Ruidoso Winter Park — Attraction in Ruidoso

Had a great time at the Ruidoso Winter Park! Wanted to share a few tips I think would be helpful to others planning a trip here.

First, buy your tix online and early. We had considered the Igloo package but they were sold out so we just did the 3 hour tubing. Honestly, we're glad we didn't do the Igloo package since it is quite pricey and it ended up not being too cold and after the lines started getting long the kids were ready to go anyway.

Which is the second tip, get there early. Like 15 to 20 mins before it opens so you can park, get everyone down and get your mountain coaster and zipline tix. Do this first BEFORE getting your snow tubing tix. Your 3 hours start as soon as you get your tubing tix so don't start your timer until you're ready. Also, make sure you have your waivers signed before you arrive at the park. You need one for each person (adults and kids). If you're getting coaster or zipline tix for others have them come with you into the little office since each person or pair has to be weighed and measured to make sure they're within the weight and height limit. I think it was 250 lb for the zipline and 300 lb for the coaster. If you don't get your coaster or zipline tix in the morning there will be a long line for the tix later. I think the coaster was definitely worth it. I'm not a huge fan of roller coasters and neither are my 5 and 8 year old but since they got to ride with myself and my husband they were willing to give it a try and really loved it. I think it helps that you get to control the speed youself. The zipline was neat but we've definitely seen cooler/bigger ones but for $10 it wasn't bad. My husband got to ride the zipline next to my 8 yo daughter and they enjoyed it. My 5 yo son wasn't heavy enough but 3-5 yo get a free "half zip" where they'll connect them and just walk them back a bit and let them zipline, twice. My son loved it and is looking forward to doing the full zipline when we come back.

Once you've got your tix for the coaster and zipline go get the tubing tix. You'll need to attach a zip tie with a tag to yourself somewhere like a zipper or whatever. Even thought it wasn't a super cold day it did help to dress warmly. We didn't end up buying/renting snow suits, we just wore leggings/long johns under some jeans and wore long sleeve shirts and thick jackets with beanies and gloves. It was enough to keep us warm. We also didn't have snow boots but I did have some old cheap Walmart "hiking" boots that helped me have a better grip as we were walking up the snow compared to my kids and husband who were wearing tennis shoes. If you are going to wear tennis shoes tho wear some with a plastic exterior versus cloth since the snow will go thru your cloth shoes and your feet will end up wet and cold.

The snow tubing moved pretty quickly in the morning but as more people arrived the lines got longer. The first time we rode doubles with my daughter and son but noticed that those lines were longer so after the first time they were ready to ride alone. We each got our own tube and were able to tube several times until about 11ish when the line started getting longer. We went one last time and they said they were done. We sat for a bit to get some hot chocolate and an elote at around 11:30 before the lunch rush started and headed over to the mountain coaster. We probably waited in this line the longest which was about 40 mins. We thought it was worth it. I'm sure the later it got tho the longer the line was since those that started their time at 9 had until 12 to tube. Since we stopped tubing early it seemed like we were able to avoid some of the crowds. After the coaster we went over to the zipline. There was no line. Got some fun pics and videos and were ready to head out and pick up some lunch.

All in all we had a great time and would definitely come back again if we visit Ruidoso again. To us the price of the tubing was worth it since we're from Houston and it's not an experience we'd ever have back home. I hope you find this...

This is our second visit with the igloo package (which is so very worth it). We were very excited to come back. **English and Spanish speakers were on site to help with explaining the safety features of the park and slides.

I booked two Igloos for my family for our Christmas getaway12/25/2024. Checking in was quick and easy for the VIP Igloos. The staff was very sweet and helpful. They took our orders and delivered our drinks quickly. The igloo was nice and spacious as well as the grounds which included a picnic table outside each igloo and a shared fire pit with plenty of logs. There are NO fast passes to the coaster or to the slopes but you do get 50% off some attractions. Water is free.

Hands down, the best part of our visit was the coaster. We waited in a line that started at the ticket building and it took 1.5 hours to ride. I recommend doing the coasted first thing once you arrive.

The lines were not unbearably long and the kids rode down several times without any issues.

Grievances: -When you book an igloo you get a gift basket of snacks. Unfortunately, some of our snacks were expired. *see attached photo.

-The VIP area is supposed to be a secluded area away from the general public area where only VIP Igloo tags are allowed to enter. *see attached photo. I was very upset to see large groups of general admission patrons walking in and out and across the entirety of the VIP area. Because of these random patrons accessing this area, my son’s brand new gloves were stolen from our picnic tables (right outside our igloo) as we were inside eating and resting. We also watched as the hostesses did not stop or correct non VIP patrons from entering the area. I asked the hostesses if there was a lost and found area and no one could give me any help. I went up to the main building and the shop to ask about lost and found items and there was no designated area to recover anything had it been a mistake to take my son’s gloves. I would expect hostesses to be more vigilant and keep the integrity of the VIP area considering the price tag attached to this package. I know, people are probably rolling their eyes over gloves but good equipment costs money and proper snow gloves are not cheap when you want them to last and have planned many more trips to return! Lets please fix these issues for...

We purchased our tickets online for the coaster to save time in line to buy tickets, then stand in another line for the coaster which was super long. If you buy tickets online you still have to get in line to get a bracelet so it defeats the purpose. We got our bracelets and stood in line for coaster about 20 min and it started thundering and then a thunderstorm hit with heavy rain. The workers told us we could leave and get a refund or come back when rain stopped. They have to stop ride for 15 after any thunder, lightning or rain. We went to go eat and shop around and rain continued, we checked weather and it showed more rain in forecast and we had to leave as we were not staying in Ruidoso another day and had to head home. I emailed cust service to request refund and they replied and said they would not give us a refund and we could use it at another time. Well we don't visit Ruidoso often, I don't know when we will be able to get out there again and I emailed them that again and they just simply did not reply. The price is not cheap, we paid $52 for 2 riders and the weather is not in their control nor ours, so I think that since Ruidoso's economy is based on tourism, they need to take into consideration that some people "can't just come back". We have our bracelets and tickets that they can easily verify they were not used and issue a refund. There lack of customer service especially to tourists will cause them problems. Their website states: "Our Mountain Coaster and Zipline can operate in the rain as long as there is no lightening. If you have tickets to either the Mountain Coaster or zipline and they are unable to operate due to lightening we will issue a refund OR a rain check." They are not doing this. I'm disputing the charge since I didn't receive services and I hope others this happened to, do too. I will pass the word along to others that this is how...