When I heard Smugglers’ Notch in Vermont was rated the top kid-friendly resort in the East by Ski Magazine, I don’t think I really knew what that meant until we arrived for our ski weekend a few weeks ago.
Because, as I learned, Smuggs’ truly lives up to their top kid-friendly billing.
A few weekends ago, we piled in the car for the 4 or so hour drive from the Boston area to Smugglers’ Notch, located near Stowe, Vermont and about an hour east of Burlington. The resort itself is made up of a self-contained village and three mountains (Madonna, Sterling, and Morse) with varied terrain, from gentle slopes to the East’s only triple black-diamond trail.
My family — which includes a non-skier (me), a newbie skier (Mimi), an almost-intermediate skier (Buddy), and a snowboarder (Dr.G.) — all had different goals in mind for the weekend:
Me: To try snowshoeing for the first time and check out the spa
Dr. G: To simply spend time on his snowboard and to convince me that ski weekends are awesome, even though I don’t ski
Buddy: To improve his skiing and finally use poles
Mimi: To try skiing for the first time. And sit by a bonfire and drink all. the. hot. cocoa
Let’s just say we met all our goals…and much, much more.
Rather than walk you through a chronological recap of our visit, I thought I’d highlight what really stood out to me, and why I wouldn’t hesitate to return to Smugglers’ Notch again next winter with the family.
SNOW SPORT UNIVERSITY
I knew from my interview with some of the experts from Smuggs’ Snow Sport University (SSU) that they definitely know their stuff, but I was still so impressed by both the quality of the ski instruction and the way they just seem to get that kids are not mini-adults, and so their instruction is truly aimed at children.
This, to me, was the highlight of our visit to Smugglers’ Notch.
We enrolled Buddy in two full days days of Adventure Rangers Level 3 lessons, while Mimi was signed up for Discovery Dynamos, which is aimed just at preschoolers to encourage development and build confidence.
And when I say all-day, it was all day. We dropped Buddy off at the SSU meeting area at the base of Morse Mountain at 8:45am and Mimi in the Meeting House at 9am, both of which went smoothly.
As I shared a few weeks ago, I honestly had no idea what to expect from Mimi at her first ski lessons, but her instructor Bette was fabulous and immediately got her settled down next to another little girl her age who was coloring at the table. She waved goodbye to us and that was it. Win.
On Saturday morning, I had some time before my snowshoeing trek (more to come on that), so I walked over to Sir Henry’s Learning Hill to spy on my kids. And there I saw Mimi. Going down a hill. By herself.
And I saw Buddy zig-zagging down the slope.
And neither of them noticed I was there, they were enjoying themselves so much.
Here are some of the other things I loved about SSU:
- Kids in the full-day program also receive lunch (think pasta and veggie burgers and pizza). And, as Mimi pointed out, they also get hot cocoa when they return indoors for the day.
- While Buddy and the big kids were done around 2:30pm, the little kids came back inside a bit earlier for afternoon programming. For Mimi’s two days, she participated in a magic show and a science show, and when I walked in to pick her up, she didn’t even notice me, she was so engrossed in the performance!
I just love how the Smuggs’ team recognizes that after hours on the slopes, little ones are exhausted, and rather than dealing with the inevitable post-lunch (and naptime) tantrums and meltdowns, they instead use their last hour or so to entertain the kids with a show. Brilliant.
- All kids have their own GPS device strapped to their leg, which is not only a brilliant safety precaution but also lets parents track their child’s on-mountain miles, trails, etc. Here’s the report we received for Buddy on his second day of ski school:
For my kids, who don’t ski very often, I think having the two intensive days of ski school was incredibly helpful and suited both their personalities and how they learn. In fact, by the end of Buddy’s second day, they told us he advanced a whole level!
But I know that’s not the case with all kids, and Smugglers’ Notch also offers two-hour group lessons as well, private lessons, and even a ski introduction for toddlers at their on-site Treasures daycare (which we didn’t personally use but I heard from Jessica was fantastic). So there is truly something for everyone.
WINTER ADVENTURES
All four of us love the outdoors, but the reality is that we have totally different interests. And I have no shame in saying that one of the best parts of Smuggs for me was the fact that we could each explore our own interests independently, and then meet back up in the late afternoon for family time… be it taking a dip in the pool or enjoying some Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in the resort village.
So while my family was hitting the slopes during the day, I spent my time at the Nordic Ski & Snowshoe Adventure Center, which is the hub for Smuggs’ snowshoeing and cross-country skiing activities (and is also were you can rent ice skates for their outdoor ring).
On Friday, I signed up for what was supposed to be a two-hour intro group trek and ended up with a private tour.
My guide Seth and I just chatted as we made our way through the woods, and he pointed out landmarks and facts here and there (including bear claw marks on the beech trees, which the bears climb to get to the berries up top).
This was my first snowshoeing experience and I honestly loved it. Sure, it was a fabulous workout (in fact, I kept having to shed layers as we went along, I was getting sooo warm), but it was so invigorating and peaceful being away from it all in the quiet tranquility of the woods, the only sounds the crunching of the snow beneath our shoes.
The next day, Jessica and I met up for a two-hour backcountry snowshoe adventure in a completely different area, just below Notch Road.
Along the way we got some gorgeous views of the Notch formation.
And saw some incredible ice castles that made us think of Elsa’s castle from Frozen!
It was definitely a more strenuous trek, and in addition to making our way up some significant inclines in several feet of snow and a brand new beaver hut and crossed a beaver dam (where I had the unfortunate luck of having one of my boots slip in just at the very end after I had crossed and thought I was on solid ground. Whoops! On the bright side, I will say that my Sorel boots lived up to their waterproof claim.)
But I wasn’t the only one who took advantage of the variety of winter activities available at Smugglers’ Notch.
Mimi and I tried ice skating at the outdoor rink (skates are available for rent for $5). Although we lasted all of three minutes, since it was Mimi’s first time on ice skates and I am definitely not an ice skater, we gave it a shot.
But not all family-friendly winter activities at Smugglers’ Notch are outdoors. Our condo community offered access to its own aquatic center, where there was a pool (where Buddy found some boys his age to play with), hot tub (which was glorious after two hours of snowshoeing!), and a splash pad.
In another example of brilliance, families staying at the resort have access to the Smugglers’ Notch Fun Zone Family Entertainment & Recreation Center, which we checked out after dinner Saturday night.
The place was massive, with a bouncy house, table games, a giant double lane slide, huge obstacle course, and so much more. It was the perfect ending to the day and a great way for the kids to work off their remaining energy.
SPA TIME
During our first day, I decided to treat myself to a spa service at the Smugglers’ Notch Mountain Massage Center.
I was torn between the Maple Sugar Meltdown or the Coffee Scrub & Wrap. In the end, the caffeine addict in me won out. I mean, how could it not, with a description like this??
Relax while floating on warm water cushions. Allow the warmth to soothe your muscles while you receive a relaxing Swedish massage followed by a revitalizing Green Mountain coffee body cream scrub to exfoliate and hydrate your skin. You will then be wrapped in warm towels and receive a face, head, neck and foot massage while the powerful effects of the coffee beans have time to brew.
Oh. My. Goodness. My skin felt like a million bucks afterward, thanks to the scrub, and I literally floated out of the Massage Center an hour and a half later. It was definitely worth the $125 splurge and made our family getaway feel like a true vacation.
Okay, this is getting pretty long and I have sooo much more I want to tell you guys about our time at Smuggs — from the awesome condo accommodations to the resort programming to the family-friendly little touches — that I think I’ll save for my next post.
Disclaimer: Keeping Mommy Sane received complimentary lodging and resort activities (minus the spa service) to facilitate this review. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
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