Royal Mountain Ski Area

Royal Mountain is a great local, small town, low key, affordable place to take your family. Each staff member we interacted with was wonderful. They were helpful in ticket sales, rentals, food, and lift operations. Fortunately I didn't have to talk to the ski patrol but I saw them moving around a few times and seemed to be active and ready to help with cheerful countenances. Lunch was fresh, quick, and tasty at great prices. The whole lodge area to eat was neat with a few heat stoves where guests were drying out gloves and the like after a rainy morning on the slopes. In my opinion the other guests seemed to be local teens and young adults. A few parents with smaller children but overall it was a great experience with great people all around. They have a ton of snow making machines and had great coverage even though we have not received a ton of snow in the area this year. It's a small area but because the lines were either short or non-existent it felt like we got to ski down and take the lift back up quickly to get a lot of runs in. I can't think of anything they could do to improve the experience and found it to be a relaxing and glorious day outside this winter. Thanks Royal Mountain staff for making it a great experience for everyone looking to enjoy the winter outside.

Very fun little mountain. I am fairly new to skiing and learned as an adult. I had fun here getting many runs in and practicing and doing drills. We had a great day of skiing.

Great place for families. I have put the kids in lessons two weekends in a row and the trainers have done an exceptional job teaching my kids to ski/snowboard. The staff is great and accommodating, and feels invested in making sure people learn and improve. Quick lines for food and a large area to sit and eat if you bring your own lunch.

Best value skiing and riding there is. From the magic carpet and beginner lift for your new skiers, to the challenging and steep glades this has something for everyone. Some of the best coverage of both man made and natural snow. Lift lines are typically short. Plus lunch is affordable, I normally pack a lunch when skiing at other spots, but $6 bacon egg and cheese can’t be beat!

I have come to Royal since 2020 with my wife and 3 kids. Perfect family mountain. Wonderful beginner area. Owners have invested a lot in improvements and their care and dedication shows through in all parts of the business. An excellent experience somehow continues to get better every year. Highly recommend!

Royal Mountain is a small mom & pop mountain nestled in upstate New York. It’s only open on weekends, holidays, and school breaks from 9am to 4pm, but it was perfect to try out after Friday the 13th on Gore and my intercostal muscle strain. PARKING Plenty of free parking, lots of off-roading. TICKETS & PASSES I had my reservations about the quality of Royal due to the prices of tickets and passes. Super affordable! Adult all day was $60. THE MOUNTAIN & SLOPES I first learned about Royal Mountain after meeting Billy, a ski patroller there, while my boyfriend and I were at Gore. He invited us to check out Royal so we wouldn’t leave empty-handed after a rough time at Gore. He knew I had been struggling there, psyching myself out, and assured me I would have a much better time at Royal. He was right—I’m not going to lie, I reclaimed my confidence at Royal and was able to take it easy without further injuring myself. Billy’s enthusiasm for the mountain was undeniable. He showed us around, and it quickly became clear just how much love the community has for Royal. Everyone helps run it together, and it was so well-kept. Every inch of the mountain was covered in snow—so much snow! But I wasn’t surprised since this was Upstate New York. I had my reservations at first, based on previous experiences with smaller, family-owned mountains, but Royal exceeded my expectations. Billy had us start on the bunny slope, assuring us not to judge it by its name. He spends a lot of time on it himself because, unlike most bunny slopes, this one is different—way more fun. He wasn’t wrong! Once I felt confident enough to ride without straining myself too much, we explored more of the mountain, riding ski lifts and different trails. For a Saturday, it wasn’t too crowded, which was perfect. I’m not a fan of crowds—not just as a snowboarder but in general. Crowds make me feel claustrophobic, like I can’t even hear myself think. Watching Billy interact with the kids on the mountain was heartwarming. They trusted him completely—he was their guide into the world of snowboarding. You could tell he knew exactly what he was doing. At some point, he left us to explore on our own while he accompanied the groms down some much more difficult terrain. I wasn’t about to follow, not with my intercostal muscle strain. I could still ride, but strapping in took nerves of steel. I’ve had this same strain before, but never from something as cool as a snowboarding mishap. This was also my first time riding back-to-back multiple days in a week, but I love snowboarding too much to give up! Needless to say, I had the best time thanks to Billy and his recommendations. I hope to come back one day and really enjoy the mountain—especially without any injuries! FOOD & BATHROOMS The bathrooms were awesome. They had character. Everything was so well-kept and had slice of history shown with the decor. The food & refreshments were affordable and tasted amazing. Everyone was so kind! GIFT SHOP Although there isn’t much of a gift shop, Royal still had vinyl stickers to choose from FOR FREE! I loved it! Very much so appreciated! OVERALL I had a really pleasant experience at Royal Mountain and cannot wait to do it again. I definitely want to explore the mountain some more, when I come back. I will be 100% healed and ready to take on any of the trails. I hope to run into Billy again because he’s definitely an amazing guy and clearly, you can tell, the community thinks so too! I was going to give this mountain a four out of five star because I fully believe everything can be bettered upon BUT I can’t really think of anything quite wrong with the mountain. It’s well-kept, well-loved, and a great hidden gem! The website is gorgeous too! Easy to maneuver. I can find everything I was looking for. Not just anyone can attain this high level of professionalism!

This little mountain is a gem. Perfect for new learners and great on a family budget. There’s enough glade areas to keep it interesting despite its small size. Would love if they also had a tubing spot for little ones and maybe 2 more trails. But I’m not complaining, we’ve been coming for years and will continue to.

Its a great family mountain. The vibes here are like no other. The food is decent. Both the food and bar are affordable. The bunny slop is by far one of the best ones ive seen at a mountain. The events held here are a lot of fun. The only negative i have is that i wish they sold tickets based on hours rather than specific time frames of a day. I would like to be able to go and buy a 4 hour ticket rather than wait until 1pm to buy a half day ticket or leave by noon to then rip up my ticket and get $10 put back on my card