Read skier and snowboarder-submitted reviews on Sun Valley that rank the ski resort and mountain town on a scale of one to five stars for attributes such as terrain, nightlife and family friendliness. See how Sun Valley stacks up in the reviews, on and off the slopes, from skiing and family activities to the après scene. Read up on pros, cons and other comments in reviews left by fellow skiers and riders. Don't forget to submit your own Sun Valley review! Scroll to the bottom of this page to let other travelers know about your skiing and resort experience.
Reviews for Sun Valley
Total (3.7)
A ski resort's overall star rating displayed here is not calculated based on a simple average but takes several factors, including the age of a review, into account.
This is for Bald Mountain side of Sun Valley resort. I participated in a moguls clinic here. It's a great place for moguls and groomers. Long steepish runs with consistent pitch. Moguled runs are usually adjacent to groomers. Snow coverage is traditionally low, and south facing slopes are often bare. They do a lot of snowmaking. Groomers are hard packed and can be icy. Trail difficulty levels are inaccurate and confusing. Most terrain is high-intermediate to advanced skill level, nothing for beginners or low-intermediates. No easy way down. They mark a green run from the top, be advised this is a narrow, exposed, hardpacked catwalk run. More of a skiers mountain than for snowboarders. Not much terrain variety. Scant tree skiing or off-piste, due to thin coverage on lower parts of the mountain. Not much for double black terrain (chutes, drops). Has a small terrain park mid mountain for kids. Amenities are world class and correspondingly expensive. The valley, (with towns Ketchum and Hailey) is an enclave of the very wealthy, no value options here. Tickets ~$200/day (mid Jan 2025). Ikon gives you seven days here. Mountain collective ~$3,149. Sun valley itself ~$2269. Pricey food. Lodges are swanky, and parking and/or shuttling is easy. Free transit system. Slopes are uncrowded. Most chairs are high speed quads or sixes plus a gondola. At the top, incredible 360 views of surrounding Sawtooth range and back down the valley. Remote location, no easy access. Served by a small regional airport in Hailey. Boise a 2:45hr drive away. Drive up the valley is pleasant. Gradual elevation gain, wide highway, uncongested, no winding mountain road. Ski culture/vibe: boomers on groomers. Mostly either well-heeled older folk who grew up vacationing here and have retired to the area (and their occasional kids/grandkids) or families from big cities (mostly west coast) doing luxury ski vacations. Not many younger adults (20-45) on the mountain. Few ski bum locals or youth culture to speak of, priced out of the area. Guessing the apres options are low-key given the demographic, but didn't explore. Overall, highly exclusive feel. I liked the mountain the valley was beautiful. I would return, but would wait for a stronger snow year.
Tom
love the place
fjj jdkdk
the Best ski town should be ranked 1 by it has fun runs snows a lot and good food
Richard
Overall disappointed, expensive and only good skiing on anowmaking runs.
Richard Noel
Overall a great mountain
Brian
So many high speed lifts and tremendous vertical to be had. Wide open long groomed runs with great views. Doesn't get better than this. Not a place known for deep powder though which is fine by me.
Kim G
Beautiful mountain, no lines, but not for beginners. Amazing snow 22/23 season but that's not always the case. Ketchum is an awesome "real" town- friendly and without the pretentiousness of some other ski areas
Will
I can ski many blue and some black trails at other mountains but not at Sun Valley. Green trails are equivalent to difficult Blue and Black trails at other resorts. Green trails are concentrated at the top of the mountain at Seattle Ridge with only two green trails to the very bottom. With flat light conditions plus difficult slopes I decided to go to Dollar Mountain and had a reasonable time on an a 500 ft hill. Staff was great and very helpful but overall I was disappointed. Too bad, i was really looking forward to Sun Valley.
Keith
Sun Vally is a great mountain. It’s never crowded, usually has good snow and the people are very nice. The town of Ketchum is wonderful and great restaurants.
Ed Hayes
Advanced skiers will love this place. Intermediate snowboarders (like us) will likely hate it. Coming downhill on greens almost always requires some amount of traversing a catwalk. The catwalks at Sun Valley are narrow, long and have high exposure, very unforgiving on snowboards. My wife and I love other west coast mountains (Whistler, Heavenly, Bachelor, etc) but absolutely hated Sun Valley. Two days was all survival skiing only, no fun. Unless you can catch a storm, the snow is hardpack (again easier for skiers than snowboarders). Overall, cannot recommend this resort for snowboarding. There is a reason that skiers are 10 to 1 snowboarders here.
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