nub's nob

We love Nubs Nob! Admittedly we do like the variety of skiing in the Petoskey area, and do rotate our visits between Nubs, Boyne Highlands and Boyne Mountain, but Nubs is always our first stop of the year! They have a great variety of slopes and lifts (including a free beginners hill), and the service is always friendly and prompt!! There is also a sort of "mom and pops" atmosphere that I think we enjoy most. If you are in the area skiing, you definitely have to make Nubs your first stop!

Went to Boyne Mountain last year and just planned in going there again this year. A friend from northern Michigan told me this is the place the locals go and I should check it out. Definitely glad we took his advice, a lot if great runs ( very good mix of beginner, intermediate and advanced runs) , great prices and just a very good vibe. Went during the week so there were no lines and most lifts were still running and all of the runs were available. Definitely recommend checking Nub's out over Boyne!

Skiing was awesome! No lift lines at all. After skiing for several hours we decided to have lunch and a drink. Wrong. No kids in the restaurant/bar on the weekends. No alcohol out of the bar. Only 1 location that serves alcohol. Really wanted to enjoy a drink while relaxing and eating.

Nubs has some very fine downhill trails with lots of variety. If you like glade skiing they have done a good job of creating many glad trails with well-cleared underbrush. Snow and trail conditions were good when we went. The tree-lined trails are pretty. My only complaint is that the day skiing shuts down promptly at 4:30. Other places I have visited allow day skiers latitude for some time after 4:30. Also, the back side of Nubs - Pintail Peak - started shutting down after 3pm. The hill doesn't reopen until 6pm for night-paid skiers, which to me is time to eat and do other stuff. I wish Nubs allowed day skiers to go to 6:00 or 6:30 as with other ski hills.

We've skied at Nubs a few times and while it doesn't compare to the Rockies, it's impressive for the Midwest. The terrain is much more varied and extensive than at Boyne Highlands across the street. Snow coverage is excellent, grooming is impressive, and the glade skiing is nicely maintained and free from underbrush.

Nubs has the best snowboarding in northern lower. Different run styles for all different skill levels. The instructors are always great. Each year we have private lessons for our daughters and the instructors do a wonderful job. Keep up the good work Nubs!

I broke my zipper, and Cathee was able to completely fix my zipper so that I could get through the day with my jacket. She did it with a great smile on her face. Thank you Cathee! She is friendly and helpful! The rest of the team seems equally as positive. Booya Nubs Nob!

The staff at Nubs Nob were the friendliest people ever and made us feel like we were special. I have been to several mountains and they were definitely the most helpful.

Nubs Nob is one of the best ski resorts in Michigan. If your looking for a family friendly or even just a friendly ski resort in Michigan -- this is it. The slopes are well groomed, the lift operators are friendly and the food is fresh and homemade. Love the chilli, chicken salad and chicken noodle soup. Best place to eat is at the the top of Pintail Peak.

sure, they dont do everything here, but thats because they focus on doing the important stuff right.they seem to focus on the hill and the ski experience. the snow was immaculate. the only problem i had with the place is that all their lifts seem to end up in one spot, not sure why. it results in a lot of effort to get back to the face of the hill after each ride up.the food was of higher quality than average for a ski hill.

Nubs is a place that has the same people in the same positions year after year. These employees are happy, smiling, and remember you as well when they welcome you back. This is a very well managed local ski area. There are no ski/in ski/out condos owned by Nubs Nob, nor is there golf, or any other off season use of this little set of hills, but they are very good at what they do and the employees seem to all LOVE what they do here in the winter, from the lift ops to the snowmaking crew, to the ticket sales crew, to the grooming staff. Ticket prices are expensive but you are paying for all that extra maintenance and grooming that they do and this is a well groomed place compared to every other nearby ski area. Nubs also has a much better safety record than the local competitors who have all had some horrific accidents happen on their properties, like chairs falling off the lifts and underground pipes bursting and causing lift towers to collapse...... I like being able to pull right up to the ticket window, day lodge, rental area, and ski shop, which are all centrally located and easy to access. Boyne properties across the street are sprawled all over in many different buildings and quite a hike if you need ski school or ski valet, which is separate from rentals and ticketing. Nubs does have some slow lifts which require 5 min. rides to the top of the hill and a 1 min, ride down, but they are friendly and fun and all meet at the same top area so everyone can ski a different run but meet at the bottom or top. The same situation occurs at the Pintail Peak area where 2 lifts bring everyone back to the same bottom and to the top warming house deli area. The Orange lift is painfully slow but on stormy days it can be a refuge coming up a sheltered and wooded line from the south side when winds are shrieking from the northwest facing front, where the worst storms come from. That is a benefit of having runs that are almost 360 degrees from the peak so you can descend in any direction based on wind and weather. Another benefit of the Nubs layout is that the main area faces Northwest and keeps the snow longer during the spring season than the Boyne properties that face East and get more sun exposure. The food is a bit expensive but pretty good for cafeteria style fare. The bar is always crowded and could really use an addition or an extension out toward the yellow lift. They also need to put a large TV screen in the main cafeteria since the only screens are in the bar and many families would like to keep an eye on the football, basketball, hockey, or even X-Games coverage while taking a break to warm up. This is the place the locals go because they are treated like valued guests and it is the place that hosts many premier race events for the same reasons: it is well run, the management cares what you think, and goes out of their way to make you feel comfortable. What more cold you ask for in a difficult sport that takes place in some of the most inhospitable weather conditions? This is a great place to go have fun.

I am not a good skier but I give it my best. I've been to Nub's many times and love it. Many nice runs for the intermediate level skiers. It's well maintained and not as crowded as a lot of the other places in Michigan. It's also the only one I know of that has a free chair lift for their beginner run.

One of the best ski areas in a region with limited elevation. Nub's Nob offers skiers 53 trails serviced by 10 chairlifts. All the lifts are the older and slower vintage; however, with a vertical drop of only 427 feet (130 meters) it does not take too long to get to the top of the hill. For northern Michigan a vertical of 427 feet is slightly below average. We skied in early January and the snow conditions were sterling. More importantly, the trails were magnificently well groomed. Nearly 80% of the runs are best suited for the beginner and intermediate skier. Even the "most difficult/black diamond" marked trails are not that daunting. There are a few steep slopes such as Chute, Smokey, and Twilight Zone. Regrettably, they are all short runs. Our favorite run continues to be Scarface. It is a great advanced intermediate steep slope that brings you back to the Green lift at the center of the resort. There is also some fine intermediate level skiing on Pintail Peak. You will need to take the long and slow Duck Soup run to get there. Make sure you have plenty of speed on the way over or you may not quite make it. The chairlifts were well run with no wait times throughout the day. We skied on a Saturday were not surprised about the quick turn around times at the chairlifts. We skied Nub's Nob numerous weekends throughout the last two ski seasons and never experienced crowded conditions. Consequently, you can easily ski the whole resort in one day (9 AM - 4 PM) with an hour lunch break. The on-mountain food is good and affordable. Expect to pay around $15 per person for a bowl of soup, large sandwich, and a dessert. I recommend the hearty homemade chicken noodle soup, chicken salad sandwich, and the oreo pudding cup for dessert. I generally eat two desserts, because they are lip-smacking good. The lodge cafeteria gets quite busy from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. Therefore, finding a table can be difficult. Once you find a place to sit down, the cafeteria style food ordering goes quickly. The price for a lift ticket is on the expensive side, especially weekend and holiday rates. Renting a locker to store your extra gear costs a mere three quarters. Don't forget to bring quarters. There are other top-notch ski areas close by such as Boyne Highlands and Boyne Mountain. We found Nub's Nob to have better groomed trails and less skiers compared to the two Boyne Resorts.

Skiing: Most every lift is 4-5 min up, 1-2 min down. Lines are short even at peak times, and almost all of the lifts are high capacity (3-4 person). There is a good mix of easy and intermediate trails, a and few more difficult ones. Nubs makes snow and grooms extensively so there aren't many moguls. About 2/3 skiers, 1/3 snowboard is typical. There is a nice terrain park with jumps and rails.The front slopes can be cold and windy, the lake facing Pintail peak area is more protected and often has better conditions. Pintail peak closes 45 min earlier that the front lifts. Nubs grooms constantly with snowmobiles and daily with heavy equipment.Best place in the LP. Vertical drop is high for Michigan (4-500 ft) but low compared to other areas. Eating: Most people pack a lunch. There is a cafeteria and coffee/snack bar too in the main lodge, and a warming 'hut' (seats 100+) on Pintail peak with machines. Not a full service resort.Accommodations: Hamlet Village Condo rentals let you ski on/off the slopes. There are many other Condo options in the area too. Otherwise a Best Western is 5 min away, many motels in Petoskey or Harbor Springs (Petoskey has more to do) 10-15 min away. Lift Tickets: Pricey during holiday periods and weekends. Accepts "Ski Free' 2/1 coupons on Tuesdays. Discounts for multi-day lift tickets. Best deal is a season pass for undergrad age college students (buy early!) . They also have a ski shop with rentals, sales and service.Cross Country: Lots of trails, but weather dependent. There may not be enough natural snow, so check conditions before you go.Location: About 40 min from I-75, 1 hr from Gaylord. Roads can be treacherous in bad weather. An AWD or 4WD vehicle can be very helpful due to unpredictable lake effect snow, sometimes exceeding 12 in/day. Boyne Highlands is across the street, so it's easy to go back and forth.Staff: Many long term employees, very friendly.

Most of the locals ski here, but we found the runs a bit lacking as compared to Boyne Highlands. While my wife appreciated not having to climb down the stairs in ski boots to go to the bathroom, this resort is like a good Chevrolet, but we prefer to ski the Buick across the street. Glad we tried it, but my family prefers Boyne Highlands.