Perisher or Thredbo?
I always stay in Jindy so the Thredbo nightlife means nothing.
But on pure mountain and riding, here are the good and bad points.
Basically Thredbo has i think the most vertical terrain in Australia which also means it has Australias highest lift and longest run.
The bad part of this is that the base of Thredbo is lower than Perisher.
So early/late in the season or if the snows just bad, the bottom at Thredbo gets very soft, slushy and muddy.
I ride Thredbo when i do weekends, but when i go for a week i try to mix it up and do a bit of both.
Thredbo doesnt seem to have as many beginners as Perisher. I think a lot of the bus tours must go to Perisher although there are busses at Thredbo too.
I dont know how anyone could say Thredbo has more varied Terrain though.
Just look at a trail map, their runs are basically that, tree lined runs.
Yes there is a bit of open terrain up high at Antons, Sponars, Golf Course bowl and a couple of other areas, but no where near as much as Perisher.
This has good aspects though too because on windy days Thredbo is more protected.
Perisher is a lot more open (once again, look at a trail map) and you can pick any number of lines between trees and natural bowls and lips.
This can makes places like Mt Perisher a bit nasty on windy days though. There are also a lit of T-Bars especially at Perisher area (Blue cow has chairs) which arent to kind on snowboarders.
A big gripe about Perisher is the difficulty in getting around. There are quite a few flat areas where you will need to probably push a bit. I think this is due to them trying to link 3 or 4 resorts and they havent really got the lifts to link them properly yet.
Pushing at Perisher is a big bagging point for Thredbo riders when comparing resorts.
Although for all those pro-Thredbo guys out there when you think about it, to access half Thredbo mountain you need to push.
If you get off Gunbarrell (one of the main high speed quads) and want to go down High Noon, one of two main supertrails , you have to push about 40-50m of flats till you can get somewhere to put your board on.
If you go the other way you can get to Merrits no problems, but when you come back you have to do the same thing and push. Thats almost all the right hand half the mountain you require to push to get to or from.
Now with both Perisher and Thredbo if you know the place well enough you know where to go and how high you need to stay to get somewhere without pushing.
Either one you will have great time riding at and they both usually have a pretty good park area set up, if not one or two more spread across the mountain.
Thredbo rider here.
Thredbo rider here.
Ditto
On a good snow day thredbo is the way to go due to the longer runs and the steeper terrain…. ive found their parks are better than perisher but perishers parks are more user friendly (easier?).
Perisher holds its snow quality alot better than thredbo.
Head out past eyre t bar and you’ll find really good natural drops and great powder. You’ll have to hike back to Eyre T bar for about 1/2 a km but really worth it, and you have the park right there on front valley…....user friendly.
I have been a perisher rider for the past 3 years and just recently went back to thredbo. I find thredbo has a little more atmosphere in the village and i have had the desire to go faster lately and thredbo’s steeps have got the goods. On a good day each resort has its benefits. north perisher on a pow day is alot of fun as it usually takes a little longer than the south side to get tracked out. the parks i think are generally constructed faster at perisher and you can get some park riding in if the snow hasnt arrived yet (early season). thredbo has got a great variety of runs wherever you are, and if you are up for a hike, u can usually find something out the back of thredbo. and although i am yet to ride it, golf course bowl is on the agenda for a slash when the snow is on.
my advice would be to do some riding at both resorts, find out what you really are after and work out which resort caters for your needs better. both are nearly the same distance from jyndy and the same ticket price. as for staying off mountain, look in the classifieds of newspapers, when in town check notice boards and even talk to some locals. staying on mountain is too expensive, buy a new board or outerwear and you will have spent the same as staying on mountain.
at the end of the day i agree with banger - its not really where you ride, more so who u are with. . . have fun
Head out past eyre t bar and you’ll find really good natural drops and great powder. You’ll have to hike back to Eyre T bar for about 1/2 a km but really worth it, shhhh