Idaho’s Incredible Cosmic Tubing Hill Must Be On Your 2025 Bucket List

Any time we meet someone while traveling and tell them we’re from Idaho, one of the first things they say is “so you love to ski, don’t you?”

With 19 ski areas, more than 29,000 vertical feet of terrain spread over 22,000 acres, our home state does have the reputation of being a playground for winter sports enthusiasts. 

READ MORE: Idaho Is Home to 5 Of The Greatest Winter Playgrounds in America

That’s why we’re so embarrassed when we have to answer that enthusiastic stranger’s question “No, I don’t know how to ski.” It’s not because of a lack of opportunity to learn. Idaho’s ski areas and resorts have great education programs. In fact, the MTN Sports School at Brundage was recently named the #6 Best Ski School in America in a USA Today “10 Best” poll. 

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It’s really because of our lack of coordination. We fall down. A lot. Considering how many spills we’ve taken running and hiking in the foothills, we don’t trust ourselves going faster and steeper on skis or snowboards! 

But snow tubing? That’s something we can get behind! It’s an all ages, all levels winter activity that just about everyone can enjoy and it’s evolved quite a bit over the years! 

Cosmic Tubing Makes Its Debut in the Pacific Northwest

We dug as deep as you could go on the internet to find out which of America’s ski resorts tried this cool trend for the first time. While no one claims to be “the first,” it appears that the very cool trend originated at Mt. Hood Skibowl in Oregon. The ski area uploaded their first cosmic tubing video on YouTube 13 years ago.  

In 2025, the resort will use over 600,000 LED lights, laser shows, black lights, colored lights and a fun soundtrack to make their cosmic tubing sessions the best party on just about any mountain. 

Living in Idaho, we’re pretty lucky to be just a road trip away from O.G. of cosmic tubing. Mt. Hood Skibowl is just over a six hour drive from Boise and about five and a half hours from Lewiston. It is, however, a bit of a haul if you’re coming from Eastern Idaho. 

Where To Go Cosmic Tubing In Idaho

If you’re not down for that long a road trip during the cold of winter, you’re in luck! Idaho DOES have its own cosmic tubing hill. Magic Mountain in Kimberly debuted the concept in 2022 and the response was incredible, so it comes back year after year! 

Magic Mountain has rebranded the sessions as “Twilight Tubing” and they’re available on Saturday nights from 6-8 p.m. in January and February. Just a heads up, the sessions are a little bit more expensive than a day time session at $30 a pop. (Regular sessions are $25.) 

The best part? It's MUCH closer to most of Idaho's most populated areas. Google Maps estimates that it'll take you just under three hours to get there from Boise and about the same from Idaho Falls. As for Twin Falls? It's definitely a day trip at just 62 minutes!

Want a preview of what to expect? Check out this fun video that Visit Southern Idaho made during their Cosmic Tubing Trip at Magic Mountain in 2022.