Comparison

Snowshoe vs Wintergreen

an honest side by side

Both mountains put the lodging on top and the lifts below it. Wintergreen is closer for most of Virginia. Snowshoe is bigger, higher, and snowier. Here is the honest side by side, from people who host at Snowshoe.

The short answer

If you live in Richmond or Virginia Beach and want a weekend of skiing without a long drive, Wintergreen is the easier trip, often two to three hours closer. If you want more terrain, more vertical, more natural snow, and a Village you can walk around at night, Snowshoe is the bigger mountain and worth the extra drive for a longer stay.

Facts from each resort's own website, read September 30, 2026, for the 2026-27 season. OnTheSnow or Indy Pass only where the resort does not publish a number. Sources are listed at the bottom.

Drive times

How far is each one?

From	Snowshoe	Wintergreen
Virginia Beach	5.5 to 6.5 hours	3.5 to 4 hours
Richmond	4 to 4.5 hours	1.75 to 2 hours
Washington, DC	4 to 4.5 hours	3 to 3.5 hours
Northern Virginia (Fairfax)	3.5 to 4.5 hours	2.5 to 3 hours
Baltimore	4.5 to 5.5 hours	3.5 to 4 hours

Normal conditions, no stops. Wintergreen times from Google Maps and Travelmath, read September 30, 2026. Snowshoe times from our getting here guide, where each city has its own route page. Add an hour for snow.

The mountains

Side by side

	Snowshoe, WV	Wintergreen, VA
Summit elevation	4,848 ft, with the Village at the top	3,515 ft, with the lodging on top
Vertical drop	1,500 ft on the Western Territory; 800 ft in the Basin	About 1,003 ft (OnTheSnow and Indy Pass; the resort does not publish it)
Skiable acres	About 257 to 270 skiable acres (OnTheSnow says 257; the resort's terrain table adds up to 270)	129
Trails	60+ trails and glades per the resort (61 on OnTheSnow), across three areas: the Basin, the Western Territory, and Silver Creek	27 runs on the resort's stats page (26 on its winter page)
Difficulty mix	30% beginner, 24% intermediate, 31% advanced and expert, plus freestyle and glades	23% beginner, 45% intermediate, 32% advanced (resort)
Lifts	14, including three high-speed quads (Ballhooter, Soaring Eagle, Western Express)	5, including two high-speed six-packs, plus a teaching conveyor
Snowmaking	100% of terrain in all three areas	100% of terrain, fully automated (resort)
Night skiing	Silver Creek only: 12 lit trails, 4:30 to 9 pm when available, included with a day ticket	Thursday to Saturday and holidays; 2026-27 hours 9 am to 9 pm on those days
Tubing	Yes, the Coca-Cola Tube Park at Silver Creek: 8 lanes	Yes, The Plunge, winter and summer
Terrain parks	4 terrain parks	A terrain park with 40+ features and its own lift, plus a progression park
Average snowfall	The resort says more than 150 inches a year; OnTheSnow's long-run average is 113	Not published by the resort; OnTheSnow lists about 20 inches
Multi-resort pass (2026-27)	Ikon Pass	Indy Pass
Lift ticket pricing	Set by date; the resort says to buy in advance to save	Published 2026-27 rates, cheaper online than at the window
Summer	Lift-served Bike Park, Shavers Lake, Split Rock Pools, Raven Golf Club (18 holes, Gary Player), off-road and e-bike tours	Stoney Creek golf (27 holes, public), Devils Knob golf (members and resort guests), Lake Monocan, summer tubing, spa
Lodging	Individually owned condos, townhomes, and homes around a slopeside Village, plus homes like ours	Mountain Inn rooms, condos, and homes up to 10 bedrooms on an 11,000-acre property

Where a resort's own pages give two different numbers, we show both. Trail and acre counts move a little each season.

Who should pick which

It depends on the trip

Pick Snowshoe if

You want the biggest mountain in the region: more acres, more trails, and 1,500 feet of vertical on the Western Territory
You are staying three nights or more, so the longer drive is spread over a real trip
You want a Village with restaurants, bars, and events you can walk to at night
You want summer too: the lift-served Bike Park, a lake, and golf at 4,848 feet
You ski on an Ikon Pass

Pick Wintergreen if

You live in Richmond, Charlottesville, or Virginia Beach and want a day trip or a one-night weekend
You want night skiing close to home, Thursday through Saturday
You ski on an Indy Pass
You want to be on the slopes two to three hours sooner

Snowshoe's honest tradeoffs

The drive. From most of Virginia, DC, and Baltimore, Snowshoe is one and a half to three hours farther, and the last hour is two-lane mountain road.
Winter roads. Snow on the route is part of the deal from December to March. AWD or 4WD with good tires is the smart choice.
The Village is at the top. You ski down first and ride back up to lunch, which surprises first-timers.
The quiet weeks are really quiet. Between the seasons most of the Village closes, so plan for that if you come in April or November.

We host at Snowshoe, so read this knowing that. Both are good mountains: for a quick weekend close to home, Wintergreen is hard to beat, and for a longer ski trip we think Snowshoe is worth the drive.

Choosing Snowshoe?