Bear Valley Mountain Resort

A one-​stop resort: space for skiing and snowboarding, along with lessons, and everything you need on site for spend an entire day here (coffee shop, gear store, sports bar and snack bar). There’s plenty of parking, and frequent shuttle buses from area hotels, but it never felt too crowded even coming on a major holiday weekend.
There aren’t all too many trails, but outside of the winter season they also offer various climbing and hiking options, as well as lessons for kids. Lift is slow, only one express available, lockers on site. Unfortunately, there is no designated area for sledding/​tobogganing so if you aren’t skiing or boarding, you are pretty much walking around.

This review specifically addresses the Reba Sports Recreation ropes course and bungee area.
This is a school carnival level activity that will generally only occupy the youngest of your group. The staff was really pleasant and recommended we grab some craft beers from the market to sip while we watched our little ones navigate the course.

Came here for the day with my boyfriend.
Pros:
–there was no one on the mountain so we didn’t have to wait in any lines on the lifts
–tickets were discounted to a great price. $ 82 for lift ticket and rentals
–the weather was amazing
Cons:
–the staff was kind of rude. They all seemed miserable to be there. We even saw a manger yelling at the employees
–the snow was obviously icy
–half the runs were closed due to lack of snow
Would still come back. Overall it was nice to be out on the mountain.

I voted five stars for the instructors here. We took ski and snowboard lessons for all different ages. All were new to the snow sports. Jen was awesome for snowboard lesson for my sister (10). Dick was a great ski instructor for my friend (18) and me (28). And then there was Bob.
Bob was absolutely amazing. He worked with my sister (9) who has Downs Syndrome by himself for about 2 hours. He was so great and patient with her! And she was skiing down the hill by herself at the end. I mean her skis were hooked together, but still. She did amazing and it was all thanks to Bob. So thank you!!!

Bear Valley is a great place for the following reasons.
Easy drive: not too far, it is possible to do a day trip. The road is not too windy (If you get car sick easily like me) and traffic is not bad once you leave Bay Area. There is usually not much snow on the road, but if there is, they do a good job of clearing it. When conditions are bad, bring chains as we have witnessed few people going off the road this season due to ice.
Mountain offers variety of levels. Great for learning but also fun if you like more challenging runs. Lines are not too long other than Holidays. They keep the runs well groomed, and make snow when weather doesn’t cooperate. They even move snow to keep the runs well covered.
Price is reasonable, place is not fancy, but as I just go there to ski, I rather not pay for extra luxuries. Murphys is very close if looking for more of a vacation to add to the ski. There are wineries, spas and good restaurants. Lessons are also reasonable and if you or your kids are just learning, probably not necessary to pay double to just be in the bunny slopes.
Everyone there is very helpful and down to earth. Feels like a safe place to hang out and do you favorite sport.

My husband and I own a cabin in the Bear Valley village, and we have been skiing at Bear for years. The mountain has new owners this year and the place has never been better. Despite the lack of snow this year they’ve done an incredible job grooming. There are lots of signs of improvement already, and with a year under their belt next season promises to be even better. We’re thrilled to see such potential and are appreciative of the hard work they’ve put in this year to get off to such a great start.

Love this place… Only one complaint… NO WAY TO GET CASH FOR THE LOCKERS!!! Currently the ATM is out of service.
Oh wait… One more complaint– the place desperately needs a renovation and the outdoor area needs better seating… Big time! The snow and the downhill areas, however, are awesome! Seriously awesome!

For the past 12 years, I have been coordinating an annual youth group outing to Bear Valley. Kudos to Luke and Nikki for the smoothest year yet. It was so easy to get the 20 boys tickets/​rentals/​lessons as Nikki had all prepared in advance. I was even able to get 11 runs in due to the no line lifts (could have done a lot more if the knees would let me). Even with no natural snow in the last few weeks, due to their snowmaking\grooming all had a great time. I forgot to add that the ski lift operators were extremely friendly. As the Super Cub operator would say, Awesome, have a great day!

Local ski hill.
Cheap tickets from
or sports basement.
Only 1 express chair. All other chairs slow but short. Beginners, avoid Koala chair. The middle pole and steep off ramp will jack you up. When there is snow, it can be fun here. Grooming is not the best and terrain is limited when the lower mountain is not open.
Easy drive from the east bay for a day trip.
Kids ski school can get over crowded on the weekends/​holidays. Many instructors are kids themselves. At $ 130−145/day for the kids program it is still «cheaper» than a similar lesson at northstar or squaw.
Only 1 main lodge area on the mountain. Bbq on the deck, cafeteria grill, bar, or coffee counter. Around $ 8−15/person for lunch. No wannabe sushi or waiter service.
The clientele is more down to earth than at some of the mainstream resorts. You won’t see any purse dogs or fur coats here.
No GSM cell reception in the area and no wifi in the lodge.
New ownership by Skyline and new website. Seems like they can’t decide if they want to go main stream or stay with the local vibe. Prices have already gone up and now charging for preferred parking in the lower lot. Big plans for developing village area and another lift.

Just got back from my first trip to BV and was disappointed. I think this place has suffered from a lack of investment over the years and the staff, while all very pleasant, seem overwhelmed. There don’t seem to be many business processes in place, so you get a different answer depending upon who you talk to. It almost seemed like the staff were volunteers.
It took me three trips from Arnold (1.5h round trip) to get ski lessons for my son.
The first trip up I was told (face to face) «No spaces left today but we do have plenty of open spots tomorrow. We can’t do tomorrow’s reservations today yet, so please call the reservation line after 2:00 PM today.» Alright, that seems a little weird. A customer standing in front of you and willing to pay now is always more valuable then a potential customer tomorrow, but whatever. I didn’t expect to walk in anyway and we didn’t drive up specifically to do skiing that day anyway.
I get back and call and the notice on the reservation line is «due to high call volume, we can’t take reservations over the phone. Please make reservations in person or use the website with at least 24 hours notice.» The kids were present, so the expletives uttered were relatively minor…
I didn’t have internet access in Arnold, so I had to make yet another trip to BV to make the reservation for the next day. On the third and final trip, my son got into the class and I was very happy with the instructors, though the Cub Club area was total chaos. I felt sorry for the poor bastards that had to wrangle all those kids.
Again, I think the major issue is that the business is picking up and BV isn’t yet prepared to handle it. Skyline is supposed to be making lot’s of improvement in the near future. Everyone at BV was pleasant and tried to be helpful, but the business infrastructure just isn’t where it needs to be yet. I’m guardedly optimistic that this will be a great family destination in the near future.

very fun for the kids, lots to do for good prices, good food around and not that expensive as going to tahoe.

No stars! Went from favorite to rude unhelpful! The mountain was just bought and they are scaring away the local people who been going there for years and bringing people for years! You guys lost and its sad that you won’t help with vouchers that have your with your name on it!

I really wanted to give at least 3 stars but honestly cannot after the last trip. As far as the boarding went it was a great day, it was a Wed I believe, in early April after a late season storm with 2 feet of new powder. There were really no lift lines that day. Had the makings of an epic day.
I hate giving a negative review but I am being honest. The drive there was approx 3.5 hours there from the bay area, got in maybe 30 mins after opening and got a good parking spot. The part that really turned me off here is my friend and I had to wait 45+ plus to get our lift tickets. I would estimate we were 15 people back or so in line, but there was one family up there who was at the counter for at least 25 minutes just getting their tickets. I’m not sure what they were doing and there are delays sometimes, but making a monetary transaction for a few lift tickets should not be an all day process. Everyone in line was getting very irritated and people were starting to make comments. I didn’t leave the bay area at 6am or so to go wait in a simple lift line for what was about a quarter of the drive time. That is 45+ minutes that the new powder is melting and getting rode over by others. As a bonus I went to get a belt wax after this, I was second in line and tack on another 20+ minutes. Somebody else came in for a wax and decided against after being quoted 30 – 40 mins (would have been 3^rd in line) and the guy working kept saying «oh everyone is in such a hurry» or «nobody is patient anymore» but they don’t realize that people have already driven far and/​or waited almost an hour for lift tickets and they are itching to get on the mountain, imagine that. Also a simple belt wax takes typically takes 3 – 4 mins at any of the other resorts I’ve been to.
I know a big appeal is that it’s «not tahoe» and «less local jerks» and all that but at any other evil tahoe resort I have never waiting more that 10 – 15 mins to get my ticket, and that’s a weekday or weekend. The snow that day was awesome, the terrain is somewhat similar to Kirkwood. The runs were great as well, I’m not one who cries about everything but taking over an hour from entering the line to the first run is not cool.

Let me start out by saying, I’m somewhat biased. I grew up in Arnold, about 20 minutes down the hill (depending on weather, of course) from Bear Valley. Until I moved away eight years ago, I had been skiing here most weekends since I was three years old.
In BV’s defense, some of the reviewers on here judge the ski resort based on things entirely out of their control (i.e. the amount of snow, hwy 4, lines, cell reception [seriously?], etc.). Does anyone have any comments on the amazing terrain? Some reviewers appear to be more concerned with the food/​bars and other amenities rather than the actual mountain. Don’t make the mistake of expecting a Tahoe resort when you go to a tiny mountain town to ski, you will surely be disappointed. Tahoe is a HUGE tourist destination for far more than just the skiing.
If you love the actual experience of being on the slopes, enjoying the beautiful views and fresh mountain air, and desire amazing terrain for all levels from beginner to expert, this is your place. When there is enough snow (c’mon ²⁰¹⁴⁄₂₀₁₅ winter!), the lower mountain is open (my favorite). I highly recommend the runs called Grizzly (intermediate to advanced skiers only) and Snow Valley.
Hopefully, with the support of the new ownership, they will be able to add some additional high speed chairs. Although, I have to say that I love the quirkiness of this mountain and hope it doesn’t become too much like a Tahoe resort. I can do without the crazies on the road that have never seen snow before.
NOTE: Read the review by Peter H. (on the not currently recommended page). Some reviewers keep saying BV is ideal for families and beginners. It actually has some incredibly advanced runs and Peter does a great job breaking it down. The few times I’ve given other mountains a chance, I’ve been disappointed by how boring the runs are. I’ll take interesting and challenging runs over a nice cafeteria and warm, fuzzy lift operators any day!

Maybe it was the horrible season this year, or the fact that I went up on a day that was dumping, but I found bear valley to have THE best snow this season. I’ve been to handful of resorts over the years and this one truly had good snow.
The food can be pricey, so if you bring your own food you can heat it up in their microwaves in the dining areas.

The slopes was icy and some slopes was closed due to lack of snow. My friends was told by the worker that he can’t used the sleds around the ski area so he had to walk to a secluded area from the resort to use the sled. I thought that was a stupid rule!
Hwy 4 is a pain !!!
Ps. For all T-​mobile and metro users !!! You will not get service /​data at this resort until you off the mountain which is an hour. If you depend on your phone for navigation to get here then I hope u plan ahead before you come here.

Bear Valley has plenty of well-​groomed runs that are wide enough for beginners and experts to share at once. Some areas shadowed by trees are especially icy, and others exposed to the sun are particularly slushy. Watch out for spots where the slush turns to ice!

Had to knock back a star because I had the unfortunate experience of having to eat/​break in their cafeteria. I usually don’t hold too high of expectations for these eating halls, but after seeing other ski resorts improve their food over the past 18 years or so, this place seems to be stuck in the 80’s/90’s.
Burgers are pre-​cooked and wrapped in foil, wings sitting under a heat lamp. I had better chicken soup in jail (don’t judge!). Common folks at Bear, you can do way better than this. Just go to any other place in the area and observe what they are doing. Dodge, Sierra, Kirkwood all have up-​ed their game in the food department. So should you.
Shame on you, Bear.

I typically don’t think of Bear Valley first when I plan on going on a snowboarding trip, but because of a voucher from Snowbomb’s Ski & Snow Festival we went on our complimentary ticket. I’ve gone before, but the other two times have okay with the snow condition. This past Fri, snow was wonderful. I hit some powder and the runs were great despite the fact that not all of the mountain was open. However, the runs that I would’ve taken with or without the whole mountain being open were all that mattered to me. And those were open. The day was beautiful w/​the sun and some slush even in the afternoon.
Since the last time I’ve been here, the facilities have somewhat upgraded. However, it’s still a little more run down if you look at the facilities like the restrooms. When they upgrade it a little more, I’ll upgrade it to 5 stars. And if they have more express lifts. Only express lift I saw was the Polar Express in the back. The location is a little out of the way, but if you’re used to driving to Yosemite then this is the resort for you!

Just two hours away from home, this place is the perfect location to play in the snow!
Five friends and I spent a day exploring the Snowshoe trails and had such a blast! I like hiking and hiking with huge flip flops on was super fun!
I don’t remember all the names of the trails, but my friend pointed out they were all named after bears. Super cute!
We made our way up to the summit to be welcomed by a hut where we relaxed and had lunch. There were breath taking views of the snow topped mountains. We relaxed, played in the snow and made our own tubing mountain, minus the tubes!
A day of snowshoeing is a fun and different activity. It gives your body break from intense snowboarding in the winter time.
Bear Valley is a new place for me. I’ll definitely be back. It’s so refreshing to not have huge crowds that you find at resorts in Lake Tahoe.