Mount Kato Ski Area — Attraction in Mankato

With them starting to sell next year's season passes I needed to get this out there before more people waste their money. DO NOT GET A SEASON PASS TO MOUNT KATO. You will be much happier driving literally anywhere else. Nothing is ever open and when we asked about the lifts opening soon because they were working on the unloading area the employee literally laughed in our faces. Most of the trails are closed and probably close to half the lifts. Every fun side piece or little turn around a tree they block off almost immediately. Been literally doing that fun slow turn around that tree since the mid 2000s. They took the small terrain park off the little hill and moved it to the back side then have left it closed the whole time. When I asked one guy said it was because of a fence then the next said it was because the lip of the jumps was bad even though I was literally just on it and they were fine. Now they're just completely closed and if you ask why they just say the "kids" haven't had a chance to inspect it yet. They had been open for hours at that point. One of the lift operators was harassing my friend because board wasnt vertical to get on the lift. The chalet has smelled like raw sewage all year. It's so bad I dont even want to use the lockers in there let alone eat in the restaurant with the pervasive odor of actual sewage. We tried to go in during business hours in the summer to get our season passes only to have the guy say he didn't want to take our money and sent us away. We ended up paying full price because of that and missing out on the free tickets. The first couple times we went they still charged the full ~$50 for a lift ticket even though the only thing open was the bunny hill and maybe the one black diamond on the front. Getting on and off the lifts is terrifying if you aren't an expert because none of the lift operators bother to maintain the loading areas so you'll slip on solid ice and almost die before being shot down a 6ft solid ice quarter pipe. They advertise that you only have to work there 2 weeks then quit if you want a season pass so half the employees genuinely don't care about you at all and the other half are trying their best but the place is falling down around their ears. I wish I could return my season pass but since I can't I will suffer through this year then just get my season pass at Hyland next year which I strongly encourage you to do instead. Every time we interact with the older lady at the ticket counter she makes us feel completely unwelcome. Like we are inconveniencing her by trying to get our lift tickets. And honestly that's how every employee treats you. You aren't a customer or a person to them. Just a problem that they want to go away. Smaller gripe but still relevant after the only actual snow we had all year they immediately groomed it to within an inch of its life making sure there was no powder anywhere. I'm genuinely convinced that if you aren't the kind of rider to go medium speed and stick to the dead center of the run they don't want...

My biggest problem is the staff, don't get me wrong there are definitely some good people working here who really love their job, but the lift operators seriously NEED TO PAY ATTENTION!!! Its not as bad on the slopes on the back of Mount Kato but the lift at the Bunny Hill (Beaver Trail is what it's really called or something like that; its in the front next to tubing) needs to have people who will pay attention working at it. This is literally the worst slope to have people who aren't paying attention working on it because that is the BEGINNER HILL!! People will fall of the lift or tumble and the operator won't be paying attention and let the lift keep going while the person is struggling to get up as the people behind them try to get past them. So many times have I seen this happen and it really angers me because it's dangerous and people could get really hurt. Dear Owners of Mount Kato you have to have some sort of meeting with your employees and do something about this. I have seen this happen so many times, it happened to me before and my friends. I have a season pass here from last year and I plan on getting another one this year too! I am so thankful too have a Ski Resort/Ski Area in southern Minnesota and not have to drive +2 plus hours to go snowboarding. Since it's a smaller Ski Resort than most it hills are pretty small and short, i.e. it only takes about 2 mins. to get down the hill on the longest run which is a little dissapointing, it would be nice to have a longer run. It's prices are a little high, I would reccomnd getting a pass if you plan on going more than 3 or 4 times, but if you compare it to other resorts it really isn't that bad. I really wish that they would do a better job of updating their website and Facebook, sometimes on their website it says a run/trail or lift is closed when it actually isn't. One thing that is very overpriced though is the food! It really doesn't have to...

I had a great time tubing at Mount Kato with my family today, however if the lack of attention by the employees at the tubing hill there continues someone will be seriously injured before the end of the season.

First off, way too many tickets were sold for the two hour session, resulting in 10-15 minute waits to go back up each time

The attendants on the lift were not helpful. There were sometimes huge gaps because a kid was waiting for an ok from the attendant that never came. However they were quick to bark if people were too close. My nephew almost fell because an attendant told him to wait as he was stepping on. If they would just be more interactive with the paying customers this wouldn't happen.

The end of the lanes is just flat out dangerous and don't have any employees watching it like it needs to be. People are crossing the lanes after coming to a stop, when the lanes they are crossing are faster and tubes are flying through them. The employees were oblivious to this. When an employee was stationed at the bottom, this was all happening behind them. We saw a kid get bowled over, lying on the ground motionless for a few seconds before getting up slowly and being helped off by his mom. Not one employee noticed this.

I would love to go back and give a better review, but as long as the lack of attention by the employees leads to serious safety issues, I can't give any higher than a one star review. Just beware and pay attention to your...