Most people know Holiday Valley for its chairlifts and snow. Fewer know that all summer long, the forest between the runs turns into one of the largest treetop adventure parks in the Northeast. Sky High Aerial Adventure Park puts you into a harness, up onto platforms as high as a six-story building, and across ziplines strung between the trees. Here is how it works and how to make the most of a visit.
What Sky High Aerial Adventure Park actually is
Sky High is three attractions in one wooded corner of the resort. The centerpiece is an aerial rope park: a web of courses you climb through on your own, clipped to a safety line the whole way. Alongside it runs the Sky Flyer mountain coaster, a gravity ride that snakes down through the trees, and a lower Climbing Forest for warming up or for younger kids who are not quite ready for the high ropes. Not everyone in your group has to be strapped into the tall courses to have a full day of it.
The aerial park by the numbers
The scale is the thing that surprises first-timers. The aerial park alone holds:
Those 13 courses sit on 142 platforms, and the longest zipline runs about 350 feet through the canopy. You move between them at your own pace, choosing how high and how hard you want to push.
How the color grades work
The courses are graded like ski trails, so the system will feel familiar if you have ridden the mountain in winter:
- Yellow (3 courses): beginner. Low and forgiving, the place everyone starts.
- Green (5 courses): intermediate. A bigger step up in height and balance.
- Blue (2 courses): advanced. Longer crossings and more exposure.
- Black diamond (2 courses): expert. Real commitment and grip strength required.
- Double black diamond (1 course): the extreme test, saved for last.
What a climbing session is like
A standard session runs three hours, which is enough time to clear three or four courses if you keep moving. Everyone starts with a short ground-school lesson on the harness and the locking lanyards that keep you attached to the safety cable. After that you are self-guided: staff watch from below and help when you need it, but you set your own line and your own pace through the trees.
Good to know before you go. The aerial courses are built for climbers aged 7 and up. Wear closed-toe sneakers, tie back long hair, and leave loose jewelry in the car. Gloves are a nice extra on the harder courses where you are gripping cable.
Season, hours, and booking
Sky High runs roughly from early May through late October: weekends in spring and fall, and daily through the heart of summer. Hours generally fall between 9 or 10am and 5 or 6pm depending on the season. Because sessions are timed and popular, booking ahead is a must on weekends and a good idea on weekdays too. Buying in advance also saves a few dollars over the walk-up rate.
On price, plan on around $66 for a three-hour adult session, a little less for juniors, with better rates for groups of 15 or more. Combo tickets that add mountain coaster rides cost a bit more. Rates shift year to year, so confirm the current numbers when you book.
Bargain window: during Holiday Valley's Cabin Fever Days you can grab $30 off a three-hour climbing session. Watch the events calendar for the dates and pick up a voucher at a participating village shop.
Where a first-timer should start
- Warm up low: take a yellow course first to get used to clipping the lanyards and trusting the harness before you climb higher.
- Build up: move to the green courses once the movement feels natural. This is where most of a first session is spent.
- Save the hard stuff: the blue and black courses are more fun, and less scary, once your grip and confidence have warmed up. There is no rush to reach them.
Book directly through Holiday Valley's Sky High Aerial Adventure Park page for current hours, pricing, and reservations. The park sits at the resort at 6557 Holiday Valley Road, a few minutes from Washington Street.