Every year after Thanksgiving, we go on a family ski trip. It’s been the best tradition and the boys love getting a taste of the mountains and snow! This year we decided to head to Jackson Hole, Wyoming – a place none of us have been before. We loved our time in Jackson Hole. Such a charming place and all the snow we got made it even more magical!

How to get there:

We flew American Airlines direct from Dallas. They have one flight a day into Jackson. The flight was a quick 2.5 hour flight. It’s a small airport, which is nice. The kids loved getting on/off the plane outside. Plus, the view of the mountains is incredible!

Where to Stay

• Since this was a ski trip, we decided to stay in Teton Village (this is where the ski resort is). There are a few hotels and also houses to rent. We opted to stay at Four Seasons Jackson Hole and we’re so happy we did. It’s in the heart of the ski resort and we had the best views of the ski slopes from our room and the restaurants.
• Type of room: The five of us had a mountain side one bedroom suite, which was perfect for the size of our family. We had plenty of space, two bathrooms, a table that sat us and my parents for breakfast in the morning and the largest closet (so many of you couldn’t get over it!). My parents stayed in the mountain side room and it was great for them! The rooms were renovated over the summer and beautiful! We had cosy fireplaces and patios with beautiful views to watch the snow come down.
• Convenience: I can’t explain how convenient staying here was! We did ski rentals on site at the hotel, ski school was right next door and ski-in and ski-out made it so much easier (and fun) with kids.
• Spa: After our second day of skiing, we opted for the spa and it was much needed! The treatments were so relaxing and we enjoyed the steam room and hot and cold plunge pools before our treatments. The spa has such a cozy relaxation room with large fireplace. We decided to do the spa in the evening on the day we had pizza in the room. It was very relaxing!
• Pool: The outdoor pool/hot tubs are right off the ski slopes, so we relaxed in the heated hot tubs and got to watch the last skiers finish. The boys loved moving from the heated pool to the heated hot tubs. I wasn’t brave enough to go back and forth in the cold!
• Champagne igloo: The Moet & Chandon champagne bar “Fahrenheit Forty-Seven” opened while we were there. It’s an “igloo” outside the hotel and it’s the perfect sport for aprés-ski! The whole backside of the igloo is opened to the ski slopes, so you feel like you are right there. We loved it!
• Special touches: There were so many thoughtful, special touches during our stay. A toy for the kids at check-in, hot chocolate anytime they wanted, s’more kits and in-room amenities each evening: charcuterie boards and wine, popcorn and huckleberry soda, chocolate chip cookies and milk, etc.

Where to Eat

• Ascent Bar: This was the lobby bar at the hotel and we got a snack in here for lunch the day we got in. It has great views of the ski slopes and we had so many good things to eat here.
• The Handle Bar: The best place to stop for lunch. Located in the Four Seasons, we would ski right up to it and have lunch. This spot get very busy at lunch and they only take reservations for hotel guests. Otherwise, it’s a wait list. We also went for après ski a few times to get pretzels and hot chocolate for the boys and a margarita for us.
• Calico: This is on the road from Teton Village to Jackson. We had a great first dinner here. It was so cozy, the italian food hit the spot and we all loved it.
• Westbank Grill: This is onsite at the Four Seasons and it is a delicious steakhouse. We were pretty tired after a day of skiing, and it was warm, inviting and with so many delicious options. The twice baked potato hit the spot after skiing all day and so did the steaks.
• Il Villagio Osteria: We ordered pizza and salad from here one night and we highly recommend! Within walking distance and everything was delicious.
• Persephone: We loved getting coffee and pastries here! So cute and good.

A lot of the restaurants we were wanting to try had not opened yet for ski season. In hind sight, it worked out well for us because the kids (and we) were beat from skiing!

Skiing

• Pre-reserve your lift tickets/ski school prior to your trip!
• The boys had the best time at ski school. We did two days for each of them and the older boys skied a third day. They learned so much and were able to ski with us on the mountain! My favorite part of the trip.
• We rented all of our skis and helmets from the Four Seasons ski concierge. It’s so convenient to get to the lifts and ski school is a two minute walk from the ski concierge at the Four Seasons.
• It’s such a great mountain for beginners (and more established skiiers). The boys were skiing down the mountain with the first ski school day. I loved getting to see them on the mountain while we were skiing too!
• I got a lot of questions about what to wear since it is so cold there. We did this for all of us and we all stayed warm! Hot chillys shirt and pants for a base layer, smartwool socks, fleece sweatshirt, ski jacket, ski pants, gloves and a turtle– and hand warmers inside all of our gloves.

What to Know

• Rental cars- We decided to rent a car because there were seven of us and we wanted the option to explore the area. Just FYI – Hertz is off site from the airport. You hop on a bus at the airport and drive into Jackson to pick up your car. We used the car to get to/from the resort to the airport, and also to go into the town of Jackson to explore and have dinner.
• Although the skiing was open, a lot of the restaurants have not actually opened back up for winter yet. It wasn’t really that big of a problem for us because the boys were so tired after skiing, they just wanted to stay at the hotel and be cozy! We ate out twice, ordered pizza in the room and did room service one night.
• It’s COLD! I have never been in weather so cold before. Hand warmers were necessary for everyone and they made a huge difference in staying warm.
• You need to pre-reserve your ski days/ski school in advance.

What to Pack

Cheers,

Stia, Jean and Katherine