
Cranmore Mountain
200 acres, 57 runs in North Conway. Historic Skimobile heritage, family-friendly White Mountains skiing.
Cranmore Mountain's summit reaches 2,000 feet, dropping roughly 1,200 vertical feet to a base at 600 feet across 57 runs spread over 200 acres in North Conway, New Hampshire. Terrain splits 44 per cent intermediate and 28 per cent each for beginner and advanced, with no expert-rated runs, and average annual snowfall of roughly 45 inches. Nine lifts, including two quad chairs and two triple chairs, serve the mountain alongside one double chair, three surface lifts and one t-bar.
Cranmore holds a storied place in American ski history, having pioneered one of the sport's most distinctive early lift technologies and helped establish North Conway as a genuine skiing destination. Its historic Skimobile Road, still bearing the name of the resort's famous vintage lift, remains a visible link to this heritage today.
Local businessman Harvey Gibson founded Cranmore, opening the resort for the 1937-38 season with a single rope tow after purchasing land parcels on the mountain's west side. For the 1938-39 season, Gibson introduced the Skimobile, a distinctive lift consisting of 60 small cars travelling on a wooden track, designed by area mechanic George Morton, which carried skiers from the base to roughly halfway up the mountain. In 1939, at Gibson's invitation, prominent Austrian skier Hannes Schneider moved to Cranmore after being briefly imprisoned in Austria for his anti-Nazi views, and Schneider's arrival spurred further expansion, including a second Skimobile stage to the summit and additional trails.
The Skimobile operated as a beloved, if unusual, piece of Cranmore's identity for decades before being fully abandoned by 1988, giving way to more conventional chairlift infrastructure. Adult daily tickets run from 79 to 109 US dollars, with a discounted beginner-terrain-only ticket also available.
Cranmore Mountain sits in the village of North Conway, New Hampshire, with 57 runs on 200 acres (81 hectares). The mountain rises from about 600 ft (183 m) to 2,000 ft (610 m), a vertical of 1,400 ft (427 m). Terrain is 28% beginner, 44% intermediate and 28% advanced, a balanced spread that suits mixed-ability groups. Snowfall averages around 45 inches a year, lower than most White Mountains neighbours. Runs are short to mid-length and close to town, which makes Cranmore an easy day for families and a handy warm-up before bigger mountains.
Skimiester is a winding blue trail that steepens toward the end, with Bandit and Lower Arlberg as easier options and Lower Hurricane carrying on to the base. The Darkside Terrain Park covers 17 acres and is served by two lifts, giving freestyle riders a proper zone of their own. The mountain also has a long history, with its famous Skimobile lift debuting in 1938. Advanced skiers get some steeper pitches but no big challenge, so Cranmore suits families, beginners finding their feet, park riders and anyone basing themselves in the Mount Washington Valley.
The 2025-26 season at Cranmore Mountain ran from 6 December 2025 to 5 April 2026, a roughly seventeen-week season supported by average annual snowfall of around 45 inches. Extensive snowmaking supplements natural snowfall considerably, supporting consistent conditions throughout the season given the resort's comparatively modest natural totals.
Midwinter, from December through February, typically brings the most consistent conditions to Cranmore's intermediate-weighted terrain. Given the resort's location in North Conway, a considerable regional tourism hub, Cranmore draws strong visitation from visitors combining skiing with the area's well-known tax-free outlet shopping.
As an independently operated resort offering its own daily tickets alongside White Mountain Super Pass access, Cranmore's visitor base draws heavily from families and beginner-to-intermediate skiers given the resort's terrain profile and learning-focused amenities, including the Mountain Adventure Park. School holiday periods bring substantial family visitation given this accessible terrain mix.
Specific event programming beyond standard operations and the Mountain Adventure Park is not confirmed in available resort information. Cranmore's history, dating to Harvey Gibson's 1937 founding and the Austrian influence brought by Hannes Schneider in 1939, continues to inform its identity as one of North Conway's most historic ski destinations. The resort's family-friendly, accessible character remains central to its seasonal appeal.
Cranmore Mountain sits in North Conway, New Hampshire, in the heart of the Mount Washington Valley, with a base elevation of 600 feet and a summit at 2,000 feet across a roughly 1,200-foot vertical drop over 200 acres. This setting places the resort within one of New England's most popular tourism destinations.
North Conway itself offers extensive lodging, dining and the region's well-known tax-free outlet shopping, all within a short walk or drive of the resort. The broader Mount Washington Valley surrounds Cranmore with additional attractions and outdoor recreation options across the White Mountains region.
New Hampshire State Route 16 provides direct access to the resort through the centre of North Conway. Winter driving conditions on this route can include snow and ice, though the well-travelled state highway is regularly maintained given the area's status as a major regional tourism destination. There is no direct public transport service to the resort, though North Conway's walkable village centre reduces the need for driving once visitors arrive.
Specific nearest commercial airport details are not confirmed in available resort information, though Cranmore's North Conway location keeps it within a reasonable drive of the greater Boston metropolitan area's major airports for visitors travelling from further afield.
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A historically poor western winter cut Vail Resorts' annual net income from $280 million to $147.5 million and skier visits by 13.4 per cent. Now 2026-27 pass units are down 12 per cent as of 18 September, worse than the 10 per cent flagged in spring. Vail blames the weather and thinks some buyers are simply waiting, and it forecasts a rebound if the snow behaves.

Arizona Snowbowl advertised eight $1 lift ticket days this winter. Go looking and only three are showing - 10 March, 1 April and 10 April - so the rest may already have gone. The consolation is a calendar full of $9 days, including all but one day in April. Opening day is 20 November, weather permitting, and opening weekend is $19.

For years, Whitewater's Short Side was where you ducked a rope and hoped for the best: unmapped, ungroomed and unpatrolled. This winter it's inbounds. Six new runs of glades and fall-line skiing add 190 acres (about 77 hectares), taking the resort past 1,400 acres in total. F2 Logging spent a month in the trees to make it happen, and opening day is pencilled in for 4 December. Bonanza now needs less snow to groom, too.
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