Podcast: Heather Burke on how to plan the perfect family ski vacation

Heather Burke, writer at familyskitrips.com, skis at Crystal Mountain in Washington with her son, Ian. (Heather Burke)

Choosing where to take that next ski trip can be a fun process, but it also can be exhausting. You’ve got to decide on length of trip, flying or driving, on your pass or ski and stay, what kind of lodging, and the list feels like it can go on and on.

And if that trip includes kids, it can get downright stressful.

Heather Burke, who spent years writing about skiing for the Maine Sunday Telegram and The Boston Globe, started writing about ski areas she visited with her family, creating familyskitrips.com with her husband, Greg, who handles the photography. They also operate theluxuryvacationguide.com.

The site also provides plenty of tips on how to pack, flying, restaurant options and what to expect at the nearly 300 resorts they have visited.

Heather Burke joined Basecamp podcast hosts Mike Specian and Keith Pearson recently to discuss how to go about selecting where to go on a ski trip and what goals she has this winter.

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Highlights

How did the website come about?

It was 1998, the web was in its infancy and my husband, Gre, was like, “Well, not only should you write these articles, but we should put them on this website and populate it. And maybe it will help people plan their trips.”

So, we take our kids every weekend to a different mountain, and I’d write about it and Greg would take these beautiful photos and we would publish them on our site. And that site now has over 500 pages and 292 ski reviews.

What’s your go-to recommendation in New England for a couple and for a family?

So for a couple in New England, I wax poetic about Stowe. I just think it’s one of the most romantic ski areas in New England. It has the charm for après-ski and just great terrain. So that’s a favorite of mine. But then North Conway is fun, too, with Wildcat and Attitash, two very different mountains. North Conway is just bustling with activity. So those are two cool places to go as a couple. Or Sugarbush. The Mad River Valley is charming. It’s just authentic alpine. So those are great spots.

And then for families, I think Sunday River and Okemo do a superb job. They make tons of snow and they really have choreographed how to go as a family and not be overwhelmed with choices and difficulty finding ski camps and such.

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