Snow Valley
Researched September 17, 2026 against Big Bear Mountain Resort's own parking, ticketing and night-session pages and California Ski Industry Association data · dates and prices are as published for 2026-27 and change without notice
Snow Valley is Southern California's beginner mountain, and it is also the easiest of the three Big Bear mountains to reach. Big Bear Mountain Resort designates it its beginner-and-family mountain outright, it has been teaching people to ski since 1937, and it sits on the full three-mountain ticket — so a skier who progresses is not stuck there.
It is roughly 85 miles and about 90 minutes from Los Angeles, about half an hour closer than Snow Summit and Bear Mountain, because it is the first of the three you reach coming up the hill.
One thing will ruin your day if you get it wrong: Snow Valley has no free overflow parking. Details below — read that section before you drive up.
The parking trap, which is specific to Snow Valley
All three Big Bear mountains charge for parking on selected peak dates. Only one of them will turn you away.
Guests without a "Daily Paid Parking" ticket at Snow Valley will be denied access to parking options as Snow Valley does not have offsite lots to offer.
| Snow Valley | Snow Summit & Bear Mountain | |
|---|---|---|
| Paid parking | $25–$30 per day on select dates | $30–$40 per day on select dates |
| If you have no parking ticket | You are turned away. There is no offsite lot | You park free at an offsite lot and take a complimentary shuttle in |
| Season pass holders | Park free, on all dates | Must use paid or offsite lots on paid-parking dates |
| Booking | Online parking must be purchased at least 24 hours before arrival | |
So the risk is asymmetric. Turn up at Snow Summit on a paid date without a reservation and you lose twenty minutes to a shuttle. Turn up at Snow Valley in the same position and you do not ski at all. Sort parking more than 24 hours out, or go on a date that is not on the paid list.
The flip side is genuinely good news for pass holders: Snow Valley is the one BBMR mountain where a season pass parks you free on every date, including peak ones. If you hold an Ikon or BBMR pass, that is a real and rarely mentioned reason to choose Snow Valley on a busy weekend.
Paid parking dates for 2026-27: December 4-6 and 11-31; January 1-10, 15-18, 22-24 and 29-31; February 5-7, 12-21 and 26-28; March 5-7, 12-14, 19-21 and 26-28.
What actually makes it the family mountain
"Good for beginners" is what every small resort claims. Here is the concrete version, all from the operator.
The ski school
BBMR cites Snow Valley's "best beginner terrain" and "award-winning learning centers" in its own words. And there is a Snow-Valley-specific deal worth knowing: a free lift ticket with every child group lesson.
The tube park beats Snow Summit's
Coyote Creek runs 6 lanes at 400 feet against Snow Summit's 4 lanes at 300. It opens earlier and closes later — December 11 to April 4 — and starts cheaper, from $20 against $39. Sessions are 1.5 hours of unlimited laps. Access is by moving carpet, not chairlift.
A snow play area Summit does not have
Snow Valley has a separate base-area snow play area with its own cheaper ticket, $20–$29. That matters if you have a child who is under the tube park's 42-inch minimum height and would otherwise have nothing to do.
Tube park requirements at both mountains: minimum 42 inches tall, minimum 40 lbs, maximum 270 lbs.
The structural advantage, though, is the ticket. Snow Valley sits on the full BBMR three-mountain ticket — in the resort's own words, "BBMR lift tickets are valid for same-day use at Snow Valley, Snow Summit, and Bear Mountain (excluding Night Sessions)." A first-timer who finds their feet is not locked into the beginner hill.
But watch which ticket you buy. A Snow Valley-only ticket is a separate, cheaper, single-mountain product at roughly $89–$109 and does not include the other two. The full BBMR ticket runs about $89–$169 by date. If you want the three-mountain option, buy the BBMR ticket.
Night skiing
Snow Valley runs night sessions 3:00pm to 8:30pm on selected dates, starting December 12, 2026.
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| What is lit | Three chairlifts and nine trails — including Thunder Mountain, Wine Rock, Eagle Flats and The EDGE. That is roughly a third of the lifts and a bit over a quarter of the trails |
| Night-only ticket | $59 adult, $30 child 5–12 |
| Add-on to a day ticket | $19 adult, $10 child 5–12 |
| Cross-mountain | A Snow Summit night ticket ($109 adult) includes same-evening access to Snow Valley. A Snow Valley night ticket does not work the other way |
Worth knowing across the resort: Bear Mountain does not offer night sessions at all, and a day ticket never includes night access anywhere at BBMR.
The mountain
| Snow Valley | The other two, for context | |
|---|---|---|
| Skiable acres | 240 | Snow Summit 240 · Bear Mountain 198 |
| Vertical drop | 1,041 ft | Snow Summit 1,200 · Bear Mountain 1,665 |
| Base / summit | 6,800 / 7,841 ft | Bear Mountain summits highest at 8,805 |
| Trails | 32 | Snow Summit 33 · Bear Mountain 26 |
| Chairlifts | 9 — one detachable six-pack plus eight fixed-grip | Snow Summit 10 · Bear Mountain 7 |
| Average annual snowfall | 150 in | Higher than the 100 in average across Summit and Bear |
| Snowmaking | 77 fan guns | Snow Summit 90 · Bear Mountain 45 |
| Founded | 1937 — the longest continuously operating ski area in Southern California | — |
Note that Snow Valley and Snow Summit are both exactly 240 acres. That coincidence trips up a lot of published comparisons — if you see a figure that treats them as different sizes, check it.
Snow Valley also gets more natural snow than the other two, at a 150-inch average against 100 across Summit and Bear. It is still a snowmaking mountain like the rest of the region — our Southern California guide explains why the overnight wet-bulb temperature predicts your day better than the snow forecast.
Getting there, and the Arctic Circle
Snow Valley is at 35100 Highway 18 in Running Springs, and its position is the underrated part: it is the westernmost of the three mountains, so you reach it first and you do not continue on to Big Bear Lake.
That matters because of a stretch of Highway 18 between Snow Valley and the Big Bear dam that locals call the Arctic Circle — a shaded, north-facing section notorious for ice, chain controls and closures.
Drivers heading to Snow Valley stop short of it. Drivers continuing to Snow Summit or Bear Mountain on Highway 18 have to cross it. Combined with the shorter drive, that is a substantive access advantage rather than marketing. "Arctic Circle" is a local name, not an official designation.
Routes from Los Angeles and Orange County:
| Route | Character |
|---|---|
| Highway 330 to Highway 18 via Running Springs | Shortest distance, and the resort itself warns it "can become very congested on weekends during peak season" |
| Highway 18 all the way | Bypasses the 330 entirely |
| Highway 38 via Redlands | Scenic, fewer switchbacks, roughly 20 minutes longer, typically less crowded |
| Highway 18 via Lucerne Valley | For arrivals from Barstow or Las Vegas. Minimal mountain driving |
Vehicles over 40 feet are restricted on some of these roads, and GPS will sometimes route you differently from actual traffic control. Check the resort's road conditions page the morning you travel, and see our chain control guide for what R1 and R2 actually require.
Where to stay
Running Springs
The nearest town and Snow Valley's own address. Closest to the lifts, smallest inventory.
Lake Arrowhead
The nearer resort town with real lodging stock — and crucially, reaching Snow Valley from Lake Arrowhead does not require the Arctic Circle stretch.
Big Bear Lake
By far the deepest inventory and all the dining, but staying there to ski Snow Valley means driving away from the two mountains on your doorstep, across the Arctic Circle, every morning. If you are based in Big Bear Lake, ski Snow Summit or Bear Mountain and treat Snow Valley as a day trip.
Our Big Bear lodging guide covers the Big Bear Lake market in detail.
Since Alterra bought it
Alterra acquired Snow Valley in January 2023, folding it into Big Bear Mountain Resort as the third mountain. Ikon Pass access began 20 February 2023, with no blackout dates for Ikon and BBMR season passholders. Snow Valley left the Indy Pass at the same time, so if you see it listed there, that listing is out of date.
The lift fleet at acquisition was nine chairlifts — one detachable six-pack and eight older fixed-grip chairs — and that is still what CSIA publishes. The resort has signalled it would evaluate base-area facilities and on-hill infrastructure, but we could not find any published, confirmed lift replacement or removal plan for 2026-27, so we are not going to speculate about one. Snow Valley has also expanded into summer operations with a lift-served bike park and a scenic chair.
A couple of things we could not confirm. There is no published 2026-27 lift opening date for Snow Valley — the tube park is dated 11 December and night sessions 12 December, which implies lifts by the 11th but does not confirm it. And a legacy pre-Alterra domain for the resort still resolves; if you land on it, treat anything there as potentially out of date and use the Big Bear Mountain Resort site instead.
Snow Valley — frequently asked questions
Is Snow Valley good for beginners?
Yes, and it is the best option in Southern California. Big Bear Mountain Resort designates Snow Valley its beginner and family mountain, cites its best beginner terrain and award-winning learning centers, and has been teaching there since 1937. It also throws in a free lift ticket with every child group lesson. The structural advantage is that Snow Valley sits on the full three-mountain BBMR ticket, so a skier who progresses can move to Snow Summit or Bear Mountain the same day rather than being stuck on the beginner hill.
Do you need a parking reservation at Snow Valley?
You need paid parking on select dates, purchased at least 24 hours before arrival, and this is the one thing that can stop you skiing. Unlike Snow Summit and Bear Mountain, Snow Valley has no offsite overflow lots, so guests without a daily paid parking ticket are denied access to parking altogether. Parking is 25 to 30 dollars a day. Season pass holders park free at Snow Valley on all dates, which is not true at the other two mountains.
Does a Big Bear lift ticket work at Snow Valley?
Yes. In the resort own words, BBMR lift tickets are valid for same-day use at Snow Valley, Snow Summit and Bear Mountain, excluding night sessions. That gives you 678 acres across three mountains. Be careful which ticket you buy though: a Snow Valley-only ticket is a separate, cheaper, single-mountain product and does not include the other two.
Does Snow Valley have night skiing?
Yes, from 3:00pm to 8:30pm on select dates starting 12 December 2026. Three chairlifts and nine trails are lit, including Thunder Mountain, Wine Rock, Eagle Flats and The EDGE. A night-only ticket is 59 dollars for adults and 30 for children 5 to 12, or 19 and 10 dollars as an add-on to a day ticket. A Snow Summit night ticket includes same-evening access to Snow Valley, but a Snow Valley night ticket does not work in reverse.
How far is Snow Valley from Los Angeles?
About 85 miles and roughly 90 minutes, which is around half an hour closer than Snow Summit and Bear Mountain. Snow Valley is the westernmost of the three mountains, so you reach it first coming up the hill. It also means you stop short of the shaded, ice-prone stretch of Highway 18 between Snow Valley and the Big Bear dam that locals call the Arctic Circle, which drivers continuing to the other two mountains have to cross.
Is Snow Valley better than Snow Summit for families?
For young children, generally yes. Its Coyote Creek tube park has 6 lanes at 400 feet against Snow Summit 4 lanes at 300, opens earlier and runs later in the season, and starts at 20 dollars against 39. Snow Valley also has a separate base-area snow play area that Snow Summit does not, which matters if a child is under the 42 inch minimum height for tubing. Snow Summit is the better mountain once skiers are past the beginner stage.
Is Snow Valley on the Ikon Pass?
Yes, with no blackout dates, and has been since 20 February 2023 when Alterra folded it into Big Bear Mountain Resort. It left the Indy Pass at the same time, so any listing showing Snow Valley on Indy is out of date.
How we sourced this
Parking rules and dates, night session hours, lit trail and lift counts, ticket and tube park prices, the three-mountain ticket wording and the beginner positioning are all quoted from Big Bear Mountain Resort's own pages as published for 2026-27. Acreage, vertical, elevation, trail and lift counts come from the resort's mountain statistics; snowfall is a California Ski Industry Association figure so it is comparable with our other resort pages.
The Arctic Circle is a local name for a specific stretch of Highway 18, sourced to local media rather than Caltrans, and we have labelled it as such. We could not verify a 2026-27 lift opening date, specific lodging inventory in Running Springs, or any confirmed lift replacement plan — and we have said so rather than filling the gaps.
Plan the trip
Sort parking more than 24 hours ahead — at Snow Valley it is the one thing with no fallback.
SoCal ski guideBig Bear vs Mountain HighSnow forecastWhere to stayPrices, parking dates, night session dates and pass terms are as published by Big Bear Mountain Resort for 2026-27 and change without notice. Terrain figures are the resort's own; snowfall is California Ski Industry Association data. SnoCal is not affiliated with Big Bear Mountain Resort, Alterra or any pass operator.