ski apache

Great skiing conditions, but didn't like driving up the 12 mile mountain road everyday. Close parking by the lifts.

We skied 3 times at Ski Apache this week during my kid's Spring week. Everything went great until the last 40 minutes when a Ski instructor named Al Priddy yelled and pointed his finger at my kid's face. Reason? He accused that my kid skied by him too fast (come on, how fast could it be when he's on the Easy Rider trail) that almosted knocked him down (oh, he's so fragile). Don't ever take any lessons from this rude and nasty guy who didn't even know how to treat a kid properly. Apparently he didn't know how to control his temper. Other than our unfortunate encounter with this ugly guy, everything else was great and we recommend the place.

We signed our six year old up at the children's adventure center for a full day of ski school so he could learn the basics. It didn't take long to realize that this was more of a daycare and that the women working in the school were not very concerned about the children. They were extremely rude, yelled at the children and overall not fit to work with children. I would not recommend using this program, instead get your child private lessons they will learn more and not be treated like animals.

I had loads of fun with my 9 year old leading to ski. We were both beginners so we purchased a class each. The instructors were helpful and the cashiers and equipment handlers were friendly. We will definitely be back!

Just returned from skiing our 4th day at Ski Apache. We loved it! We skied on March 5th / 6th and the 10th / 11th. The 1st week was great because of the new snow of 9 plus inches with no crowds, but this week was nice too even with all the spring breakers here from Texas. They should have a "wear your favorite Texas school shirt day". Here is my summary of our experiences:--if skiing for more than one day then leave your skis, boots, helmet, and poles in the 50 cent lockers overnight to avoid having to carry these to and from your vehicle the next day.-- wear a helmet even if you are an adult. Plus it keeps your ears super warm. Kids should certainly wear them.-- take your own food and snacks to save money as it is expensive to eat here. We enjoyed hanging out in the lunch room / lounge area in the lodge where the picnic tables are (and let me tell you that I love the music they play on Ski Apache Radio - the 80's music and the country music are great! It makes me long for a dance floor : ) -- this is a great place to learn to ski with lots of fun green runs. Our favorite for the kids was Chair Lift #3 and Easy Street, and the Lower Deep Freeze.-- if you have enough time to wait two days before you ski it will help you with any altitude sickness when you reach the top. -- our family has done group ski lessons, semi-private lessons, and private lessons and I highly recommend one-on-one private lessons as you will progress much faster with your own instructor. In group lessons you can be slowed down by those who need more help. NOTE: we really like Ayako Bates from Japan and James Copple from England. They were both great ski instructors!! Other Ruidoso tips: -- go to Wild West Ski shop for your gear. They provide great customer service and you can get a discount for ordering ahead of time online, plus it saves you time as you don't have to wait as long when you pick everything up. I also recommend getting the gear the afternoon before you ski so you can spend more time on the slopes. -- go to Alto Lake for a nice hike along the stream that flows to a gorgeous rock cliff. The stream is nice and the hike doesn't take much time at all. Very relaxing.Can't wait to return here! Hope this helps!

Yes, we were there before the Spring Break crowd and after some snow. This was our first time and hopefully not the last time. Unless you are used to helicopter skiing, you will find the right level of skiing for you to enjoy. Obviously, if you go when it is packed or when there is no snow it will be different.

Ski Apache has put in a new gondola system that makes everything work much better there. The lift tickets remain affordable as well as including the lift ticket with lessons. We think this is a great town. The drive up is a bit treacherous at times but the road is well kept. The snow can be iffy since it is so far south, however it has been great this year. We go to Ski Apache at least 4 times yearly for skiing. They also have a new zip line that looks great. We enjoy the tube hill at the bottom of ski run road as well.

This place has everything, beautiful friendly people, great place to learn to ski. Lots of ski routes, fire to relax by at lunch time. Family friendly. The town has an Irish Pub. Lovely restaurants lots of attractions to see close by. Love it. Stopped by Area 51 Roswell NM on the way. Picnic in the desert with swimsuits at seven Lakes. Had a fun time. Will be back.

I have read several bad reviews regarding the customer service and I have to strongly disagree. I had a mistake when booking tickets online and these two went over and beyond the call of duty to help me. Maybe other employees and people could take a lesson from them on what good customer service is. Thank you again for all your help.... Casey

The people on the mountain are very nice, and we are not great skiers. But the staff are always so helpful. That's why we go to Ski Apache year after year.

This place was very organized. We were in and out in no time at all considering all the equipment WIld West Ski Shop was renting out. The price was also very affordable. Staff was very knowledgable, friendly and easy going. We called ahead of time and they had everything ready upon our arrival.

There are several negative reviews. We found the opposite to be true. Ski Apache's native American staff were friendly and patient. Every staff we encountered to the cashiers, lift operators to the equipment staff were great. We could not have asked for better for our first time skier son. Instructors were engaging. If you are debating to go to Ski Apache...Go!!! No it it's not as big as Angel Fire, Red River, etc. We found it delightful and memorable.

Having never skied before, February in New Mexico was not the best time and place to start. They have snow making machines but the slopes were nothing but concrete hard ice. Of course there's nothing the employees can do about that so my review doesn't hold the resort accountable for weather. The people and atmosphere were above reproach. It is a small resort and every employee is polite and friendly. Will definitely be back!

Ski Apache is decent mountain, but it is small and the Native American staff is rude and unfriendly.I would drive 2+ more hours to reach a better mountain.

I was looking forward to going and learning to ski, the employees were rude, they were not helpful and it was extremely expensive. The new zip line is a stop and start zip with not enough length to stop and start more than once or twice. I won't be going back.