Your chariot awaits!
Take the bus from NYC to nearby ski/snowboard areas including Hunter Mountain, Windham Mountain and Mountain Creek, and have fun on the slopes and apres ski without the hassle of driving.
Skiers and riders can board busses in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island for daytrips for the 2020/2021 season.
Weekend trips to nearby Vermont resorts including Mount Snow and Killington are not currently scheduled because of Vermont’s Coronavirus restrictions.
The ski bus deal usually includes discount lift tickets, some operators offer and on-board snacks and ski movies, and you ride in comfort on modern, luxury coaches.
January is Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month, so it’s a great time to learn how to play in the snow.
Reservations are required, since buses sometimes sell-out. And there are fewer buses taking fewer passengers this year because of the reality of Cvid-19.
That reality also has caused some significant price increases, and shut down at least one operator.
Arrive at the bus stop at least 15 minutes before departure to ensure you are not left behind.
Hunter was purchased by Vail Resorts last season and is now on the Epic Pass.
Windham now is a member of the Ikon Pass.
If you are an Epic or Ikon Pass holder, you ski free, up to five days or more, depending on the type of pass you have.
Ski bus trips from Manhattan
Urban Sherpa
This company has the most bus trips from Manhattan, with day-trips to both Hunter, Windham and Camelback nearly every day of the week and occasional overnight trips to Windham, including midweek. Buses leave from Union Square and Times Square.
Urban Sherpa owns the buses they operate, with staff drivers who know the routes well.
- Trips start at $$75 for transportation only – up from $49 last year.
- Price with lift ticket is $129, up from $95 last year
- There are discounts on lesson packages.
- Urban Sherpa is recommended by NYCOTC
Paragon Sports Express
The sporting goods store used to offer day-trips to Hunter Mountain used to operate trips Wednesdays and Saturdays, and to Windham Mountain on Sundays.
There is nothing listed on the website for the 2020/2021 season, so we can only assume Paragon is NOT operating bus trips this season.
Island Ski Tours
Day-trips to Windham on Wednesdays. Buses leave at 6am from the Grand Hyatt Hotel on 42nd Street, next to Grand Central Terminal.
The bus starts in Medford, Long Island, with pick-ups in Holbrook, Hicksville and Roslyn, before Manhattan.
- Rates start at $55 for transportation only, same as last season.
- Lift tickets are an additional $34, and rentals are $35.
Sourced Adventures
Day-trips to Hunter on an irregular schedule.
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and on Mondays of three-day weekends such as MLK and Presidents. The first pickup location, at Adventure Cafe, 85 Delancey Street, offers a discount on breakfast. The second location, at West 45th Street at Eleventh Avenue, does not.
- Packages start at $129 for bus, lift ticket and rentals, up from $99 last season.
- NYCOTC Warning: There is no information on the website for price of bus only, without lift tickets or rentals, so this is not the bus trip for skiers or boarders with their own equipment or lift ticket passes or vouchers.
NYC Snow Bus
For the last few years, this company has operated a busy schedule to Hunter, Windham and Mountain Creek on weekdays, and Windham, Hunter, Whiteface and Gore on weekends.
Not this season. This season they have switched to private groups only, 50 people minimum.
- Rates were $59.90 for bus only, $99 with lift ticket last season, but no per person rates for private groups are available on the website this season.
Specifically for Snowboarders
OvrRide
This is a collective of snowboarders from around the world that have started the first and only rider-owned and -operated tour program in Manhattan. Buses pick up riders from locations including Park Slope, Cobble Hill, Dumbo, Soho, Union Square, the Upper West Side and the Upper East Side.
Last season, trips were to Hunter, Windham, Mt. Snow and Killington, although day-trips to Vermont are a very, very long day.
This season, buses are operating to Mountain Creek only.
- Rates are $89.95 for transportation only, $129 with lift ticket, which is up from $99.95 for transportation and lift ticket last season.
See you on the slopes!
This article was published first in 2016 and is updated annually for the winter sports season, including updated in January 2021.
What do you think about this? We welcome your comments.