Definition of Ski resort

For a Chinese imperial garden, see Mountain Resort.

A ski area is a developed recreational facility, usually on a mountain or large hill, containing ski trails and vital supporting services. It is common for a ski area to have food, rental equipment, parking facilities and a ski lift system catering to the sports of skiing and snowboarding. Normally located in high mountain areas (or at least on well-built-up hills) for optimum snow coverage, they have become ubiquitous in areas where skiing is a popular pastime. The paths are usually marked and known as runs, trails or pistes. Ski areas typically have one or more chair lifts for moving skiers rapidly to the top of hills, and to interconnect the various pistes.  Rope tows can also be used on short slopes (usually beginner hills or bunny slopes). Larger ski areas may use gondolas or aerial trams for transportation across longer distances within the ski area.