The Mount Snow area in West Dover, VT delivers far more than skiing – from lake days and brewery runs to golf, hiking, and live music throughout the year. These ten picks are all within a short drive of Valley View Villa, our luxury vacation home in West Dover. If you only have time for one round-up of the area, this is it: ten activities worth building a trip around, plus how we’d actually order them on a 3-day visit.
Mount Snow gets 600,000 visitors a year, and most of them come for skiing. Fair enough – the mountain is the reason this corner of Vermont exists as a destination. But the Deerfield Valley has a lot more going on than chairlifts and powder days. The best trips here mix mountain time with lake days, brewery runs, and a few things you won’t find anywhere else in the state.
Here are the ten things worth building your trip around, no matter what season you’re visiting – followed by a 3-day order we’ve refined over a lot of guest weekends.
1. Ski and Ride Mount Snow
The obvious one, but it deserves the top spot. Four mountain faces, 86 trails, 18 lifts, and Carinthia – the largest terrain park complex in the eastern U.S. with 100+ acres of parks, a superpipe, and features that have produced more Olympians than any other park in the country. The North Face has the steepest terrain. Sunbrook is the quiet side nobody waits in line for. And the Bluebird Express bubble chair – the only one of its kind in North America – makes even the coldest days bearable.
Buy tickets online in advance to save off the window price. Mount Snow is on the Epic Pass if you ski more than a few days a year.
For tips on navigating the mountain with kids, check out our family ski day guide.
📍 5 min from Valley View Villa | Late Nov – mid-Apr | $$$$
2. Go Tubing Under the Lights
Mount Snow’s tubing hill is one of the biggest in Vermont, and the covered Magic Carpet lift means you never have to walk back up. Night sessions under the lights are the real draw – the hill glows, the atmosphere is festive, and no skiing ability is required. It’s the best non-ski winter activity in the area, especially for families.
Book online – sessions sell out on weekends and holidays. More details in our dedicated tubing guide.
📍 Mount Snow base area | Fri-Sun + holidays, sessions from 3:30 PM | $$
3. Ride the Mountain Bike Park
When the snow melts, Mount Snow becomes one of the best lift-served bike parks in the Northeast. Nine downhill trails ranging from beginner greens to double black diamonds, plus cross-country options at the base. Full rental fleet available – full-suspension DH bikes, hardtails, helmets, pads. The green runs are genuinely beginner-friendly, not just “less steep.”
See our one-day summer itinerary for how we usually pair biking with golf and the chairlift.
📍 Mount Snow base area | Fri-Sun, 10 AM – 5 PM (summer) | $$
4. Take the Scenic Chairlift to the Summit
Ride the Bluebird Express to 3,586 feet for 360-degree views of southern Vermont. On clear days, you can see Somerset Reservoir, Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire, and on the clearest days, Mount Washington. The summit has hiking trails and picnic spots – ride up, hike down, or ride back. During peak foliage in early October, this is the easiest way to see the colors in the region with no hiking ability required.
📍 Mount Snow base area | Fri-Sun, mid-June through mid-Oct | $$
5. Spend a Day on Harriman Reservoir
Vermont’s largest lake is 15 minutes from Valley View Villa, and most Mount Snow visitors have never heard of it. Eight miles long, 28 miles of shoreline, open for swimming, kayaking, paddleboarding, fishing, and powerboating. Wards Cove is the most popular swimming spot – arrive early on hot summer weekends. The reservoir is also one of the better foliage views in the valley, with glassy water at dawn and the surrounding hills lit up in October.
Kayak and SUP rentals are available through local outfitters. A Vermont fishing license is required for anglers.
📍 Wilmington, VT | ~15 min from Valley View Villa | Free access
6. Hike to the Mount Olga Fire Tower
The best effort-to-reward hike in the area. A 1.7-mile loop through Molly Stark State Park climbs 500 feet to a historic fire tower on Mount Olga. From the top: 360-degree views of the Green Mountains, the Berkshires, Mount Monadnock, and Mount Snow. The trail crosses a brook and passes through hardwood and spruce forests. Short enough for kids, rewarding enough for adults.
For more options, see our hiking trails guide.
📍 Route 9, Marlboro | ~20 min from Valley View Villa | $
7. Paddle Somerset Reservoir
If Harriman is the lake everyone knows, Somerset is the one nobody does. A 1,568-acre wilderness reservoir at 2,200 feet, surrounded by Green Mountain National Forest. No houses, no development, no cell service, and a 10 mph speed limit that keeps jet skis away. The 10-mile gravel access road is part of the experience – it filters out the crowds and delivers you to some of the most pristine paddling water in New England.
Bring your own kayak or canoe – there are no rentals at the reservoir. Go early morning for glassy water and the best chance of spotting loons and eagles.
📍 Somerset, VT | ~30 min from Valley View Villa via gravel road | Free
8. Tour the Local Craft Breweries
Three breweries within 20 minutes of each other make for an easy self-guided tour. Start at Snow Republic on Route 100 – house-brewed beers, solid food, dogs welcome, open daily. Head south to Valley Craft Ales in a restored 1828 sawmill in downtown Wilmington – their coal-fired pizza and river deck are worth the drive alone. If you’re feeling adventurous, continue east on Route 9 to Beer Naked Brewery for an off-the-beaten-path tasting room with views from Hogback Mountain.
📍 West Dover and Wilmington | Year-round | $-$$
9. Go on a Sleigh Ride at Adams Farm
Adams Farm in Wilmington is a working family farm that doubles as one of the better winter outings in the valley. In winter, horse-drawn sleigh rides go through a maple grove and up the mountain, ending at a log cabin where you warm up with hot chocolate by the wood stove. In summer and fall, it’s wagon rides and a petting barn with goats, sheep, llamas, alpacas, miniature donkeys, and draft horses. Book sleigh rides in advance – they fill up fast, especially during holiday weeks.
📍 Wilmington, VT | ~15 min from Valley View Villa | $$
10. Explore Downtown Wilmington
A walkable New England village with locally owned shops, galleries, and restaurants. Bartleby’s Books is the kind of independent bookstore that makes you lose an hour. Pickwell’s Barn has women’s clothing that’s actually worth browsing. The whole downtown is especially photogenic during fall foliage. For the full block-by-block walking loop, see our Wilmington village walking guide.
📍 Wilmington, VT | ~12 min from Valley View Villa | Free to browse
From Valley View Villa: How We’d Order a 3-Day Visit
Most guests ask us the same question on day one: “If you were us, where would you go first?” Here’s the order we end up recommending most weekends, refined from years of running the property.
Day 1 – Mountain day. Start on the mountain. In winter that means Mount Snow lifts at 8:30; in summer it’s the Bluebird Express scenic ride or the bike park, both 7 minutes from the villa. Lunch at Cuzzins or the base lodge so you don’t lose momentum, then back to the villa by 4 to swap gear and hit the hot tub. Our standing breakfast that morning is eggs and pancakes on the deck while the sun comes over the ridge – gets everyone moving without a 7am alarm.
Day 2 – Lake and trail day. Drive the 15 minutes to Harriman Reservoir for a Wards Cove morning, or push another 15 minutes (12 of them gravel) to Somerset if your group wants the wilderness paddle. Stop at the Mount Olga fire tower on the way back – it’s a 90-minute round trip with a kid-friendly 1.7-mile loop. We pair this day with the pond at the villa: paddleboards out by 4, fire pit lit by 6. Lake morning + pond afternoon is two waterbodies in one day without rushing.
Day 3 – Village and brewery day. Slow start. Drive to Wilmington (12 minutes south on Route 100) for breakfast at Dot’s, the Main Street walking loop, and a stop at Bartleby’s Books. Lunch and a flight at Valley Craft Ales in the old sawmill, then a swing east on Route 9 to Hogback Mountain for the 100-mile view. End at Adams Farm for a sleigh or wagon ride, then back to the villa – we usually have guests build a low-key dinner in the kitchen on day 3 because nobody wants to drive again.
One More Thing
If you’re staying at Valley View Villa, you already have a private hiking trail, a spring-fed pond with kayaks and paddleboards, a hot tub, a fire pit, and a game room with pool and foosball tables. Some of the best days are the ones where you never leave the property. But when you do venture out, this valley delivers more than most people expect from a ski town.
People book this area for Mount Snow, and understandably so, but the pattern we notice over and over is that the days guests rave about afterward are rarely the marquee ones. It is the morning someone finds the frog pond, or the evening the whole group ends up around the fire pit long after the s’mores are gone, arguing happily about nothing. West Dover has a way of shrinking a big trip down to a few small, good hours, and we have stopped fighting that when we plan our own family time here.
So the honest advice we give is to underschedule. Pick two things off the list that genuinely excite your group and leave the rest as maybes, because this valley is better experienced than conquered. Some of our guests’ best afternoons started with a plan to drive somewhere and ended with everyone deciding the kayaks on the pond were enough. The attractions are real and worth doing, but the mountain and the town will still be here tomorrow. The kids who fall asleep tired in a good way are usually the ones who spent the day within a mile of where they woke up.
🗺️ More to Explore Near Mount Snow
- Top 10 Things to Do in Wilmington, VT — The village walking guide for a Wilmington afternoon
- 5 Hidden Gems Near Mount Snow That Most Visitors Miss — Off-the-beaten-path spots not on this list
- Summer Bucket List for the Deerfield Valley — The 10-item summer-only version of this guide
- One Perfect Summer Day at Mount Snow — A single-day golf + bike + chairlift itinerary
- Top 10 Restaurants Near Mount Snow — Where to eat in West Dover and Wilmington
- 5 Best Hiking Trails Near Mount Snow — Trails at every skill level
- Skiing at Mount Snow: Guide to the Trails and Terrain — Full winter breakdown
- Mount Snow in August — A late-summer guide to the valley
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the top things to do near Mount Snow?
The 10 we recommend most: skiing or riding Mount Snow, night tubing, the Mount Snow bike park, the Bluebird Express scenic chairlift, a day on Harriman Reservoir, the Mount Olga fire tower hike, paddling Somerset Reservoir, a self-guided brewery tour, sleigh or wagon rides at Adams Farm, and downtown Wilmington. All are within 30 minutes of Valley View Villa.
How many days do I need to see the Mount Snow area?
Three days hits the highlights. Day 1 is the mountain (skiing, biking, or chairlift), day 2 is lakes and a hike, day 3 is the village, breweries, and Hogback. Five days lets you add Somerset Reservoir and a Bennington or Brattleboro day trip.
Is the Mount Snow area worth visiting in summer?
Yes – arguably more so than winter for non-skiers. Crowds are thinner, lodging is cheaper, the bike park and chairlift run Friday through Sunday, and Harriman Reservoir is one of the cleanest swimming lakes in the state. See our summer bucket list for a season-specific roundup.
How far is Valley View Villa from Mount Snow?
About 3 miles, 7 minutes door-to-lift. Most guests can be up and skiing within 30 minutes of waking up. The villa is on a quiet road off Route 100 with EV charging on site and Wi-Fi 7 that reaches the pond.
