Weekend Travel: Mt. Snow, Vermont

Weekend Travel: Mt. Snow, Vermont

Mt. Snow is one of the closest ski mountains to New York State. With 3500 foot vertical, it has something for every type of skier. My family and I decided to go there for a weekend over the Christmas holiday. Unfortunately, we decided to go up there last minute, so most of the hotels were booked.

However, my husband found a deal at The Lodge. It was a good deal, the room and the lift tickets were relatively inexpensive so, we decided to go.

When we arrived in Vermont after a long car drive, it was supposed to be only four hours but with traffic and stopping for bathroom breaks, it’s always a lot longer than that, we entered the hotel. I remember it being run down when I went there years ago, but who would have thought the owners continued to keep it run down and not put any money into renovations? The place was a complete and utter dump! I don’t think I slept for the three days I was there.

However, the rest of the trip was nice. We got up there on Saturday evening and skied Sunday (Christmas Eve). The conditions at the mountain were good. There was some ice, but the mountain had been blowing snow and there was a cover over the ice so you were able to get a grip for turning.

That night, we ate at an interesting restaurant, The Hermitage Inn. They had some interesting items on the menu and the food was good. The room had nice ambiance to it with a burning fireplace in every room. Most people had high comfy chairs. We just had very comfortable chairs to sit on. They put us in a secluded location so we were happy!

After dinner, we went back to the hotel. We were surprised to find that our friends had also booked at the same hotel. We spent a little time with them and then went to bed.

When we awoke, we were pleasantly surprised to see that it was snowing. It was wonderful to see a white Christmas! However, it wasn’t that wonderful to ski in it. It was a blizzard. The wind was forceful and you could barely see in front of you. The only good part were the conditions. They had gotten six inches of snow!

That evening, we went to The White House for dinner. Like the Hermitage Inn, The White House had a wonderful setting in a secluded part of Wilmington, Vermont. The rooms were gorgeous and private. We sat by the fireplace and had a hearty meal. We couldn’t resist the desserts. Each one sounded better than the next, so we ordered three of them for the four of us!

The day after Christmas, we woke up to find that it was 5 degrees and windy on the mountain. It wasn’t hard to get me to say, let’s take a raincheck on our lift tickets and go home! Mt. Snow is amazing that way. If for any reason, you don’t want to ski, they will give you tickets for anytime up to a year after the original ticket date.

We headed home. But before we did, we stopped at the famous Dotty’s for breakfast. They had some interesting pancakes, eggs Benedict and some other unusual takes on the usual breakfast. I had banana pancakes, but my husband and daughter had berry berry pancakes. My son had hash brown eggs Benedict. It was like a complete scramble.

As we headed home, my daughter said, “You know New Haven is known for their pizza. They are supposed to have the best Pizza in the country.”

I had no idea! We decided to stop at The Original Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana. And, I’m so glad we did. We had baked clam pizza, pizza with shrimp and bacon, regular pizza and four cheese pizza. I couldn’t believe how good it was. The slices were super thin so you could eat a few slices. The pizzas there are baked in a brick oven and they taste amazing! I would definitely recommend stopping in if you’re on your way up to Vermont, of if you just have a craving for incredible pizza.

Sometimes, it’s good to get out of town and break the usual routine of the weekend. Even though the hotel was a dive, I was glad we went!