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Arizona Snowbowl resort snow
Lat Long: 35.30° N 111.70° W
Ski USA - Arizona

Arizona Snowbowl Resort Reviews

Weather Forecast for Arizona Snowbowl at 3156 m altitude

Issued: 10 am 20 Apr 2026 (local time)

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Visitor reviews for Arizona Snowbowl Ski Resort

Arizona Snowbowl Ratings

Overall: 2.6. Based on 6 votes and 6 reviews.

Rate this resort

Snowsure: 2.7

  • Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing
  • Is often closed due to a lack of snow
  • Occasionally suffers from a lack of snow
  • Rarely suffers from a lack of snow
  • Arizona Snowbowl is snowsure even in the poorest seasons

Variety of pistes: 2.8

  • The ski runs are featureless and unvaried
  • The ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week
  • Arizona Snowbowl has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain

Off-piste: 2.8

  • No off-piste worth mentioning
  • Off piste is out-of-bounds
  • Some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days
  • A vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days

Scenery: 3.2

  • An ugly resort in a bland setting
  • Average mountain views and resort
  • A spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town

Access: 3.0

  • At least one overnight stop
  • Requires a whole day
  • Requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns
  • Arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon
  • There is a main airport within an hour of Arizona Snowbowl

Public Transport: 2.7

  • There are no buses or taxis to Arizona Snowbowl
  • There are slow or infrequent buses / trains available
  • Getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections

Accommodation: 2.7

  • No places to stay in/near Arizona Snowbowl
  • A few places to stay in the resort
  • A wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets

Cheap Rooms: 2.7

  • No budget accommodation available
  • Just one or two hostels so book ahead
  • Several cheap hostels and pensions available

Luxury Hotels: 2.5

  • No luxury accommodation available
  • Just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead
  • Several up-market hotels in Arizona Snowbowl

Ski in/Ski out: 1.8

  • The ski area is located far from any accommodation
  • A free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip
  • Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available

Childcare: 2.8

  • There are no child care facilities at Arizona Snowbowl
  • The resort has limited child-care facilities
  • the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche

Snowmaking: 2.0

  • Arizona Snowbowl relies entirely on natural snow
  • There are just a few snow cannons
  • There are snowmaking facilities on all pistes

Snow Grooming: 3.3

  • There are no snow groomers at Arizona Snowbowl
  • Occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state
  • All the runs at Arizona Snowbowl are groomed daily

Shelter: 2.8

  • There is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut
  • There are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close
  • Arizona Snowbowl is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close

Nearby options: 2.0

  • If snow conditions are poor at Arizona Snowbowl, it will be poor everywhere nearby
  • There are good alternatives within an hours drive
  • Other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions

Regional rating: 2.6

  • Arizona Snowbowl usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region
  • Has average conditions for the region
  • Usually has the best snow conditions in the region

Lift Staff: 3.4

  • The staff at Arizona Snowbowl are rude or unhelpful
  • Lift staff at Arizona Snowbowl are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help

Crowds/Queues: 2.5

  • The resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues
  • It is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays
  • It is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare

Ski Schools: 3.8

  • No ski schools available
  • One or two ski schools but local language only
  • A few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors
  • Plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available
  • Excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors

Hire and Repairs: 3.5

  • Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex
  • There are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance
  • Good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible

Beginners: 3.6

  • Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard
  • A few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week
  • Vast areas of gentle terrain

Intermediates: 2.8

  • No intermediate terrain at Arizona Snowbowl
  • Intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days
  • Vast areas of cruising runs

Advanced: 2.8

  • Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders
  • Enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste
  • Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week

Snow Park: 2.5

  • Not even a kicker at Arizona Snowbowl
  • Average sized park quite well looked after
  • Huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails

Cross-country: 3.5

  • There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Arizona Snowbowl
  • There are some cross country trails available
  • The area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails

Luge/Toboggan: 1.0

  • No designated luge or toboggan runs
  • There are toboggan runs that open quite often
  • Arizona Snowbowl has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages

Mountain Dining: 2.5

  • Nowhere to buy food by the pistes
  • Some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive
  • There is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets

Eating: 2.8

  • Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop
  • There are a few places to eat in the resort but nothing special
  • A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants

Apres-Ski: 2.5

  • Nothing to do, not even a bar
  • There are a few bars in the resort but nothing special
  • Clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere

Other Sports: 1.5

  • No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts
  • Resort has just a small public swimming pool
  • Resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool

Entertainment: 1.5

  • Besides the snow and walking there is nothing to do here
  • The non-skier will find things to do for few days but may become bored after a week
  • The resort area is a fascinating place to visit, regardless of winter sports

Winter Walks: 2.8

  • Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails
  • A couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails
  • Extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities

Ski Pass Value: 2.2

  • A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available
  • The ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts
  • Ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area

Value (National): 2.4

  • Overall, Arizona Snowbowl is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money
  • Overall represents average value for money
  • Overall offers the best value resort in the country

Value (Global): 2.2

  • Overall, Arizona Snowbowl is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world
  • Overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries
  • Internationally the resort offers excellent value for money

Show all 35 ratings

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January 22, 2024
D Meier from Ski USA - California USA - California
Snowbowl can be fun on good snow days (though rare), but the ticketing system and pricing are flawed. They will change anywhere from $50-$300 per lift ticket for a mountain of three decent chairlifts and variable snow.
January 29, 2021
AA13579 from Ski USA - California USA - California
They oversold tickets, put no sign to update that they are at capacity and not allowing ticket holders in on 180 at the base of the mountain. The traffic on 180 blocks the road for miles, with no one directing it and no sign to explain what is happening, cars are constantly cutting each other off to try to get in. We arrived at the resort before opening, waited on the side of the road along 180 in a line of traffic for over an hour, when we finally pull in at the base of the mountain we were told we could not go up to park because they oversold tickets. They said we could wait in another line with over 100 cars and they "might let a few in over the next few hours," or buy another ticket for another day. We never made it in, prepaid tickets did not matter. Waste of money, gas, resources, and a huge let down for everyone on the trip. Save yourself a headache and spend your money somewhere else.
January 16, 2021
Michael Shedd from Ski USA - California USA - California
Terrible experience with Covid restrictions. They won't allow you up the mountain unless you pre-buy tickets online. Which is fine, until you spend 4 hours driving to the mountain just to be turned away because of "covid capacity." Today there was hundreds of cars crammed at the base of the mountain being turned away. They pre-sold tickets knowing their capacity limits. People travel from out of town to get here and are forced to turn around and go home. It is a mountain for crying out loud, there is more than enough room for people to socially distance in addition to all the preventative measures set in place. Employees at the bottom of the mountain had hardly any information to give people and it was a hot mess. They couldn't even dictate what their capacity was. I have been coming to this mountain for 15 years and have never been turned away for something as ridiculous as this. Sorry, but it is not worth the drive and the customer service was entirely lacking.
December 02, 2018
Richard Neil from Ski USA - California USA - California
Major improvements over the past few years including 2 fixed grip quads and a 6 person detachable chair. The resort is also capable of producing 1.2 gallons of artificial snow each day resulting in good surface on most days. There is a lot of tree skiing available as well. Dining facilities need updating and hotel/cabins near the main highway need a major upgrade, but excellent hotels are available 15 miles away. Can’t wait for next year when the proposed chondola (ed: ?gondola) might be installed to replace the main lift to the top of the mountain. The resort is now the premier destination in the Phoenix, Tucson and Las Vegas markets.
November 27, 2008
Daniel from Ski USA - California USA - California
Cliff is right. I was there in March of 2008, and it was beautiful. You have a panoramic view, including the Grand Canyon! I'd give the Snowbowl a thumbs up! PS Directions: From anywhere, find I-40, and follow to Flagstaff, Arizona. Then follow the signs until you start to ascend on Snowbowl road. Soon, you will reach the Snowbowl parking area. The lodge will be the first thing you see.
November 11, 2006
Cliff from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
I spent a day here in April 2005. Compared to most European resorts its tiny but it is fun. There was loads and loads of snow, but it did get slushy, hardly a shock though when the temperature was in mid-seventies. This must be the only ski resort in the world where you get a view of the Grand Canyon as you ski. It was good fun I would go back if I was in the area.