THE BC SLOPES

Whistler, BC by Jeff Wilcox

MORE ABOUT BRITISH COLUMBIA'S SKI AREAS

All Olympic eyes will be on Whistler Blackcomb next year as it hosts the 2010 Winter Games' alpine skiing events. But those in the know will be heading to British Columbia's vast, snowy interior for its cool old-school mountain towns and the best powder and terrain in North America.


Kicking Horse Mountain Resort 

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Serious skiers go to great lengths (and often out-of-bounds) to find steep, narrow chutes like the 70 at Kicking Horse, all of which are within the borders of the resort near Golden. For the less daring, there are plenty of intermediate options, such as the 700-acre Crystal Bowl -- on its own as big as the average Vermont ski area. kickinghorseresort.com, lift tickets $67.
Kicking Horse Mountain Resort is the first four season mountain resort to be built in the Canadian Rockies in the past 25 years.

The resort is ideally situated to produce a sparkling, light and dry snow, aptly named "Champagne Powder". Kicking Horse Mountain Resort has been rated #1 resort for powder in North America by Skiing Magazine.

The varied terrain offers a winter playground for those new to alpine adventure and the perfect opportunity for adrenaline junkies to charge down a 4,000 foot ski out, the second longest in Canada.

You'll get to the top of your run in comfort and style with the Golden Eagle Express walk-in gondola, the first level walk-in gondola to be used in Canada. Other winter activities include heli-skiing, snowmobiling, ice climbing, dog sledding and snowshoeing. In summer, mountain bikers can experience Canada's longest lift access mountain bike descent!


Revelstoke Mountain Resort

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At 3 years old, B.C.'s newest ski destination is still largely a secret. It's so uncrowded you can park a stone's throw from the high-speed gondola that accesses the biggest vertical drop in North America: 5,620 feet. When Revelstoke's 15-year plan is completed (around 2022), the resort will encompass a whopping 10,000 skiable acres. revelstokemountainresort.com, lift tickets $68.
Revelstoke Mountain Resort is set to open for the winter season on December 5, 2009. Our Guest Services counter is open from Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Visit us in Nelsen Lodge to pick up your 2009/2010 Season Pass or to register in one of our Snow School programs or book your Cat Skiing adventure.


Panorama Mountain Village

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Even with 4,000 feet of vertical rise (one of the highest in B.C.) and 2,847 acres of skiable terrain, Panorama, near Invermere, stands out most for its family-friendly amenities, like hot and cold soaking pools, and restaurants that double as entertainment. Our favorite: the old mining shack turned dining room in Paradise Basin that's accessible only by snowmobile. panoramaresort.com, lift tickets $68.
Whether travelling by air, motorcoach or car rental to Panorama BC Canada, we make it easy to get here. Book your air flights to the Calgary International Airport or the Canadian Rockies International Airport, and transportation to Panorama via luxury motorcoach, shuttle, taxi or car rental with us! We even have maps, directions, and road reports to help you get to Panorama worry-free.


Whitewater Ski Resort

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Once a gold boomtown, Nelson has a new claim to fame: its wealth of lakefront Victorian buildings, many housing art galleries, vegetarian restaurants, and tapas bars. Just outside of town, Whitewater's unpretentious ski area consists of a dirt parking lot, two lifts, a handle tow, and a small lodge. Its kitchen, the Fresh Tracks Café, has such a following that its cookbook (with recipes for dishes like whiskey smoked-salmon chowder) is a national best seller. skiwhitewater.com, lift tickets $52.
Welcome to Whitewater Winter Resort!! The mountain has a well-deserved reputation for epic powder snowfalls with 45ft of the good stuff falling each year on average. Powder Magazine calls Whitewater, "One of the best powder mountains on the continent." And, Ski Canada has rated Whitewater to have the Best Deeps, Best Bowls and Best Glades. Don't just take their word for it, come experience it for yourself.



Fernie Alpine Resort

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Fernie is what every manufactured ski town wishes it was: real. The former mining hamlet's streets are lined with century-old redbrick buildings, and the area is completely surrounded by glaciated Rocky Mountain peaks, creating a unique snowmaking microclimate that produces about 30 feet of powder each year. If a storm rolls in, consider splurging for a First Tracks pass to hit the slopes an hour before everyone else ($173 for up to five). skifernie.com, lift tickets $70.

•On average 29 feet of snow falls in Fernie each year. That is enough snow to cover a three-storey building.
•Five enormous bowls; countless glades & chutes
•Variety of terrain appeals to all levels. Fernie is as steep as you want it to be