excellent capacity.
8
The mountain's lift infrastructure is mostly direct and well-placed with good capacity. One or two areas could use a capacity upgrade.
7
The mountain's lift infrastructure is usually direct and well-placed with good capacity. A few areas could use a capacity upgrade or better placed lifts. Trails themselves rarely become chokepoints.
6
The mountain's lift and trail network is usually direct with good capacity. Some areas suffer from indirect lift placements or poorly thought out junctions.
5
The mountain’s lift and trail network comprises a comparable mix of direct, well-placed routes and indirect or capacity-constrained ones.
4
The mountain's lift and trail network is set up in a way that causes major crowding or indirect routing for many popular routes. Some areas are served by direct, well-placed lifts.
3
The mountain's lift and trail network causes serious crowding or indirect routing for most areas, but a few places are served by direct, well-placed lifts.
2
The mountain's lift and trail network is not equipped to handle crowds on a normal day and sees backups of more than half an hour.
1
The mountain's crowd flow logistics are seriously flawed. Poor lift placement and uphill capacity can cause backups of more than an hour.
0
The mountain's crowd flow logistics are so bad that you shouldn't expect to get on the mountain on a typical day.
Facilities
10
The mountain boasts easily accessible, high-capacity lodges at every major and minor junction area.
9
The mountain boasts easily accessible, high-capacity lodges throughout most mountain areas.
8
The mountain boasts several lodges or huts across the resort. A few minor mid- or high-elevation areas lack easy access to high-capacity facilities.
7
The mountain boasts several lodges or huts across the resort. Some major mountain areas lack easy access to high-capacity facilities.
6
The mountain boasts several lodges or huts across multiple areas, but some places lack easy access to the closest facilities.
5
The mountain consists of high-capacity lodges at each base area but suffers from limited, low-capacity, or impractically placed on-mountain facilities.
4
The mountain consists of high-capacity lodges at each base area. Any on-mountain facilities are limited, low-capacity, and impractically placed.
3
The mountain consists of at least one high-capacity base lodge but no on-mountain facilities.
2
The mountain consists of a moderately-sized base lodge but no on-mountain facilities.
1
The mountain consists of a singular base lodge that's either impractically small or hard to reach.
0
The mountain doesn't consist of any on-site lodge facilities.
Navigation
10
It's easy, direct, and clear to get anywhere on the mountain from any place.
9
It's easy, direct, and clear to get anywhere on the mountain from most places. A small fraction of trails don't have direct access to all other mountain areas.
8
It's easy to get to and from most mountain areas. A few minor areas aren't directly accessible from all other parts of the resort or may be hard to find.
7
It's reasonably simple to get between most major mountain areas. A few areas require catwalks or traverses to get to or from or are hard to find. Some areas require multiple direct lift rides to travel between.
6
It's reasonably simple to get between many major mountain areas, but some areas require more effort due to poor signage, indirect lifts, or catwalks.
5
Some mountain areas are easy to navigate while others require more effort due to poor signage, indirect lifts, or catwalks.
4
Some mountain areas are easy to get between, but navigating many major areas can be confusing. Some major trails may suffer from poor signage or require catwalks.
3
It can take multiple lifts or be notably confusing to get between major resort areas. Many resort areas suffer from indirect trail routes, poor signage, or multiple catwalks.
2
It takes a substantial amount of effort and multiple indirect lifts to get between resort areas with little enjoyable terrain in between. Expect to occasionally get lost.
1
Expect to regularly get lost at this resort due to poor signage and lift placement. Getting between mountain areas requires notable effort and extremely unenjoyable terrain.
0
It's impossible to get around this resort. You will likely get lost or spend your whole day trying to get from one place to another.
Mountain Aesthetic
10
The resort offers one-of-a-kind views, terrain, isolation, and vibes. You probably won't find a resort that feels like this again in your lifetime.
9
The resort offers unique terrain, views, and isolation that you'll rarely find anywhere else.
8
The resort clearly distinguishes itself with class-leading views, terrain, and isolation.
7
The resort feels unique, with high-quality views, terrain, and isolation across the footprint.
6
The resort doesn't boast the same unique terrain as some competing resorts but offers excellent views and isolation in many areas.
5
The resort offers some cool terrain and great views and isolation in some areas. Some areas may feel commercialized or built-up.
4
The resort offers decently cool terrain, nice views, or pockets of isolation in places. Major areas may feel commercialized or built-up.
3
The resort either feels commercialized or built-up around more than half the resort or offers only moderately interesting terrain, views and isolation.
2
The resort either feels commercialized or built-up in most areas or offers only mildly interesting terrain, views or isolation.
1
The resort barely feels like a mountain, with intense commercialization and very little in the way of views, terrain, or isolation.
0
The resort is completely flat or indoors.
