Find Your Dream Airbnb Near Bear Valley
When the ski season is active, Bear Valley Resort offers skiers and riders the best option in a smaller and less touristy mountain.
Bear Valley offers a total of 9 lifts and 75+ trails across 1680 ski-able acres and a 1900′ vertical drop for an amazing amount of variety for all abilities. Our Lifts include a high-speed 6-pack, a high-speed quad, one triple chair, four double chairs, and two conveyor carpet lifts with one carpet exclusively dedicated to the Cub Club Children’s Learning Center.
The terrain at Bear Valley offers introductory lessons and slopes for beginners, while hosting a mountain filled with off piste tree terrain for seasoned pros, and everyone in between.
- 25% of the trails are beginner-friendly
- 40% are intermediate
- 35% are advanced or expert
Bear Valley Hours of Operation:
Summer: Mokelumne Express runs from 10am-4pm weekends & Holidays July Through September (currently), this may change
Winter: Mokelumne Express, Cub, Super Cub and the carpets run from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM daily.
Polar Express and Grizzly run from 9:00 AM – 3:30 daily.
Staying at Bear Valley
The Bear Valley Lodge is positioned at the base of the mountain, but you’ll need to shuttle over to the ski lodge to begin your day of skiing, where you can rent equipment.
There aren’t too many dining or shopping options in the area, so your next best option will be to rent an Airbnb in the adjacent towns like Arnold, and Dorrington.
If you’re going to drive over to the ski area anyway from Bear Valley Lodge, you might as well find a cozy cabin near points of interest for an extra 20-30 minutes.
What to Look For in an Airbnb Near Bear Valley
Bear Valley is a little recreational vacation town located 2.5-3 hrs from San Francisco. It has a history dating back to the 1850s, and has been redeveloped several times to finally take shape into what you see today to bring thousands of skiers and riders to the mountain.
Because of the deep history, you’ll find thousands of cabins brought to life over the decades, so many of the Airbnb options will take on many shapes, sizes, and prices. For this reason, you’ll need to carefully shop Airbnbs near Bear Valley with a modern take, to make sure it accommodates your family with all the amenities you deserve.
Wifi at Cabins Near Bear Valley
Although Wifi and TV is underrated, it’s how we function in today’s world, so make sure your rental home is wired to provide connectivity to stay in touch with the weather, storm advisories, and friends you’ll be meeting up with.
Accessibility to Your Airbnb Cabin
Getting to your Airbnb, especially when heading up to Bear Valley is half the battle, so snowplow contracts are important to have in order to ensure your journey is complete. The main roads are constantly plowed, but individual subdivisions aren’t always a guarantee, and when it comes to steep driveways, you’ll want to make sure you don’t need a dogsled to power your groceries and gear up to the cabin through 3 ft of snow.
A Warm Cozy Airbnb for Your Bear Valley Adventure
After a three-hour drive from San Francisco, a frozen cabin is the last thing you want. It takes hours to warm up a cabin, so many Airbnb owners use Nest thermostats to preheat the cabin before your arrival to offer warmth right when you walk in.
Alpine Modern offers all of these amenities to allow you relieve the stress and enjoy your trip. High speed Internet, a giant TV, and a toasty fireplace is everything you need to survive the winters near Bear Valley.
You’ll be near Murphys, Dorrington, Camp Connell, and all the modern services that you’d find at home.
Preparing for Your Stay at an Airbnb Near Bear Valley
Heading up to the resort is usually straightforward unless it snows the day before. The plow trucks are typically pretty good at clearing the main roads. Arnold will see less snow, but as you get up past Big Trees and Camp Connell, the elevation dramatically increases, and you’ll need to be prepared to drive on snow-packed roads.
Bring a 4wd vehicle or chains to be safe, as the toughest part is the last mile up the hill to the parking lot. You’ll know it’s bad when there are chain check areas and you won’t be permitted past the area unless you have 4wd or chains. The cellular reception starts to get poor from Camp Connell upward until you get to Bear Valley. During popular holiday weekends you may be greeted with a line of cars that can backup.
When the hill at the entrance backs up, you’ll be sitting in some stop and go traffic, and the 2wd cars end up getting stuck and will be forced to turn around.
Price Ranges for an Airbnb Near Bear Valley
There are Airbnbs at various price ranges, accommodations, and availability. It really all depends on the capacity you need to host and the style of the interiors. Many of these homes are second homes, and can be either treated as the place to dump old furniture, OR it may be the prized possession.
On the lower end of the spectrum, you can find cute little cabins like the one above, that can run $140-$240/night depending on the season. It’ll be adequate, but will feel like your grandma’s cabin if that suits your taste. This particular cabin is in Lakemont Pines, and sleeps 6 guests in 2 beds and 2 baths.
At the upper end of the spectrum you can get a “Castle by The Lake” also in Lakemont Pines for about $500/night which sleeps 12 guests in 4 bedrooms, with 8 beds, and 3.5 baths. This is walking distance to our cabin, Alpine Modern, and is perfect for a couple families who need lots of room. It’s an easy stroll to Tanner Lake and is on a beautiful level lot.
Alpine Modern is a smaller, but finely furnished cabin, right on the lake. It can host up to 6 guests from it’s 1 bedroom, and loft with 4 beds. It is mainly suited for a single family who want to enjoy the lakeside views and the beauty of winter. Prices range $220-$330 depending on the season, and will be priced slightly higher from it’s designer finishes.
The newly renovated kitchen and bathroom feature a gourmet kitchen, warm butcher block countertops, and Danish / Mid-century Modern furniture.
Popular Neighborhoods for Airbnbs Near Bear Valley
The areas near Bear Valley are filled with neighborhoods developed for vacationers like you–seeing safe and relaxing weekends with Mother Nature. There are little spots with cabins, but I’d recommend sticking to developed communities otherwise the winter snow may leave you parking at a trailhead and packing in your gear, groceries, and family. An established neighborhood will have snowplow service, and will give you a bit more confidence with your investment in time and safety.
Here are neighborhoods and area heading up the mountain, in order of elevation:
- Murphys – hardly any snow. This is the posher area, with it’s own shopping strip, tasting rooms, and where all the restaurant action occurs.
- Lakemont Pines (Arnold)- some snow. This is the main epicenter that other towns draw from, where you’ll find the main grocery store, Ace Hardware, a few boutiques, the restaurant staples (Mexican, Italian, burgers, coffee/breakfast, sporting goods, and a Round Table pizza. There’s also Snowshoe Brewery and Hinterhaus distillery for adult socializing.
- Meadowmont (Arnold)– some snow. An adjacent area with shares all the same things with Lakemont Pines.
- Blue Lake Springs – more snow. 10 mins further up the hill, but you’ll need to head back to Arnold to get everything.
- Big Trees Village (Dorrington) – lot’s of snow. 15 mins further up the road.
- Camp Connell – lot’s of snow. 2 mins further up the road.