We’ll be glued to the weather like hawks, watching where the first big storm decides to drop the hammer and kick off winter with a bang. If you’re itching to ski more than just a narrow white ribbon of death, these are the best places to ski in November this Thanksgiving based on how things have played out in past Novembers. Just remember: Mother Nature can flip the switch fast, so stay flexible and keep those plans loose.
Watch the Forecast And Wait to the Last Minute
Early season is all about watching the forecast and keeping tabs on long term weather patterns like El Niño, La Niña, and the infamous Blob. These trends can offer clues about which regions might score big. Resorts like Mammoth and Lake Tahoe are known for surprise storms that can dump feet of snow and open up the whole mountain overnight. So keep your eyes on the skies, happy forecast watching and good luck chasing that early season pow!
Colorado: Wolf Creek Ski Area
2024/25 Thanksgiving Weekend: 71″ snowfall – 100 percent open
Any legit list of the best places to ski in November has to include Wolf Creek, probably right near the top. Nearly every season, they’re one of the first resorts in North America to open. And it’s predominantly on natural snowfall, sometimes as early as Halloween!
And we’re not talking just one or two token runs either. In solid winters, they’ve been able to open nearly the entire mountain right out of the gate.
As they say in real estate, it’s all about location, and Wolf Creek has it dialed. Sitting at the intersection of multiple storm tracks makes it the snowiest resort in Colorado. Combine that with a high base elevation and a good chunk of intermediate-friendly terrain, and they’re able to open up runs fast once the snow starts falling.
Chasing First Chair: Colorado’s Other Early Season Bets
If natural snowfall is slow to arrive, Colorado’s usual early-season contenders—Arapahoe Basin, Keystone, and Loveland—can still open thanks to snowmaking. With a little help from Mother Nature, they typically have multiple runs ready early in the season.
Canada: Banff Sunshine Village
2024/25 Thanksgiving: 40″ Snowfall – 20″ base with 7 / 12 lifts
With a base elevation of 7,082 feet, Sunshine Village is the highest ski resort in the Canadian Rockies, giving it one of the longest non-glacial ski seasons in Canada. It’s usually one of the first resorts to open, and by Thanksgiving, multiple feet of snow have often already fallen. Thanks to its location in the Great White Canadian North, the snow stays cold, light, and dry—ideal for early season turns.
By this time of year, you can expect 30 or more trails to be open, with more added as storms arrive. Just fifteen minutes away, the town of Banff offers incredible dining, Banff Upper hot springs, and a vibrant après scene. Even if the whole mountain isn’t open yet, there’s plenty to explore across Sunshine Village and sister resorts Lake Louise and Mt. Norquay. Together, they offer plenty of terrain to keep you stoked throughout your early season November trip.
California: Mammoth Mountain
2022/23 Thanksgiving: 60″ Snowfall – 48″ base with 10 lifts
Like Banff’s Sunshine Village, Mammoth Mountain benefits from a high base elevation—7,953 feet—the highest in California. That altitude helps deliver one of the longest ski seasons in North America, with skiing in November almost always on the table.
But buyer beware: the Sierra Nevada are infamous for their feast-or-famine storm cycles. In a feast year—like the legendary 2022/23 season—Mammoth picked up five feet of snow by early November and had over 97 of its 175 trails open. That’s more than 63% of the mountain, making it the most open terrain in North America at the time. Even when Mother Nature holds back, Mammoth’s snowmaking crew kicks into gear early, often getting lifts spinning by the first weekend of November.
How Early Can You Ski Palisades Tahoe? Sooner Than You Think
Another California resort that stretches the limits of how early—and how long—the ski season can go is Palisades Tahoe. Much like Mammoth, all it takes is one big storm to get the lifts spinning. I’ve personally skied the upper half of Palisades in October with conditions that rivaled, and in some years even beat, what you’d expect in the middle of winter.
Wyoming: Grand Targhee
2022/23 Thanksgiving: 91″ Snowfall – 82% Open
Grand Targhee is a standout when it comes to consistency. In the past 20+ years, the lowest snowfall before January 1 was 76 inches—and only one other season dipped below 110 inches. Compared to its steeper neighbor Jackson Hole, Targhee’s moderately pitched terrain makes it easier to open more runs earlier in the season.
The challenge here isn’t snowfall—it’s location. Being farther from major metropolitan areas means early openings aren’t as high of a priority as they are at other resorts. That said, Targhee generally opens a week or two before Thanksgiving, and in many years, over 60% of its terrain is ready when the lifts start spinning. In strong seasons like 2022/23, four out of five lifts were running, serving 76 of the resort’s 93 trails.
Idaho: Lookout Pass
2024/25 Season: 80″ snowfall – 60% open
Thanks to its unique spot in the Bitterroot Range, this mountain pass is a true meteorological battleground. It’s where warm, moist Pacific air slams into cold, dry Arctic air—creating the perfect recipe for deep snow. That combo makes it the snowiest resort in Idaho (and yep, in case you’re wondering, Grand Targhee is technically in Wyoming).
Because the terrain is mostly intermediate and doesn’t have a ton of rocky features, they’re able to open a surprising amount of the mountain early—way ahead of many others on this list. Just last winter, they kicked things off on November 8th, and by mid-November they had three lifts spinning and access to 30 trails.
One thing to keep in mind: since it’s tucked away in a more remote corner of the country, early-season operations are typically limited to Friday through Sunday. But with budget-friendly lift tickets and the quirky, historic town of Wallace as your home base, you’re getting a rad, off-the-beaten-path ski trip without breaking the bank.
Washington: Mt Baker
2024/25 Season: 70″ Base – Nearly Entire Mountain
As the world record holder for the most snowfall in a single season, Mt. Baker ski area is no stranger to big dumps when storms roll in. While maritime snowpacks can be tricky later in the season, they’re a blessing early on—filling in rocks, stumps, and other hazards fast. I’ve personally snowboarded Mt Baker in mid-November multiple times, and it felt more like January elsewhere—it was that deep.
Take 2024, for example: between November 16th and 19th, Heather Meadows saw over 50 inches of snow, allowing the resort to open by November 21st. Unlike many ski areas, Mt. Baker doesn’t open until nearly the entire mountain is ready to go.
In early season, the issue usually isn’t storm activity—it’s whether temperatures are cold enough to bring snow instead of the dreaded “R” word (rain). La Niña winters tend to favor Baker, often making it one of the best places to ski in November. But if the air is too warm, it can go the other way. The storm track almost always targets Baker—you just have to hope the snow levels stay low.
Timberline Lodge
2024/25 Season: 123″ snowfall – 63″ base
Home to the iconic hotel from Jack Nicholson’s The Shining, this resort is perfect for those who want a mix of skiing and a little nightlife with Portland only two hours away. Located on Mt. Hood, it only shuts down briefly for maintenance in late September before reopening in November. Like Mt. Baker, storms here tend to arrive early and often. The main challenge? Snow levels—sometimes it’s just a bit too warm. Even so, it doesn’t take much for things to get rolling. In most years, they’ve got a handful of lifts spinning and real snow covering the trails—not just manmade.
Utah: Brighton
2024/25 Season: 62″ Snowfall – 15% Open
Utah gets a lot of snow—and it tends to be incredibly consistent month to month. In the early season, the challenge isn’t whether it will snow, but how dry that snow is. Because of its low moisture content, you need much more of it to build a solid base.
At resorts like Snowbird, which feature steeper, more advanced terrain, you typically need at least a four-foot base to safely cover rocks and other obstacles. Brighton, on the other hand, has more intermediate terrain than Snowbird—or even Alta—and is better suited for early-season skiing. Plus, Brighton boosts its coverage with snowmaking, giving it a stronger start when nature is slow to deliver.
Alta in A Snowvember
In big winters—like the 2022/23 season—Alta is another solid choice for November skiing in Utah. While its terrain is steeper than Brighton’s, it typically gets more snow. That year, Alta had a 49-inch base by November and had over 80% of its trails open—a rare treat that early in the season!
Europe
No matter how you slice it, skiing in November is still early season. But when it comes to getting a jumpstart on winter, the Alps have a major advantage over North America—glaciers. With an existing snowpack to build on, all it takes is a dusting to get things going, and the surface you’re skiing on is usually way better than what you’ll find at most resorts across the pond.
For consistently early turns, Switzerland is a solid bet with Engelberg, Saas-Fee, and Zermatt all typically spinning lifts. Over in Austria, you’ve got resorts like Hintertux and Stubai leading the charge. Then In Italy, Val Senales usually opens early, while Tignes in France seems to be holding off until later in the month this year.
