Smuggs Questions

Thinking of going to Smugglers Notch Resort this June with the wife, DD 17 and DD 10. Reviews are all over the map. Some questions:

What beds are in the 2 bedroom units? I've seen some where the second bedroom has bunk beds? Wht isthetypical size of the 2br units? The activity fee seems a bit pricey ($340?) Is this for everyone in the unit? Does this include all activities? Does it include the water park?Is it worth it?

I'm concerned there may not be enough for the girls to do for an entire week. Thanks for any suggestions.

We LOVE Smuggs but we have much younger kids. When in June are you going? We have found that before the 4th of July and after the last week in august we have never been charged the activity fee. Ive heard the fee is assessed in the middle of July and August.

That fee is for the entire unit and it covers most of the activities (like the water parks) but not everything (i.e. ziplinning, segway tours etc)

The 10 year old will likely think she has died and gone to heaven. There is TONS of stuff for that age group. You 17 year old may be a bit more of a challenge. If she likes being active outdoors its a great place. They also have some teen "night clubs" but I doubt she would want to go by herself. Stowe itself is a nice half day adventure. Burlington is only an hour away and that can make for a fun day trip as well.


The variation in reviews is because there are newer units up in the hills that are wonderful. Very high end. All updated and spacious. The older units down in the village though are quite dated. I know booking through Wyndham I'm allowed to choose between the old units and the new ones (although new ones cost more points).

Another, different (20/20 hindsight) Smuggs question...

winnipiseogee said:

.....booking through Wyndham....new units cost more points....

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In retrospect, I wish that our crystal ball had been working better and had let us know in advance that Wyndham was going to be taking over at Smugglers Notch....

We had a converted Wyndham fixed week (in Pompano Beach, Fl; an area I don't really care for at all).
I gladly gave away that week for free a few years ago, having initially acquired it for almost nothing anyhow.
If we'dd had any inkling that Wyndham was going to take over Smuggs, I'd surely have instead kept that FL ownership, 'dissing the FL week entirely but using the CW points for a ski trip to Smuggs in VT each year.

Would those now-departed 182k Club Wyndham points have even been enough for a ski week in the newer units at Smuggs? It wouldn't have mattered at all to us whether the week was in a 1BR or 2BR unit.

We would be going in mid to late June. I am a little concerned about the 17 year old being bored as she really isn't the outdoor type. Was thinking of bringing along her friend.

winnipiseogee said:

We have found that before the 4th of July and after the last week in august we have never been charged the activity fee.


I know booking through Wyndham I'm allowed to choose between the old units and the new ones (although new ones cost more points).

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Wyndham owners are not charged for a smuggs pass.

I agree old units kind of dated new ones very luxurious.

OP they have lots of activities for kids, mountain bike trails, segway tours, hiking etc, but at 17 she might be bored if not the "outdoors" type and most of this will be extra $$.
Did you check out the website smuggs.com?
http://www.smuggs.com/pages/summer/activities/week-at-a-glance.php

http://www.smuggs.com/pages/summer/activities/family-adventure-planner.php

theo said:

Would those now-departed 182k Club Wyndham points have even been enough for a ski week in the newer units at Smuggs? It wouldn't have mattered at all to us whether the week was in a 1BR or 2BR unit.

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FYI A 1br deluxe in the Tamaracks (newer units) is EXACTLY 182K points for prime week including Christmas and Presidents week. Or you can get an older 2 br for as low as 154k a week, plus you would get the free smuggs pass.
Of coarse you might need ARP for holiday weeks but so far I've been lucky...

coachb said:

We would be going in mid to late June. I am a little concerned about the 17 year old being bored as she really isn't the outdoor type. Was thinking of bringing along her friend.

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If your 17 year old is not the outdoorsy type, what exactly does she like to do? 17 year olds are hard no matter where you go...Definitely a friend will help....

The resort usually has some arts and crafts, and things like yoga classes, chocolates tasting. etc...Many have fees, however...

If she likes shopping...there are outlets in Essex and she would probably like Church Street in Burlington......also, Stowe has nice shops- try Stowe Mercantile Exchange- can take a boat outing on Lake Champlain.... there are nice beaches on the lake- but the water is cold- especially in June....movies in Stowe, Essex and Morrisville............

Drive up the toll road at Mt. Mansfield- great views, etc.

There's the pool and hot tubs.....

If she at least likes bike riding, there is a wonderful recreation path in Stowe for that- or just walking. You can rent bikes right there.

If Stowe Theater Guild is in session- you can go see a musical performance...

She might like going to Ben and Jerry's in Waterbury...

If you go on the smuggs website under plan your vacation, you can get ideas....they used to have limited resort activities in June-most were in late June and July and August- but that might have changed. That said- on the website under Plan Your Vacation- click on the 2013 resort information guide- you will see the various activities from last year and it was effective June 7- Sept 2. Have her look at it and see what she thinks!

As for the accommodations- click on Real Estate and then you can see the floor plans and types of furniture in the bedrooms, etc....

I find that kids (including teens) with a little encouragement will try NEW things outside of their "regular" comfort zone. Esp if there are NO peer witnesses.

antjmar said:

FYI A 1br deluxe in the Tamaracks (newer units) is EXACTLY 182K points for prime week including Christmas and Presidents week. Or you can get an older 2 br for as low as 154k a week, plus you would get the free smuggs pass.
Of course you might need ARP for holiday weeks but so far I've been lucky...

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Thank you for the reply; much appreciated. Maybe I shouldn't have been quite so anxious to dump that 182k converted fixed week. On the other hand, booking ski weeks in New England too long in advance can be a real dice roll, in terms of weather and ski conditions.

All things considered, I'm frankly quite content just being "done" with Wyndham anyhow...

theo said:

In retrospect, I wish that our crystal ball had been working better and had let us know in advance that Wyndham was going to be taking over at Smugglers Notch....

We had a converted Wyndham fixed week (in Pompano Beach, Fl; an area I don't really care for at all).
I gladly gave away that week for free a few years ago, having initially acquired it for almost nothing anyhow.
If we'dd had any inkling that Wyndham was going to take over Smuggs, I'd surely have instead kept that FL ownership, 'dissing the FL week entirely but using the CW points for a ski trip to Smuggs in VT each year.

Would those now-departed 182k Club Wyndham points have even been enough for a ski week in the newer units at Smuggs? It wouldn't have mattered at all to us whether the week was in a 1BR or 2BR unit.

Click to expand...

Smugglers Notch apparently is a affiliate resort with the Club Wyndham Plus program with new sold timeshare units going to Club Wyndham Access.

If you own in the Worldmark by Wyndham system, maybe this resort might pop up in the new Wyndham Club Pass System.

http://www.smuggs.com/pages/universal/press/releaseWVO.php

coachb said:

Thinking of going to Smugglers Notch Resort this June with the wife, DD 17 and DD 10. Reviews are all over the map. Some questions:

What beds are in the 2 bedroom units? I've seen some where the second bedroom has bunk beds? Wht isthetypical size of the 2br units? The activity fee seems a bit pricey ($340?) Is this for everyone in the unit? Does this include all activities? Does it include the water park?Is it worth it?

I'm concerned there may not be enough for the girls to do for an entire week. Thanks for any suggestions.

Click to expand...

Carefully consider whether you need to pay the activity fee or not...I think you can also pay by the day I believe if you decide to when you get there...

lcml11 said:

Smugglers Notch apparently is a affiliate resort with the Club Wyndham Plus program with new sold timeshare units going to Club Wyndham Access.

If you own in the Worldmark by Wyndham system, maybe this resort might pop up in the new Wyndham Club Pass System. <snip>

Click to expand...

Thanks for those thoughts. We were never in Worldmark (too geographically "western" for our patterns and preferences) and, as mentioned previously, we're now just plain done with Wyndham.

There are other (...and closer) VT ski areas that we actually like much more than Smuggs anyhow.
Also, we don't care about kiddie activities and /or keeping children "entertained" on our occasional ski trips.
For us, those days, although certainly with fond memories, are now images in the rear view mirror.

Will Workmark owners who book through the Club Wyndham Pass be treated as Wyndham owners (free SmuggsPass) or RCI owners (no free SmuggsPass)?

mpumilia said:

Carefully consider whether you need to pay the activity fee or not...I think you can also pay by the day I believe if you decide to when you get there...

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We were there for a week in late July last year with our 7 YO and another couple with kids the same age. I got a last minute exchange via RCI and it was cheap points. I was so excited since this was on our bucket list.

Well....maybe it was all the hype around it or maybe it is just my love for New Hampshire. But, I was disappointed. I didn't expect my child to go into to "camps/clubs" she is a shy leg clinger. So, maybe that is what is so special about the place. Our building smelt like an old dorm and the pools really could have used a really big scrub down. The local towns were nice - but after a few days exploring - we were done with them.

We were told the fee could be paid on a daily basis - so do all the included items first and then if you want more come pay the fee for a lower cost. We did "fee based" things and were never asked for our pass.

The ziplining - that is actually not part of the resort - just close by - was AWESOME. We did it twice!

Glad we went, crossed off the list - but I still love the White Mountains of NH so much more!

mdurette said:

We were there for a week in late July last year with our 7 YO and another couple with kids the same age. I got a last minute exchange via RCI and it was cheap points. I was so excited since this was on our bucket list.

Well....maybe it was all the hype around it or maybe it is just my love for New Hampshire. But, I was disappointed. I didn't expect my child to go into to "camps/clubs" she is a shy leg clinger. So, maybe that is what is so special about the place. Our building smelt like an old dorm and the pools really could have used a really big scrub down. The local towns were nice - but after a few days exploring - we were done with them.

We were told the fee could be paid on a daily basis - so do all the included items first and then if you want more come pay the fee for a lower cost. We did "fee based" things and were never asked for our pass.


The ziplining - that is actually not part of the resort - just close by - was AWESOME. We did it twice!

Glad we went, crossed off the list - but I still love the White Mountains of NH so much more!

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Sounds like you were in one of the older units and pools. It does matter where you stay at the resort. We have owned there 16 years and our son never wanted to go to the camps, although we made him try it a few times. But, he loved everything else- even though he was not a very active kid.

My heart is in Vermont- been going for 16+ years- I belong to the VT 251 club with the goal of visiting every incorporated town in the state and there really is a lot to see and do if you really have the interest. I have so far been to 111 towns! That said, our son lives in New Hampshire and we plan to retire there someday (much more tax friendly than Vermont)- but want to live near Hanover on the border so I can get into Vermont easily! Lol! Definitely a different vibe in New Hampshire than Vermont- like them both.

By the way- you do not need a pass for the "fee based activities" since you are paying a separate fee per activity. The pass is a different thing- giving access to all the pools and hikes, etc.

Oh! Great time for this thread!

I'm going to Smuggs from 6/29 - 7/6...With my Parents(Early 60's) and my Daughter (8yrs old)...Staying in SY-5....From what i can tell...This is in the Sycamores, West Hill Community...

Is this an older or newer section?
How bad really are the older sections? Really warn down or just older?
Are the camps THAT great? I figure even after buying the $350 smuggspass, it'll still be another $350 for the camps!

The Village sections are the old sections. Plus they are in the center of everything. Minus they are quite a bit older.

Sycamores is very nice. 05 should be within easy walking distance of the West Hill Community Center and pool. We loved sitting in the heated pool and watching the sun set . I wish the pool had been heated about 3 degrees warmer though. With just your parents, you and daughter I think it would be really hard to get $350 worth of value out of the pass. If I were you I would really try to see if you can only get it for 2-3 days. On those days, hit 1-3 of the water parks each day and do at least one hike, and fun zone for at least 2 days. I had both my sons pick one day of camp (by activity) and if they had really loved it and saw a 2nd day they wanted they could. They both picked the ropes courses. My older son (11 at the time) could do the high ropes. He liked it a lot but didn't see anything else he wanted to do. My younger son wasn't old enough for the high ropes course so he did the low ropes. He liked it but didn't love it. So only one day of camps.

@Ridewithme38 I'm also going the week of the 29th of June, how do you tell what unit you have? If you used Wyndham points to book it the Smuggspass is included...

Maybe if you have extra occupancy you aren't using you could list Ride and his daughter with you to get them pass tags and he could buy you some beers at the bar or pizza at the deli.

tschwa2 said:

Maybe if you have extra occupancy you aren't using you could list Ride and his daughter with you to get them pass tags and he could buy you some beers at the bar or pizza at the deli.

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If I recall with the smugspass you can charge stuff to the room I thought I used it to pay for ski rentals lessons etc with it...
can be in for a BIG surprise at checkout!

persia said:

@Ridewithme38 I'm also going the week of the 29th of June, how do you tell what unit you have? If you used Wyndham points to book it the Smuggspass is included...

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I booked through RCI. For some reason, it doesn't show you on the...full website...But when you go to m.rci.com on your mobile phone or other mobile browser, i was able to find the room number for both my up coming Smuggs trip in July and my Upcoming Massanutten trip in February.

Go to m.rci.com
Sign into RCI
View Vacation plans
View Confirmed
Click on your vacation
and it should give you a room number