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Perfect North, Lawrenceburg, Indiana

If you are local to the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky/Indiana area and ski/board, you know Perfect North Slopes. You probably also know Clyde “Chip” Perfect, if you ski there regularly enough. His family started the resort in Lawrenceburg, IN, in 1979/1980, and he has run it since his parents retired.

Perfect North has humble beginnings; imagine a cattle field with two ski runs serviced by two tow ropes. In 2019, Perfect North expanded to West Virginia by purchasing the family-owned Timberline Resort in Canaan Valley, WV.

What is So Perfect about Perfect North?

There are a lot of things that make Perfect North unique. Here are the Top 4 from my perspective.

If you are into Freestyle, you probably know Olympic Skier Nick Goepher. He learned to ski at Perfect North and used to train there 12 hours a day. He won Bronze in the 2014 Winter Olympics and shouted out to the little resort after his first qualifying run, “What’s up Perfect North?”
Perfect North has excellent snow-making facilities. Even though the resort only gets 17 inches of natural snow each season, they can maintain a 3-4 foot snowpack rain or shine with their 245 snow guns. One downside is they tend to run a lot; benefit – you get good at avoiding the snow gun spray.
It is still family-owned, giving it a different feeling from larger corporate resorts. Located a half hour from Cincinnati, OH, Perfect, as the locals call it, is a regional hotspot. Local Schools take day trips to learn to ski; most local schools have ski and snowboard clubs that come to the resort on weeknights. On any given weeknight, the resort feels like a football game tailgate, not a ski resort.
As a downhill ski instructor, I can tell you, Perfect North has the right approach to beginners’ lessons. The Mountain is relatively small and the ONLY one in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky/Indiana Tri-Sate Area, so it can get busy. The high number of new skiers can cause problems at any resort. Historically Perfect included a FREE group lesson with your lift ticket purchase. Due to rising costs, that beginning group lesson is now $10. The low price encourages new skiers to take advantage of learning how to ski and control themselves and starts them on the path of successful and safe skiing and boarding.

Insider Tip: Hit the slopes early and make first tracks. Getting to the resort early makes it easy to ski on and off without the hassle of lift lines. You can also avoid lines if you ski when the usual crowd stops for lunch, around noon. Then ditch out early before the night crowd arrives. If you buy a day pass (8 consecutive hours), you can turn it in early (before 4 hours is up) for a credit towards your next trip or food/drinks. Better yet, ski during weekdays when it is pretty open during the day, and you can leave before the after-school night crowd moves in.

Profile:

Chairlifts: 5 Lifts – 2 quad chairs, three triples, seven rope tows, and one magic carpet

Vertical: 400’

Avg. Snowfall: 17inches

Season: Usually, Mid December through Mid March

Runs: 23 – Longest 1 Mile

Beginner:5 beginner

Intermediate:14 intermediate

Expert:4 expert

Night Skiing: Yes

Terrain Parks: Yes

Backcountry: No

Kids Ski School: Yes

Accommodations: No, but the Resort has partnerships with the local hotels and Bed & Breakfasts

Daycare: No

The Resort

Perfect North is a Day Ski Slope focused primarily on Intermediate runs. There are 4 Black Diamond Slopes, the most popular being Center Stage. Center Stage is visible from the majority of the resort. If you conquer it, everyone will know it; if you don’t, well . . . There are also 5 Green slopes for novices to use before they improve their skills.

While on the snow, check out the Lower Hollywood or Audition Terrain Parks, or the Jam Session Beginnner Terrain Park. If you have skills, you should enter the BIG AIR Freestyle Jump Competition or the BLACKLIST BOARDSHOP RAIL JAM in February. Or the MAHALO RAIL JAM that takes place during Carnival Weekend.

Not a skier/boarder, they also have a multi-lane snow tubing area to keep you busy.

Perfect North Lawrenceburg Indiana Resort

Lift Ticket Prices

Lift Tickets -Check Perfect North’s current prices here
Upgrade your ticket for four more hours
Closing/Late Night Ticket – Final 4 Hours of the Day – Only sold at Ticket Windows
Order Online and Save
Perfect North also has Its’ own Perfect Season Pass that contains the following:
- Unlimited skiing, boarding, and snow tubing.
- Direct access to the Slopes.
- Plus discounts on additional lift tickets, valid Mon-Thur.

In addition, they offer weekday passes, one-day-a-week passes, and other less expensive pass options for locals.

Perfect North Lawrenceburg Indiana Ticket

Getting There/Accommodations

Perfect North is in Lawrenceburg, a rural area of Indiana, making it a great, remote location to create a ski slope. Perfect North is approximately 30 minutes for Cincinnati, OH, and is drivable from most of the major cities in the area.

Indianapolis: 1 hour 20 minutes

Lexington: 1 hour 20 minutes

Louisville: 1 hour 45 minutes

Parking is easy and right in front of the resort. The earlier you arrive, the closer you will be, and the shorter your walk with your gear.

The closest resort option is the Hollywood Casino, 6.9 miles away. Perfect North has Ski & Stay Packages with some of the budget hotels in the area and two local Bed & Breakfasts.

Perfect North Lawrenceburg Indiana Accommodation

Facilities

Equipment Rentals

Because the resort caters to locals and first-timers, they have mastered the art of retrieving rental gear. To the right of the lift ticket windows are a set of stairs that lead to their resort-long rental area.

Insider knowledge: The Perfects patented their boot drying and selection system. The system dries and organizes the boots in a way that makes finding the right pair for you easy and efficient. Plus no one likes putting on wet boots.

After getting your boots, walk to the counters to grab poles, skis, and a helmet, and you are now at snow level and close to the teaching area for beginners’ lessons. On a school trip I chaperoned, it took 30 minutes for us to get 20 – 8th graders through the process and out onto the snow for a lesson.

You can check current equipment rental prices on Perfect North’s website here.

Perfect North Lawrenceburg Indiana Equipment Rentals

Food & Drink

They have a cafeteria, but many locals bring their own lunch or dinner. The last time I was there, the local pizza shop delivered to the Brown Bag Lunch Area.

Family & Kids

While you will not find DayCare at Perfect North, you will find it to be family-friendly. Perfect North has a 25-lane Snow Tubing Park for the non-skier/boarder. Snow tubers enjoy sliding down a snowy 1200′ long run down the mountain within view of the ski slopes.

Regulars come early, grab a table or 2 in the cafeteria and pull them together. Parents and grandparents take turns holding babies and toddlers while the rest of the family hits the slopes. The Brown Bag Lunch Area, a reasonably priced season pass, and the Early Return Option make it more affordable for a large family to come and enjoy a day at the slopes.

Ski School

Perfect North has a very affordable group lesson you can purchase with each lift ticket. Perfect North also has Next Step Lessons if you want to learn some more after you have mastered the basics. The ‘Rent an Instructor’ Program is for adults and skiers/boarders who want to hone their skills with private one-on-one lessons.

In addition, they have a budding Children’s Program. For the 2025 season, they are offering:

Doodles Ski & Board is a 6-Week Program for 4-13-year-olds.
Freestyle – Terrain Park Training for 8-13-year-olds.
Hot Shots – Racing Development 6-Week Program for 8-13-year-olds.

You can check the current lesson prices here.

For Beginners

Perfect North has five green slopes and a great teaching area. They also have a robust rental program that includes ski pants, bibs, and helmets.

Perfect North Lawrenceburg Indiana Families

For Snowboarders

While today Perfect North welcomes snowboards and has 3 Terrain Parks, they were one of the last resorts to do so. Perfect North may have been slow to allow snowboarders, but they love their Terrain Parks.

Insider Experience – I am a skier, not a boarder, but our youngest wanted to snowboard, so we decided to try it. We signed up for a group snowboard lesson, followed by a half-day Rent an Instructor Program. At the end of the day, she was making her way down the bunny hill. Thanks to those first lessons, she is now both a ski instructor and an expert border. Me, I am going to stick to skis.

The Author & Her Daughter Learning to Snowboard

The Bottom Line

Both locals and visitors can enjoy a day, night, or weekend at Perfect North Slopes. If you are in the area, be sure to stop by. Its proximity to the Cincinnati area makes a quick trip to break up a business trip. Grab a group, and you can turn a day at the slopes into a team-building exercise.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What should you wear to Perfect North?

Indiana can be cold, so you will want to layer up. Include a helmet, ski jacket (or water-resistant outer shell and ski pants. While you will see some locals wearing jeans, your better bet would be to rent ski pants or a bib from the shop. Don’t forget to remember your base layers which are designed to pull moisture away from the skin to conserve body heat. You can check our review of the Best Long Johns to help you stay warm.

If you are unsure what gear is right for you, check out our Helmet, Ski Jacket, Ski Pants, and Glove Reviews for more information.

Who is Perfect North Owned By?

Since 1979/1980, Perfect North Slopes has been owned by the Perfect Family. Chip Perfect is the current CEO. He took over the running of this family business when his parents retired. Chip is also an Indiana State Senator. How many resorts can boast that? Perfect North Slopes purchased Timberline Ski Slopes in Canaan Valley, West Virginia, in 2019.

Does Perfect North have real snow?

Most resorts do a combination of both natural snow and snowmaking. The proportion of each changes each year based on the weather. Lawrenceburg, Indiana, gets, on average, 17 inches of snow a year, so Perfect North has become an expert at making skiable snow.