Can anyone give some suggestions on a ski area with it's own village at the lifts in south or central Vermont?

Okemo has the Town of Ludlow at the base of the access road. There is no real base village.

Your best bet in VT for this feature is probably Stratton. At most, if not all, other ski areas in VT there is at least short drive from the base lodge to the village. You even have to drive/ride some at Killington. Stowe is another option for you and also gives you access to ski Smuggler's without driving. From Stowe you can drive/day trip to Sugarbush, Mad River & Jay.

You may also want to try the North Conway area in NH. Short drives to Bretton Woods, Attitash/Bear Peak, Wildcat, Cranmore and others.

Good Luck!

Stratton is the only resort in southern VT with a resort village at the base that has shops and restaurants. If you have been to other Intrawest properties and liked those, Stratton will suit you well.

Okemo has a large hotel at the base of the Jackson Gore Area but no real village. I'm not 100% sure of everything that is in the Jackson Gore base area. Killington and Mount Snow also lack villages. They all have hotels with restaurants and bars, but the ski shops are located in the lodge and none have any other places to shop.

Killington has a shuttle service and The Bus to take people up and down the access road if you don't want to drive. Everything is in a five minute drive from the main hotel at The Snowshed Base area and the shuttles serve the condos. I don't know how extensive the shuttle system is at Okemo, but Ludlow is also only five minutes from the base. At Mount Snow, the MOOver can take you into West Dover or Wilmington if you want to hit up Pancho's for seafood, the brewpub in Wilmington, or Deacon's in West Dover.

If shopping is a primary concern for the non-skiers, consider staying in Manchester and making the drive up to Stratton, Bromley, or Magic during the day. In and around the Manchester area non-skiers can also XC ski at Wild Wings, snowshoe on the Long Trail, at the Equinox Preserve, or on the tons of other trails in the area. There's also a spa at the Equinox.

STRATTON has a great village. I have skied there all my life and now I work there. Its got shops, a spa (my mom likes that part), and restaurants. Its literally just a couple steps away from the slopes. Good variety of skiing whatever your ability is.

Interactive village map:

http://www.stratton.com/mountain/trailmaps/interac...

Interactive trail map:

http://www.stratton.com/mountain/trailmaps/interac...

Also if you ever want to go more north, Tremblant in Canada has a huge village and great skiing

Stratton has a nice village at the bottom of the mountain..

http://www.stratton.com/village/index.htm

Stratton also has some of the best snow and grooming for the east coast