I have never been snow skiing, but my wife has been several times.  I
promised her a ski trip in late March, 2005 and now I need help
deciding where to go.  I would like a ski-in/ski-out resort with a few
things to do besides skiing.  I would like to go somewhere away from
large cities with some scenery, possibly some wildlife.  I don't want
to spend too much on this trip, so no outrageous places.  I think that
I will probably have to go to Colorado, but what are some other
options?  Please list several resorts.  Any comments are more than
welcome.

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Request for Question Clarification by omnivorous-ga on 22 Oct 2004 16:06 PDT

Math_man --

You can ski in Utah, Oregon, the Sierras near Reno and Colorado at
that time.  And it's possible that Mt. Baker in Washington will also
be open.  However, the skiing tends to be poor at that time: wet, with
lots of corn snow that's difficult for beginners to handle (it's sharp
and rips clothing).

Early March is better.  Are you sure that you still want us to answer
this question?

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

Mathman --

Omniverous is right. . .Earlier in March would be better-- because end
of March doesn't always mean very good snow conditions.

I skied at Big Sky, Montana this year from March 27 - April 4th,
and while there was certainly enough snow, in the morning the condtions
were crunchy and even icy in spots.  Then the sun started to melt
things and there'd be about 3 hours of good skiing.  But by around
by 1:30 in the afternoon, it was slushy going and wasn't fun. 
And because it was the end of the season, there were no new snowstorms to bring
in fresh powder and freshen the base layer of snow.  

But if end of March is a must for you, aside from Big Sky, there are
certain resorts in Utah and parts of Canada that are good --
where people ski even in MAY.  The ones who do that tend 
to be real hardcore, obsessed skiers.  

On the other hand, the upside of late spring skiing 
is that there are fewer crowds, it's easier to get
into restaurants, etc.  But since this is going to be your first 
ski trip and you're a novice, I would wish for you the opportunity
to experience better conditions -- and the possibility of a nice
snowstorm one night and then maybe you, too, will love
it so much, you'll become obsessed!  

Omniverous can find you a good place regardless.  And I'm sure
all the other skiers here will throw in suggestions as well.

oops -- sorry, I meant certain resorts in COLORADO and Canada.