Skiing Whiteface Mountain

Whiteface Mountain in Wilmington has the greatest vertical drop in the East, 3,430 feet from the top of The Slides to the main base lodge, and it sits about 62 road miles south of the cabins, an hour and a half by NY 30 and NY 86. That makes it the big day of a ski trip here, with Titus Mountain three and a half road miles from the door for the shorter days and the night sessions. This guide covers the lifts and trails, the 2026-27 tickets, cards and lessons, where to park and eat, and how a Whiteface day fits around Titus and the hot tub.

The peaks, the lifts and the lodges

Whiteface spreads across three summits, and the upper lifts start from a hub above the mid-mountain Legacy Lodge. Little Whiteface, 3,676 feet, is the shoulder on the left of the trail map, and the Cloudsplitter Gondola climbs to it straight from the main base. The main face is in the middle, where the Summit Quad tops out at 4,386 feet, the highest point any lift reaches; The Slides start higher still, at 4,650 feet, and you reach them on foot. Lookout Mountain, 4,000 feet, is on the right, with the Porcupine Lodge warming hut at the top of its lift.

At the bottom there are two bases. The Main Base Lodge, at 1,220 feet, has ticket windows, the main rental shop, first aid and most of the food. The Bear Den Lodge is the learning base, with its own lots, lifts, rental shop and ski school; from the main entrance you cross the bridge, turn right and follow Bear Den Road. The mountain has eleven lifts:

Warhorse, built in 2021, is named for Andrew Weibrecht, a three-time Olympian from Lake Placid, and unloads at the race finish arena that carries his name. The Notch opened in December 2023 as two lifts in one: step off at the midway station onto Boreen, an easy trail, or ride on past the Legacy Lodge to the trails and lifts above.

Trails for each level

About a quarter of the terrain is rated for beginners, 46 percent for intermediates and 30 percent for experts, on 94 trails. In September 2026 Whiteface posted a trail progression chart that lines the runs up from easiest to hardest, a handy plan for a group of mixed ability.

Green circles

The easiest runs are Otter, Loon and Moose at Bear Den, then Bobcat, Easy Way and Easy Street, Boreen Loop and finally Boreen, the trail The Notch's midway station drops you onto.

Blue squares

Next come Broadway, Upper and Lower Valley, Excelsior and Lower Northway, Victoria and, at the top of the blue range, the Wilmington Trail. That last one starts at the top of the Lookout Mountain triple, 4,000 feet up, and runs 2.1 miles, the longest trail on the mountain. Intermediates can ride the Summit Quad too: Riva Ridge, Paron's Run and The Follies are blue squares from its top at 4,386 feet, which puts the summit views within reach of a solid intermediate. Excelsior is the blue way down from the gondola on Little Whiteface.

Black diamonds and the steepest terrain

The chart continues through Essex, Mountain Run, Upper MacKenzie and Wilderness, and ends with Upper Skyward and Upper Cloudspin, the steep runs from the top of the Summit Quad. Little Whiteface carries much of the black terrain, with Approach, Upper Empire, Upper Northway, Upper Parkway and Upper Thruway on its flanks and the double-black Cloudsplitter Glades and Slide View Glades in the trees. On Lookout Mountain, Hoyt's High is a black diamond and Sugar Valley Glades is double black. Above everything are The Slides, 35 acres of in-bounds double-black terrain reached on foot and open only when conditions permit; the Lake Placid and Whiteface day trip has the rules for entering them.

Terrain parks

Flying Squirrel at Bear Den and Mixing Bowl at the main base are the beginner parks, with a mini half-pipe and wide flat boxes. Wolf and Wolf Run hold the intermediate park and a ski and snowboard cross course, served by the Warhorse lift. Bear has the biggest jumps and the longest rails, and Ausable Run is a second cross course. New park features are coming for 2026-27, and monthly park sessions teach etiquette and safety.

Snow, snowmaking and the season

Whiteface measured 223 inches in 2025-26, 138 inches in 2023-24 and 281 inches in 2016-17, and its ten-year average is about 195 inches. What keeps the trails covered between storms is snowmaking: more than 650 snow guns on over 40 miles of pipe reach about 99 percent of the trails, everything except the glades and The Slides.

The system is growing again for 2026-27. Sixty new HKD snow guns are going in on Upper Parkway, Upper Thruway, Wilderness, Mountain Run and other trails, crews are laying 24,000 feet of new pipe, including a new line into the Bear Den base, and sixteen fan guns are to be flown into place by helicopter in October. Glade crews are working through Hoot Owl, Bobcat, 10th Mountain, Cloudsplitter and Deer Valley, with Rands and Sugar Valley next.

Whiteface had not posted an opening date for 2026-27 by early October 2026. Last season the lifts started on November 15, earlier than any other ski area in New York. This winter's holiday periods are December 25, 2026 to January 1, 2027, January 16 to 18 and February 13 to 21, 2027. Those dates carry holiday prices on Frequent Skier tickets and lessons, so a non-holiday weekday is the cheaper day for both. From March 2 to 12, 2027, Whiteface hosts the FIS Alpine Junior World Ski Championships, the first held in the United States since Lake Placid hosted them in 1994; on a trip those days, check the conditions report for which trails are open to the public.

Tickets for 2026-27

Whiteface sells day tickets online, and the price depends on the date you ski and on how far ahead you buy: the earlier the purchase, the lower the price. Walk-up tickets at the window are not guaranteed, and the dates you want can sell out online, so buy ahead, from whiteface.com itself.

Every ticket loads onto a SKI3 card, a reusable plastic card with a chip that opens the lift gates on its own. A new card costs $5; after that you reload days online and walk straight to the lift. First-time buyers collect the card at a contactless pick-up box by scanning the e-ticket QR code. The boxes are in the lower tunnel of the Base Lodge, in its lower-level Slopeside Room, in the Premier Lot across from the boot-up tent, and at the Bear Den Lodge. Save a screenshot of the code before you leave the cabin, since cell service at the mountain can be poor.

A few rules matter for a ski week. Tickets and cards belong to one person. A multi-day ticket runs on consecutive days, starting at Whiteface; the later days also work at Gore and Belleayre, the other two state-run mountains. Up to the first day of your tickets you can ask to cancel or move them, and the value comes back as a credit good for 13 months, less a $15 fee per order. If the snow disappoints when you arrive, take the ticket to Guest Services within an hour of your first lift scan and trade it for a Snow Guarantee credit.

Keep the SKI3 card alone in a jacket or pants pocket between knee and shoulder height, away from your phone. Carry only one, since every card on you gets read at the gate, and take it out of your jacket before the jacket goes into the cabin's washer and dryer.

Frequent Skier Cards and passes

If you will ski Whiteface more than once this winter, price the Frequent Skier Card before buying day tickets. One card covers the season, and with it you buy discounted Whiteface tickets all winter: half the full peak window price on non-holiday weekdays and 25 percent off on weekends and holidays. Frequent Skier tickets never sell out, which counts on a holiday Saturday, and they work at Gore and Belleayre too. The 2026-27 cards are on sale until December 10, 2026, unless they sell out sooner; each is final sale and tied to one person.

Two adults skiing two weekdays at Whiteface would pay $118 for two cards and $268 for four tickets, $386 in all; compare that with the online price for your dates.

Mountain Collective holders get two days at Whiteface, then half off window tickets; the 2026-27 adult Mountain Collective pass costs $729 and covers two days at each of its 27 resorts. SKI3 season passes suit people who ski the state's mountains all winter: the adult full pass for ages 30 to 69, good at Whiteface, Gore and Belleayre with no blackout dates, is $1,119 through December 2, 2026 and $1,259 after, and passes for ages 7 and up include two free non-holiday day tickets to use or give away. A Titus Mountain season pass takes 20 percent off Whiteface tickets; the Titus guide has its other perks. Military tickets in 2025-26 were half off on non-peak weekdays and 25 percent off on weekends and holidays.

Lessons at the Bear Den

Every Whiteface lesson, group or private, starts at the Bear Den Lodge and needs a reservation, and the 2026-27 group lessons begin on December 19, 2026. Teenagers 13 and up join the adult groups, which meet once a day from 9 to 11 a.m. for levels 1 to 4, beginner to novice; above that level, lessons are private. The 2026-27 prices:

The beginner ticket in the level 1 to 3 package covers the two learning carpets and the Falcon Flyer. For a cabin of four with mixed abilities, the private lesson for three to five people works out to about $122 a person for two hours on a weekday, lift tickets extra; private lessons run daily between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Cancel more than 72 hours ahead for a refund less a $45 fee, or a credit toward the same lesson on another day; inside 72 hours a lesson is not refundable.

For a 10-to-12-year-old, Junior Adventure is the group program: 9 a.m. to noon on non-holiday weekdays for $219 at levels 1 to 3, lift ticket included, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekends and holidays for $299. Children at level 3 and up can add Mountain Cruisers, a $99 lesson from 2 to 4 p.m. on weekends and holidays. Rentals are extra for the children's programs, every rental package includes a helmet, and helmets are required for anyone 17 or under in a Whiteface program. A parent must stay at the mountain while a child is in a Bear Den lesson. Pack snacks without nuts; the school's facilities are nut-free.

Give yourself 60 minutes before a weekday lesson and 90 before a weekend one, more in holiday weeks. Drop riders and gear at the Bear Den loading zone first, then park, and note the name of your lot for the shuttle driver at the end of the day. Whiteface also runs an adaptive program for skiers and riders of any age with cognitive or physical disabilities; sit-skis, mono-skis and bi-skis carry a 200-pound limit.

Rentals, lockers and clothing

The rental fleet is Rossignol skis and Burton snowboards: more than 1,200 pairs of skis, 200 snowboards and another 150 pairs of high-performance and demo skis. First-timers and anyone in a lesson rent at the Bear Den, and stronger skiers and demo customers rent at the main base. Inventory can run out on busy days, so reserve online, and anyone under 18 needs a parent or guardian in the shop.

Last season's rates give a fair idea, since 2026-27 rental prices were not posted in early October. A teen or adult package of skis or a snowboard, boots, poles and a helmet cost $64 a day booked online and $73 at the counter; three days were $179 online and five days $295. Juniors and seniors paid from $48 a day online. Multi-day rentals run on consecutive days, and the shop stores the gear overnight for free. The shops are open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Whiteface does not rent clothing; if someone forgets mittens or goggles, Brookside Apparel in the Main Base Lodge and Flying Squirrel Apparel at the Bear Den can sell what is missing. Electronic day lockers are in both lodges, and overnight ski storage is in the main base rental shop and at the Bear Den.

The winter drive from the cabins

From the cabins it is about 62 road miles to the Whiteface entrance: county roads out to NY 30, NY 30 south to Paul Smiths, then NY 86 through Saranac Lake, Lake Placid and Wilmington Notch. The day-trip guide describes the route mile by mile. On clear roads it takes about an hour and a half; after a snowfall give it more, and look at 511NY, the state transportation department's travel map, before you go. The winter driving guide has the rest of the road advice.

There is a back way through Bloomingdale and Franklin Falls that comes into Wilmington from the north. To the ski area it saves nothing, about 62 road miles either way and slower on the back roads, so stay on NY 86 through Lake Placid. For the 8:30 a.m. first chair, leave the cabins by about 6:45; for a 9 a.m. lesson on a weekend, leave around 6.

Wilmington's center is about three road miles past the ski area entrance, away from home. Fill the tank and buy the lunch makings in Malone the day before; the groceries page lists the stores.

Parking and where to start

Parking is free in five lots, first come, first served: the River, Lake Placid and Wilmington lots at the Base Lodge and the two lots at Bear Den. Shuttles run between every lot and the lodges. Which lot to aim for depends on the day:

• A lesson or beginner rentals: drive to Bear Den. From the main entrance, cross the bridge and turn right onto Bear Den Road, drop people and gear at the loading zone, then park.
• Strong skiers with their own gear: the Base Lodge lots put you nearest the gondola and the Face Lift. Whiteface also sells parking in its Premier Lot by the day; check the price when you buy, and skip it if anyone in the group is renting gear or taking a lesson, since both happen at Bear Den.
• Electric cars: there are 20 charging stations in the River Lot and 4 in the Bear Den lot.

The Cloudsplitter Gondola in winter

For skiers the gondola is the express to Little Whiteface: eight people to a cabin, from the Main Base Lodge to the 3,676-foot top in under fifteen minutes. From the top, Excelsior is the blue way down, and Upper Northway, Essex and the Cloudsplitter Glades are the steep ones.

Non-skiers can ride it too. Winter ride tickets are sold at the Whiteface ticket area on the day: $30 for ages 13 to 64 and $25 for juniors 7 to 12 and seniors 65 and over. From the top you see Lake Placid and its village, Lake Champlain to the east, the High Peaks to the south, the Olympic ski jumps and the Ausable River. For the rest of a non-skier's day, the Olympic sites and the trails in the cross-country skiing guide are back toward Lake Placid.

Lunch on the mountain

All food and drink on the mountain is cashless; cards and phone wallets work everywhere. The Main Base Lodge has the most choice: Base Camp Market on the second floor for breakfast sandwiches, chili, pizza and burgers, Legends for soup and burgers, the Black Diamond Burrito Bar in the solarium, and the Waffle Cabin outside. Up the mountain, the Legacy Market in the Legacy Lodge serves chili, clam chowder, pizza and a salad bar. At Bear Den, the Black Bear Market has pizza, sandwiches and soups, and Growler's Grill has a Tex-Mex menu and a view of the mountain.

On weekends and holidays the lunch rush runs from about noon to 1:30; eat before 11:30 or after 1:30 and tables are easy to find. With a full kitchen in every cabin, packing lunch is easy, and Whiteface asks people with their own food to eat in the Ausable Room or outdoors. Keep it to a personal pack: coolers and large backpacks are not allowed in the lodges, and food cannot be heated there.

Whiteface and Titus in one trip

Titus Mountain's base is three and a half road miles from the cabins, so it fits around everything else in a day, while Whiteface takes a full day and three hours in the car. Most ski weeks here work best with one or two Whiteface days and Titus for the rest. This is one way to decide which mountain gets which day:

For a long weekend that ends with a drive south, the ski cabins page has a plan that puts Whiteface on the way home. For a longer stay, put Whiteface on a weekday in the middle of the week and keep Titus for the evenings and the shorter days; the Titus ski-day post shows how those run. After a Whiteface day the hot tub earns its keep: every cabin has its own, the Modern Pine and the Aviator have Jøtul gas stoves to warm up by, and every cabin has a washer and dryer for the wet layers. The cabins page compares the three.

A lesson day from the cabins

This plan suits a teen or adult taking the level 1 to 3 Learn to Ski package on a Saturday, with the rest of the group skiing on their own.

Après in Wilmington and Lake Placid

The first stop is on the mountain. The Cloudspin Bar & Grill, on the third floor of the Main Base Lodge, smokes its barbecue on site over local maple wood and pours local beer. In Wilmington, on the Memorial Highway about three miles past the ski area, the Twisted Raven serves burgers, wings, barbecue and craft beer and has live music nights; its listed hours run from 4 p.m. on weekdays and from noon on weekends, to 8 or 9 p.m.

Lake Placid is on the way home and has the most choice. Big Slide Brewery & Public House, about a mile from downtown at 5686 Cascade Road, pours ten of its own beers with brick-oven pizza and is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 10 a.m. on Sunday. Smoke Signals, at 2489 Main Street, smokes its meat in house and opens at 4 p.m. on weekdays and 2 p.m. on weekends. The Cottage at the Mirror Lake Inn sits on the shore of Mirror Lake facing the High Peaks; it takes no reservations, texts you when a table opens and is closed on Mondays. Dancing Bears, at Main and Saranac across the street from Mirror Lake, serves dinner from 3 p.m. every day, and the Marcy Bar in the Grand Adirondack Hotel has regular live music. The brewery taprooms on Main Street are in the day-trip guide. Hours change through the winter, so check before you count on a table, and keep a driver for the 52 road miles home. The post on après-ski at the Modern Pine covers the quieter option.

Safety and mountain rules

On the posted schedule the lifts run from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the ski patrol and medical services work only those hours. To report an injury, call (518) 946-8111, or 811 from any mountain phone, instead of 911, and give the name of the trail. Lift staff at the top or bottom of any lift can call for help. The main medical area is on the main level of the Base Lodge, with patrol stations at the tops of Little Whiteface, the Summit Quad and the Lookout triple, at the bottom of the Summit Quad and, in holiday periods, at Bear Den.

Know the Zone, the mountain's collision campaign, asks for 15 feet of space on all sides of other skiers and more around children. Agree on a meeting place and time with your group before the first run. Only skis and snowboards with metal edges and a brake or leash are allowed on the trails, which rules out sleds and snow skates, and no one may ski with a child in a backpack. Only service animals are admitted, so a dog cannot come along on a ski day. The health and safety page lists the hospital and pharmacies near the cabins.

Uphill skiing and the toll road

Skinning up the trails is allowed only through Whiteface's uphill program, never while the lifts are running. In 2025-26 it ran on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays outside the holidays, from 6 to 8:30 a.m., with a $129 season pass or a $25 day ticket bought online and a check-in at First Aid. The 2026-27 program had not been announced by early October, and from the cabins it means leaving at about 4:30 in the morning. The other local tradition is the Memorial Highway: in recent winters the road has been plowed only to the toll booth, and skiers skin up the road from there, 10.5 miles round trip to the Castle with more than 2,500 feet of climbing, no fee and no pass.

History of skiing on Whiteface

It took an amendment to the state constitution, which voters approved by a margin of 9,944 votes on November 4, 1941, to allow ski trails on the mountain. With war looming, the state shelved the plans that December, and the first ski center opened instead on Marble Mountain, with trails off the Memorial Highway, in the winter of 1948-49. It became known for steep trails, strong winds and thin snow cover, and in 1958 it closed except on weekends.

Governor W. Averell Harriman dedicated the ski center skiers know today on January 25, 1958, with Arthur Draper as manager; on the first run a chairlift broke down and workers had to rescue the governor. An expansion in 1966 gave Whiteface the biggest vertical in the East at the time, 3,216 feet, and a lift up the main peak for the Cloudspin and Skyward trails, the same two names at the top of the expert chart today.

The 1980 Winter Olympics brought about $14.5 million of work, about 79 percent of it state money, and every alpine race of the Games: the men's downhill on February 14, 1980, the women's downhill on February 17, the giant slaloms from February 18 to 21 and the slaloms on February 22 and 23. Today the state's Olympic Regional Development Authority runs Whiteface along with Gore and Belleayre, and SKI Magazine's 2026 resort guide ranked it third in the East. For the Olympic venues in town, see the Lake Placid Olympic sites guide.

Questions

Sources

Facts on this page were checked against these sources in October 2026. Hours, fees and schedules change; confirm before you go.

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