Vail sits at about 8,150 feet (2,484 meters) above sea level, according to the Town of Vail. The ski mountain starts slightly lower, at a base elevation of 8,120 feet, and tops out at 11,570 feet, a vertical rise of 3,450 feet. Which number you quote depends on whether you mean the town, the base area or the top of the lifts, but the one that matters most for how you feel is the altitude where you sleep.
Elevations around Vail, side by side
| Place | Elevation | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) | 6,547 ft (1,996 m) | Surveyed elevation in FAA airport data, republished by AirNav |
| Town of Vail, average | 8,150 ft (2,484 m) | Town of Vail |
| Vail Mountain base | 8,120 ft (2,454 m) | Vail Mountain statistics |
| Vail Mountain summit | 11,570 ft (3,527 m) | Vail Mountain statistics |
| Breckenridge base and summit, for comparison | 9,600 ft and 12,998 ft | Breckenridge mountain information |
The 8,150-foot figure is a town-wide average and 8,120 feet is the resort's base elevation. Individual hotels and homes sit above and below both.
What 3,450 feet of vertical means on the mountain
Even the base of Vail Mountain is above the 8,000-foot mark that medical guidance uses as its threshold for altitude illness, and the lifts carry you another 3,450 feet up. That is one reason to spend the first ski day on easy terrain rather than the Back Bowls; how hard the Back Bowls are and when the Back Bowls open cover that terrain.
Vail is lower than its neighbor over the pass: Breckenridge's base is about 1,500 feet higher than Vail's, a difference laid out in Vail or Breckenridge. Vail Pass, on I-70 near Vail, has its own answer in how high Vail Pass is.
Who gets altitude sickness in Vail, and when
The guidance in this section comes from the CDC's Yellow Book, the reference used by travel clinicians. It names Vail as a common high-altitude destination, with lodging at 8,150 feet, and reports that acute mountain sickness affects about 25 percent of visitors who sleep at 8,000 feet or higher in Colorado.
- Symptoms resemble a hangover: headache is the main one, often with fatigue, dizziness, nausea or loss of appetite. They usually start 2 to 12 hours after arrival, often during or after the first night.
- Mild altitude sickness is typically self-limited, developing and clearing over one to three days, and it generally resolves in 12 to 48 hours if you do not go higher. Symptoms that begin after three days at the same altitude should not be blamed on altitude.
- Fitness does not predict who is affected. Training and physical fitness do not change the risk, and children are as susceptible as adults.
The body is under the most strain during sleep, and a day trip that ends back at a lower altitude is much easier than a night at height. Your sleeping altitude, not the summit you ski, is what most affects how you feel.
A plan for the first 48 hours
The acclimatization checklist in the same chapter translates directly to a Vail arrival day:
- Avoid alcohol for the first 48 hours.
- Keep exercise mild for the first 48 hours.
- If you drink coffee every day, keep drinking it, because withdrawal headaches can be mistaken for altitude headaches.
- Do not go higher to sleep while you have symptoms, however minor. Mild altitude sickness improves quickly with a descent of about 1,000 feet.
- Descend if symptoms worsen despite rest or treatment. Confusion, poor coordination or breathlessness at rest point to the serious forms and need urgent medical help. Chest congestion, a cough or breathlessness out of proportion to your effort are the early signs of altitude-related fluid on the lungs, which the CDC puts at roughly 1 in 10,000 skiers in Colorado.
Travelers with heart or lung conditions, sleep apnea or other underlying medical issues should talk to a physician familiar with high-altitude medicine before they go. Medications for prevention exist, and whether one suits you is a decision for your own doctor.
Flying in from sea level
Eagle County Regional Airport, which serves the Vail Valley, sits at 6,547 feet, so you have already gained about 6,500 feet before you leave the terminal. The drive up-valley adds roughly another 1,600 feet by the time you reach the village. Arriving from a coastal city, give the first evening a light schedule. The airports near Vail are compared in their own guide, and the airport's own site is flyege.com.
For dressing and packing for altitude, cold and sun, see how to dress for Vail. If you are still choosing where to sleep, the best hotels in Vail roundup lists the main options.
Canned oxygen, home oxygen and what the CDC says
Small canned oxygen is sold widely in mountain towns. The popular handheld cans give brief relief but hold too little oxygen (5 liters at most) to help for long. For continuous supplemental oxygen, mountain resorts generally have home oxygen readily available, but a prescription is required in the United States.
