I had an amazing time at Leland Snowplay! I drove three hours from San Francisco during a storm,…read moreand the powder conditions were absolutely perfect. I visited on a Friday with my 5-year-old, and it was a fantastic experience. One of the best things about this place is the free parking and the reduced weekday pricing. When we went, there were only about a dozen families, so we had plenty of space to enjoy ourselves. I can imagine it gets much busier on weekends and holidays. The staff was super friendly and helpful, which made the experience even better. I also appreciated that the lodge had food available--we had chicken tenders and a Philly cheesesteak, both of which were solid options. The food was by no means amazing but it was nice to have an option. The lodge itself is a nice spot to warm up, especially with the cozy fireplace. Plus, they sell essentials like gloves and boots in case you need them. My only con is reception is bad and there isn't wifi but in many ways that is probably a good thing so I could focus on spending time with my kid instead of being on the phone. The three-hour drive was totally worth it! I made it there in a Subaru Outback without chains and had no issues on the road. I'm already looking forward to coming back!

TLDR: Fun place to spend the day, but they don't seem to be…read morereally prepared for large volumes of people and don't have the resources/ right staffing it seems. We were here mid Feb during ski week and I think we lucked out - google said they were closed but their website suggested otherwise for just this week. So, the crowd was not bad and we got in at least 10-15 runs before the kids were cooked. Getting tickets was fine when we arrived at the opening time, parking was fine and never got full. Pros: Not really an overwhelming site , pretty simple with just 3 runs (one is a very tall one). Has some snow play space off to the side. Has magic carpet or lift. Not every tubing place does so I appreciated this! On site they sell boots and gear if you forgot. Food sold on site which is helpful. The usual fries and hot dogs etc for sorta high prices. Bathroom was clean and modern. Plenty of seating indoor and out. The outdoor deck is very exposed though. Nice view of a lake from the deck. It's an easy activity, doesn't require tons of gear, and relatively brainless compared to the skiing we were doing with our kids yesterday. Cons: I can see how this place must turn into lord of the flies on weekends. There's no attendant at the top, the top is very icy / not salted sufficiently, and nobody at the bottom. So, everybody is launching at random times, there's always stragglers loitering at the bottom and somebody is always getting knocked over by a tube coming down. They didn't seem to have great control of the folks on the magic carpet so instead they put up a ton of stanchions. It also isn't cheap. We had the benefit of coming on an uncommon weekday but if this involved longer lines or more chaos I wouldn't think it was worth it. Not all runs were open. They had both kiddie runs open for the first hour after opening then closed one without explanation. Pro tip: Bring your own helmets and goggles!

Had a very fun time at the Round Valley Sno Park on 12/29/25. It was a Monday during the holidays…read moreso the parking lot was mostly full throughout the day. Parking lot holds about 20ish cars and is easily visible from the main road. We bought our $15 permit ahead of time, printed it, and put it on the dashboard. There are numerous hills that families can enjoy a very short walk from the parking lot. We had fun making a snowman and having a snowball fight. Restrooms are updated as others have shared. We unfortunately found all toilet paper gone when we visited so that is the only reason I am marking this review down. There are numerous places to pull off the side of the road before you get to Bear Valley but this was nice in that it had a fairly clean toilet.

Lots of trees. We went during fresh snow and were able to sled easily. The next day it was icy and…read moreharder to sleds without hitting treees

Amazing lessons for first time adult skiers! Decided to try to learn how to ski after all these…read moreyears, the beginner group lesson at dodge was my 1st lesson, and since having taken more classes at other resorts, I can say it was the most informative lesson(and least expensive) I had. It gave me the confidence, tips and tricks to pick skiing up at my first lesson! I am not athletic by any means, but learning at dodge has now provided me with a hobby I have loved for 8 years now-I still repeat tricks they taught me, and have been enjoying skiing tremendously since my very 1st lesson there. For adults and children alike-it's the best place to learn for beginners, not too challenging and has amazing instructors.

I have always skied at Northstar or Heavenly, but I really like this hidden gem. Parking can be…read moretricky if you arrive late but they do offer paid parking that is closer if space is available. Lift operators and mountain hosts were friendly and helpful (slowing lifts down, helping people up, providing info). It got pretty warm during the day, so it got slushy at the bottom. Hazards, slow zones, and closed areas are clearly marked and I feel this is especially important for beginners.

Took a day trip from the bay. Lots of fresh snow after a new year storm. I strongly recommend…read moresnowshoeing or walking down the spicer reservoir road. Just a couple hundred feet and there are plenty of sledding options, with longer runs and fewer boulders. Paid $15 to park for the day ($40 for a season ticket). We arrived at noon and although the lot was full, people were constantly coming and going, so we were able to find a spot after one loop around the lot. It's 2hrs 40mins and about 150miles from our part of the Bay Area. This was a good amount of time for a day trip. more than 3 hours and it starts to feel a little less appealing.

Great park! A little past Arnold. But well worth the drive for a day of fun in the snow. We will…read morereturn!

Nice hill, lots of people, but everyone was nice and friendly…read more Plenty of parking on the side of the road. Perfect spot to bring a camp stove and heat up some soup or hot cocoa!

A little hard to find but it does have its own parking lot!…read moreGreat hill for sledding, snow shoeing. Kids loved it.

We had a gala of time over 3 days. First day was Snow tubing…read more(they were not open for sledding)... while it was crowded being the 2nd day after the first snowfall of hte season, it was fine. The kicker was that they gave a 50% off Learn to Ski package (cross-country skiing) which saved us several $$$ the next few days. Not only did cross-country skiing was fun (first time for us), the instructors were very patient and effective. The 2nd day I went (on a Monday morning), my group lesson became Private lesson as I was the only on in the class. Even more savings :-) The Warming Hut cafe is a great touch after doing some trails. The food was great here. The tracks for cross-country skiing was kept up. Our entire group (multiple kids and adults) had a great time. Weather was good as well as a bonus.

It was a toss up between BV or Leland's...after reading the reviews for Leland's, I opted for BV…read more It was my kids first time in the snow and I didn't want them to have a horrible crowded first experience. We had to leave early because I wanted to be there close to opening time if 9am, we got there around 10am and there were plenty of parking spots and tubes for the kids to ride. For 6 people, 4 tube rentals for 2hrs it cost me $160. At Leland's I would've paid $240. It was a pleasant experience. The staff was very friendly and seemed genuinely happy doing their job. We had so much fun, the kids were whooped after the two hrs. At first I don't think that two hrs would be enough, but it was perfect. It's an honor system for the amount of time you use the tubes, don't be the one who tries to use them all day. There are a lot of people coming into the park at all times of the mid morning. 2 1/2hes is more than plenty to wear the little ones out. We will definitely be back and would recommend Bear Valley Adventure Co to anyone who has kids.

I did not know that I would enjoy tubing this much. Definitely check it out. If you go with your…read morefriends do trains - best is 4 people. Kenzia was amazing helped us a lot. They have discount at and after 3 pm. We were lucky to arrive late and used the discount

Still 1.5 hours for a blast of fun. Remember to do the waivers online to be a little more quick…read moreinto the action. They have little inflatable igloos for rent too with heaters if that's your jazz but the tubing itself is what we go for every season. 3 people will run you north of $200. They have normal tubes and now some racer types. They have also introduced a small bump of sorts in the run which you get a little air, so that's super fun. Also have a little kid's area.

I love Heidi's Ski Shop. They help make skiing affordable. Get there early and head up to Dodge for…read morea great day.

Don't do it or be prepared to encounter craziness and some arbitrary charges on your credit card…read more This shop is stuffed (and perhaps run and owned??!!, not sure) by a crazy, unbalanced person, who is also a swindler. I have been a customer of this establishment for many years, renting a lot of equipment out. And the person behind the counter has lost completely his marbles. Detail In order to rent the equipment, you need to leave a credit card and a copy of the driver license or a driver license as a collateral. So as you can see, their equipment is very safe from being taken from them. At the same time although they open very early (way before the resort does), they close at 5pm, mere 30 minutes after the resort closing time. So, as you can imagine, this makes for a very frantic and hectic day close to be able to return the equipment on time. I rented some gear for two days and some gear for one day. At the end of the first day, I fell and injured my hand. So doing, everything became much slower than usual and being with the child and equipment, while parked pretty far, meant that getting out. As a result, I was late getting to the rental place by 30 minutes. Since, I had other equipment out and paid for two days and the place officially closes pretty early, I didn't even think of attempting to stop by and just thought that I would sort it out the next day. Also, as we were driving by, I saw all the cars gone and the doors closed at around 5:35 or so. When I came the next early morning (before the resort opens at 9am) with all their gear, he first made me intentionally wait for about 15 mins. Then, all of a sudden without any explanation, he threw my card to me and told me that I would no longer be able to rent from his establishment. My child got scared and ran out from the store. I was completely stunned and baffled by his behavior and after my repeated attempts to pry out some sort of an explanation of his utterly unhinged behavior in front of other customers I was able to glean some amount of information. As a result of all this, we were late to my child's class that morning. Had I known this, I would course never bother to try to come and return their equipment as early as possible. When I came home, I discovered that he charged the card I left with him with some arbitrary fees (several times the amount it should have been charged as a late penalty per their own contract), just out of his spitefulness, without even telling me so, an invoice or an explanation of the charges.

Note: You'll need a day pass ($15) or season pass ($40) to park on the parking lot. Print the pass…read moreand leave it on the driver's side dashboard. Pros: - Dog friendly - Near Highway 50 - Parking lot - Lots of trees - Restroom/Outhouse Summary: For a snow park, it's decent. There's an adequate sledding area, but we've been to several snow parks that were more spacious and have higher slopes that don't require a parking pass. Although it has a restroom/outhouse, you might want to bring your own wet wipes and/or toilet paper as it doesn't offer running water. Unless you want to scrub your hands in the snow. You can venture on the "trails" to get away from the crowd. But all in all, it'll do.

Great family fun!!! We brought a sled and our toddler and dog had an amazing time would definitely…read morebe back!

This place was a huge disappointment. I made it very clear that I was a beginner, and the workers…read moreat the lift saw that I was struggling. Instead of helping me, they laughed when I got on the ski chair. That was embarrassing and completely unprofessional. For the amount of money we spent, you would expect at least basic kindness or assistance, especially for new skiers who are already nervous. Customer service here is awful, and they clearly don't care about beginners. This place is not friendly, not welcoming, and definitely not worth the price. If you're new to skiing or snowboarding, I would NOT recommend coming here.

Our friend told us to check out Badger Pass since it was super affordable. Since we were all…read moreMilitary Veterans we received free lift tickets and equipment rental. Talk about affordability, but their prices are definitely great. Even the food was cheap. The most expensive meal was under $20. They also have a bar with beers under $10! Super friendly staff that greeted everyone with a smile. It has 4 lifts and a little bunny slope where I was able to help my niece with snowboarding. Overall a great place to visit and the views on the drive up was beautiful.