Why Windham Mountain’s Makeover Has People Calling It Aspen East
Gstaad, Vail, Cortina… Windham? One of these things is not like the others—yet. As many of Slim Aaron’s most famous photos attest, the ski glitterati from around the globe can be found scattered among a handful of resorts in the Rockies and the Alps. The Catskills? Not so much.
And while “Aspen East” is a bit of an inside joke for devotees of Windham—a 3,100-foot, 54-trail mountain above an eponymous rural town featuring a pizzeria, a BBQ joint, and several dive bars—change is indeed afoot. Locals and East Coasters with second homes in Windham are abuzz with the news that the mountain has a new group of majority investors led in part by hospitality magnate Sandy Beall, who is best known as the chairman and co-founder of Blackberry Farm and Blackberry Mountain.
First up was a rebranding of Windham Mountain to Windham Mountain Club. Then came the transformation of the formerly bare-bones cafeteria into a “food hall” with a full bar; an “Italian Alps–style restaurant” opening at midmountain; a new private dining club; a spa and fitness club opening inside the main lodge; improved snowmaking and grooming; and more. Plus a six-figure membership option that offers priority access to the new amenities.
Change rarely comes without controversy, of course, and there is much chatter about the fancifying of this formerly low-key winter enclave. (“I’m convinced Moira Rose from Schitt’s Creek is writing these,” one commenter said of the stream of @windhammountainclub Instagram posts touting the “rare mountain air” and “inspired Mediterranean menus.”) But others are excited to see the mountain they love become even better (and to recapture one silver lining of the Covid era—reduced crowds—thanks to a two-day minimum for lift tickets on most weekends during the winter season). Either way, Windham’s new owners are setting out to prove that you don’t need a 10,000-foot peak to have an elevated experience.
This story appears in the December 2023/January 2024 issue of Town & Country. SUBSCRIBE NOW
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