This past week I had the privilege of seeing very best of Vail. I was in town to film a new ski travel webisode series for OnTheSnow.com. The premise is going to iconic ski resorts around the world, enjoying the high-end amenities of the destination, and coupling that with incredible skiing. And that is exactly what we did. Other that zooming by on I-70, I had never been to Vail before. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I mean I had a couple images in my mind, mostly the along the lines of some pre-fab designer village, with overly corporate undertones, and robots zooming around to carry your skis. But that’s not what Vail is all about. Instead, I found a beautiful, quaint (yet really nice of course) village that looked like it was plucked out of the Alps and translated to English. I instantly liked it.
Being a Squaw Valley girl, born and raised, I think part of me is programed to not like corporate ski giants, or any snowy slopes in Colorado for that matter. The truth is, after a few days wandering the town, skiing the (really nice) powder in the trees, and meeting the locals (like Chris Anthony—local, great guy, and awesome skier), Vail is just a town that was born out of an utter love of the mountains and skiing. And through the fur coasts, ice sculptures, and unreal spas, that is still what is at the core of the Colorado ski resort. I was whisked from one fabulous thing to another, including decadent food, a beautiful suite at the Sonnenalp—a classic Austrian resort—chats with Vail’s premier residents, and luxurious spa treatments. All of this was amazing, but what I enjoyed most was finding one more place that loves to ski and enjoy the mountains as much as I do.
Oh, and the champagne was great too…Stay tuned for the episode.
And also, check out this web gallery I was featured in for OnTheSnow.com.
Vail Vday Pow from Amie Engerbretson on Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/59738570