I’ve written a guide before that went over all of the best places to visit if you wish to explore the history of North Idaho. But what about the winter?
A lot of the places I mentioned in that post are only open during the summer, like the history museums and the Hiawatha Trail.
Winter in North Idaho is just as full of activities as the summer, and you can’t go wrong by visiting during the colder seasons. So, here’s a guide to everything you can see and do here!
Winter Snow Sports in North Idaho
If you enjoy skiing, snowboarding, or sledding, you won’t find yourself lacking in places to go up here!
Lookout Pass, the location of the Hiawatha Trail that I mentioned in my other post, is also a ski hill in the winter. While they don’t have a resort, it’s not difficult to find places to stay nearby. I’ve gone skiing here a few times, including last winter, and had a blast! I’m new to skiing, so I’ve only done a couple greens and a single blue diamond.
If a resort’s more your speed, then the Silver Mountain Resort is actually closer to Coeur d’Alene, and has a resort with an indoor waterpark as well as a large ski hill that you can access from the resort! I haven’t been there since I was much younger, though, and I’ve never been on the ski hill itself.
Finally, if you find yourself a little further north, Schweitzer Mountain is near the town of Sandpoint. It has a resort, ski hill, and has a bit of sledding, too!
Sledding
If you don’t mind heading over into Washington, Mount Spokane is a great option for skiing, and has a sledding hill, too! They have big innertubes you can sled down the hill on, with a strap you can hook onto your sled at the bottom to pull it back up for you!
If you want a more traditional sledding experience, Cherry Hill is a pretty popular one. That can be good and bad, because you might get some larger crowds. Look for the giant fireman’s hat and you’ll be in the right spot! A quick word of warning: the hill is incredibly steep, and the one time we went to Cherry Hill there was an ambulance at the bottom.
Farragut State Park in Athol, Idaho, has some sledding areas in the winter, and is also great for some summer camping!
The Festival of Trees: Ringing in Winter in North Idaho
I haven’t been to the Festival of Trees since I was a kid, since my brother was in our school’s choir and they always sang there. But I went several times, and always had fun!
Located in the Coeur d’Alene Resort (like many things on this list), the Festival of Trees only lasts a few days. It’s intended to kick off the holiday season, so it usually happens in late November. Might be a little early if you’re looking for snow, but definitely worth it!
The event is in one of the larger convention rooms of the resort, and there are trees all around the room, decorated by various people and organizations in the city!
Every group that’s participating in the festival gets to decorate a tree, and usually places some kind of goodie bag with it. You can then buy raffle tickets and place them in the box for the trees you like the most.
It’s kind of a voting system of sorts, but whoever’s name is drawn wins the tree alongside whatever goodies, vouchers, and services come with it!
There are tons of other activities, too, and if you just want to walk around to look at the beautiful Christmas Trees, that’s just as fun!
Some other activities include Christmas cookie decorating and face painting for the kids!
They make a new post about the event every year, but this post about the Festival of Trees from 2024 should give you a pretty good idea about it.
Christmas Cruises
I’ve never been on these cruises myself. That will change in the next couple of weeks.
But they are exceptionally popular in my area. They’re very much intended for children and families, which is part of the reason I haven’t been on them. It just never happened when I was a kid, and I don’t have any myself.
Speaking of families, children can go on the cruise for free, so you only have to pay for the teens and adults climbing aboard!
I just did this cruise last week, the day after Christmas.
I would definitely advise arriving at least an hour early so that you can get a good spot in line. There’s somewhat limited seating and, while you will have to wait in line longer, you’ll get a much better spot.
The line starts in the Coeur d’Alene Plaza, just across from the Resort, which means you get to wait inside where it’s warm! An elf will scan your tickets and you can then go outside to board the cruise boat.
It’s not super necessary, but I’d recommend that you get a seat on the starboard side of the boat (the side on your right when you walk in). There are a few things that happen out on the lake that are a lot more visible there.
As you make your way across the lake, you can buy hot chocolate and other drinks, including some alcoholic ones. There are coloring pages for younger kids, too!
Finally, at the other end, everyone will rush outside to see Santa in his house at the “North Pole”, with his sleigh floating in the water nearby. He does a little show for the kids, talking about his time at the North Pole and showing off his tricked-out sleigh, then calls out the names of the kids on his nice list.
After that’s all done, the boat returns to the Resort on the other end of the lake. All in all, it takes about 45 minutes, so it’s not a super long excursion.
When I went, my brother and his wife joined us with their 6-month-old son, who is obviously not old enough to understand what was going on. When he’s older, I’m sure the cruise will feel like it has a lot more magic. It is meant for kids, after all!
Check out the Christmas Lights
The CDA Resort puts out a large collection of Christmas lights every year, and they seem to get more every year! From a glowing dragon that breathes out actual tongues of flame to a big sleigh with Santa and his reindeer on it, there’s a lot to see!
The Resort isn’t the only place that decorates for Christmas, either. All along Sherman Avenue and Downtown CDA, you’ll find a lot of lights and beautiful decorations! So take a walk around the city, and have a look at the Christmas Spirit on full display!
Ice Skating
Also in Downtown CDA, in McEuen park just between the Resort and the library, you’ll find an outdoor ice skating rink. I was in the area a few weeks ago (It’s December 5th at the time I’m writing this) and the rink was already there.
They get it set up pretty early, and it’s there for a couple months, so if you’re looking for something easy to do for a couple hours, the ice skating rink is a pretty good option. I haven’t been to it in a long time, so I can’t comment on the prices, but if I go down there I’ll make sure to update this!
Conclusion: North Idaho Doesn’t Hibernate for Winter!
There are certainly far more activities than I listed here, from snowshoeing and cross country skiing to simple indoor excursions like Triple Play. It’s a big building with tons of activities from a ropes course to arcades, laser tag, to mini golf and a water park!
However, I have no experience with cross country activities and the Triple Play is available year-round, so I decided not to put them on this list.
I’ll certainly update it in the future when I give some of these experiences a try!
If you’re planning to come to North Idaho, there’s certainly no shortage of activities.
I hope this was a helpful, or at least enjoyable, read! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, don’t hesitate to let me know! I check this blog multiple times daily and will get back to you as soon as I can!
