Whistler

Whistler: reviews

• gareth enoch (09 May 2010)

  Just had 10 amazing days in Whistler (1st April - 10th). Was greatly enhanced by having Ski Club rep Mark Jennings take us round the mountains.

  
  It didn't stop snowing for 6 days and the off piste conditions were the best I have ever experienced (over two metres fell while I was there) and was easily waist deep in some of the bowls and with Mark's knowledge we could find fresh lines days after a dump. Couldn't recommend Whistler more highly and don't know why we haven't been there sooner will deffo go again, beats Europe by far and the people are so welcoming. All in all a great ski holiday/resort not to be forgotten. Thanks again Mark.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Alice S (21 April 2010)

  Back from our Easter trip to Whistler luckily before the airspace shut down. Volcano did look interesting on the way past. Superb snow all the way down to near the bottom. Loads of powder delivered daily until the weather changed and we got superb sunshine and cold enough to keep the snow great.

  
  All the snow and Easter had the locals out for the Saturday so queues were not brilliant but the lifties do manage the queues and fill the lifts. Rest of the time it was fine, few if any queues.

  
  Trip down Dave Murray run to Creekside showed us how big the bump was that Anja Paerson flew off for over 100M. I can see why at the speed they would have been doing. If you get down there you have to have a Pulled Pork Sarni at Dustys.

  
  Usual good food in the village Hy's the best but silly money - Spaghetti Factory best value. We found a new restaurant this year just outside the main village which was so good we went back the next night too. White Spot which is a chain over there offering a selection of food from parts of the world allowing you to have a Steak, Curry, Pasta, Burger, Fish&Chips etc. No arguments, everyone happy. Still also like the Caramba for Italian at reasonable cost too.

  
  Stayed at the Delta again and had trouble with noise every night as the Deer Lodge across the road now has an outside area with music. When we rang every night they did switch it off but a pain - if you are going there get a room either very high or at the back! First night with the time difference we Brits need to get to bed early.

  
  If you go find the Ski Cross track over on Blackcomb as it is great fun. Not as extreme as the Olympic run but great fun if you are in a group. Had a day with Rep Mark doing off piste all day - great fun if very very tiring.

  
  Now why is Easter so late next year! Watch out as Whistler Mountain is destined to shut 26th April as usual.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (15 December 2009)

  Just returned from second trip to Whistler. Yes it was early in the season, but the majority of the runs on both mountains were open thanks to a lot of November snow and the prep for the Olympics. It didn't snow the whole time we were there (apart from the last morning so we had a little fresh powder) the weather was glorious, but v cold and so the slopes were often on the icy side. However, the entire village and slopes were VERY quiet, especially in the week, resulting in no waiting for lifts and feeling like it was often our own personal resort. It seems that most people might be staying away due to the Olympics, but it is a great time to visit. Whatever ability you are you MUST go up to 7th Heaven as the views are spectacular (both on clear days and if you are above cloud level). As usual the whole resort is immaculate, efficient and incredibly friendly from the lifts and loading/unloading, ski storage close to the lifts and all the bars restaurants. I was especially impressed with the mountain restaurants which had great choice and were reasonably priced. The peak to peak gondola is an experience in itself and makes skiing one mountain in the morning and the other in the afternoon very easy (the weather, esp the wind, can be quite different on the 2 peaks) Downsides - it takes a long time to get there and passes and lessons are very pricey and occasionally the signage on the mountain is not clear, but overall I would recommend for a fantastic skiing holiday for all abilities.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Andrew Benfield (13 April 2009)

  Just returned from a third trip to Whistler and enjoyed some glorious conditions over two weeks. My 'Top Tip' for anyone going and thinking of making a return trip I only discovered on this visit. On our last day my son and I decided we wouldn't push ourselves to squeeze in a last couple of hours skiing for the sake of it before we had to be ready for the coach. In any case cloud had descended on the mountains. We decided instead on a final walkabout, coffee and a lunch out. Our ski passes were still current and it seemed a shame to waste them. I wondered if there might be an alternative to touting them round the car park which really didn't appeal! (and isn't officially allowed I learned later). Memories of trying to get a refund in France in simply un-skiable conditions were forward in my mind - "If the lifts are working: No Refunds" Not so in Whistler. On the off chance, I dropped by one of the guest relations desks on our stroll and asked. There were two very positive options immediately offered! A refund to a credit card (less a small charge) or a full credit onto a Whistler Blackcomb gift card - valid for 10 years, and useful for shopping in the bigger shops, equipment rentals, Ski school, dining places and restaurants. So that's what we chose and that recovered about £90! I also had a pocket, laden with accumulated loose change, which is always a nuisance to bring home and with that deposited on the countertop the assistant cheerily counted it all out and credited it straight onto the gift card too! What a result.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (04 April 2009)

  Stayed in Whistler 17th March for 10 days, really enjoyed the holiday, but do not think it was worth the journey, preferred the Dolomites in Italy. There are 3 nice mountain restaurants, Chick Pea, Crystal Hut and the Horstman, the rest felt like school canteens. The skiing was great, didn't find any of the blue runs too testing but the blacks were tough, big moguls, also had great fun on some of the off -piste areas. The ski area itself is well thought out giving a good variety for everyone. We were unlucky enough to be there for the last weekend of spring break which meant 15-20 minute queues for every lift, nobody actually skiing but everybody standing in line, so for busy days the lift system cannot cope. The biggest chairlift were only 4 men, the gondolas nice and comfy but they didn't get enough people on the mountain, not big enough. After the spring break we felt we had the mountains to ourselves though. The Canadian people themselves are very friendly and helpful, restaurants in the village ok. Don't want to put anyone off by this review because we did really enjoy the trip, but think Europe, especially the dolomites, are much nicer.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (14 February 2009)

  We stayed at the Crystal Lodge from 3rd Jan to 14th. No problems with noise, our room was tidy, large and well equipped. We upgraded to a suite directly with the hotel rather than our tour operator, hotel charged $30 a night, tour operator wanted £200 a head for an upgrade. We found that Whistler caters for all tastes, young and old, ourselves being 30 somethings. I have to comment on the Canadian youth, no different from England in that they stay out late, make a noise and enjoy themselves, people have to remember this is a massive resort catering for all ages. Restaurants - excellent choice serving dishes from around the world, the Hilton was very nice and we recommend highly. We tried many different locations, to name a few Longhorns GLC and Crystal Lodge ok for snacks, Elements had excellent tapas, The Spaghetti Factory was good value and kid friendly, make sure you book! The Indian on Main Street was good and the Irish Pub delivered good tasty food at a reasonable price. We found wine to be a little expensive, anything from $8 to $20'000 yes that is $20K! We found the skiing more suited to the groomer (piste) runners, Blackcombe was a little steeper with less grooming ( we are both skiers) be warned the piste map is misleading! As already mentioned, some of the blues would be hard reds or even blacks. Runs we enjoyed were Tokum, into Crabapple, Old man, Franz's Meadow’s lift system was great: no queues no fighting, no being hit with poles, no being shouted at, no one stepping on the backs of your skis, not many French and even less Germans! Europe should take a leaf out of Whistler’s book, this is a slick well run professional operation, the staff are excellent, helpful and very polite, not like the roll up sucking lifties of Val Thorens / La Plange / and most other European resorts. An excellent idea are the marshalls, making sure the go slow cross overs ARE go slow areas, be warned they WILL take your pass! Bars - Longhorns, large 'sports' type of bar when the sun came out the terrace was packed, same as GLC, food was better in GLC, Crystal Lodge, mainly borders, and yes, busy, as the beers are probably the cheapest in Whistler.! The Hilton has nice surroundings but drinks a little more expensive. Cost - we didn’t find the resort to be any more expensive than places in Europe we have visited, in fact some were cheaper, for example Val Thorens £12 for a G&T and a beer , Whistler $10 CAN Would we go back? YES tomorrow, its worth the flight and a short transfer 2 hours max. Whistler knocks spots off Europe, though if you’re looking for log cabins go to Switzerland, we went for the skiing.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Andy Hooker (11 February 2009)

  We’ve just returned from Whistler where I can endorse that the skiing experience is unlike anything in the Alps. I expected variable weather and we got it, but I skied every day and had two fabulous sunny days. The terrain is vast and varied, the lift system efficient, queuing civilised and short with a special line for singles, and the people without exception welcoming and polite. See all the previous comments below that say much the same. What a refreshing change. However, we encountered one or two downsides that I will mention that might assist those of more mature years considering a visit to Whistler. Whistler is a young, purpose built resort catering predominantly it seems for young people. The words ‘catering for young people’ needs to be in capital letters. We stayed at the Crystal Lodge. Nothing wrong with the welcoming staff, its interior or its restaurants and it’s well situated in the centre of the village on the Village Stroll. However, our bedroom overlooked the village stroll. Big mistake! Canadian youth is no different from European youth – they shout, sing etc with no concern for those trying to sleep on their way home from the late night bars as late as 3am. Every night of our stay was disturbed by them. We thought Whistler would be different. If you want peace and quiet then I suggest you study a map first and if your accommodation is anywhere near the main pedestrian walkways through the village, then think very carefully before booking. I would guess that the Upper Village would be much quieter than Whistler Village. The walk from the Upper Village is very short and easy and the free shuttle runs frequently if you don’t want even a short 5mins walk. Depending on what you read our hotel had ‘three restaurants, 2 lounges, 2 coffee bars’, or, ‘reception, lounge and bars, three restaurants and coffee shops’. I would have to say that neither of those two statements properly represented the amenities. There is no ‘lounge’ as those of us who have stayed in more traditional Alpine resorts would interpret the word. The only comfortable seating outside of bedrooms was a sparse number of easy chairs in the vast lobby atrium – mainly occupied by departing guests and not a welcoming area to sit. The bar is described as ‘a great place to meet up with friends’. We missed the message behind the wording!! This is a noisy bar populated by snowboarders who swamp it at lunchtime and from 3.30pm onwards for several hours, like they do most bars within the vicinity of the lifts. Crystal Lodge is by no means alone in deciding that a proper ‘Lounge’ is superfluous to the accoutrements it offers guests. We checked out a few other hotels with similar findings. The Fairmont in the Upper Village does have a lovely lounge - The Mallard Lounge - we used that when we wanted some peace and quiet in a comfortable environment. But drinks prices are marked up 50% on those in bars and restaurants. So if you seek a quiet place to sit after skiing, in comfortable easy chairs, as you might in an Alpine resort, be very careful where you stay. Cafes in the village are virtually all small, and lacking in charm. This is not Zermatt! If you want a tea or coffee with a Danish pastry or similar at tea time then I would recommend the Hot Buns creperie, boulangerie and patisserie just off the Village Stroll. For lunch - Blacks and Chitta’s are quieter than the noisy Longhorns bar at the foot of the piste. Cuisine is very North American – meaning large portions and lacking variety. Main meals can be quite expensive – but then everywhere is expensive for the Brits this winter due to the slump in stirling’s value. One good point is that we had no problem sharing a meal when we asked. On the plus side there is a cinema which when we were there was showing amongst other films, Slumdog Millionaire and Valkyrie. There are also several art galleries showing some fantastic work – particularly in the Hilton and in the Plaza Galleries on Main Street. Would I go again? Definitely yes as a keen skier – I can accept the problems now I know what they are and could work around them – but I would want my slice of Zermatt too. Would my wife, as a non skier and non winter sports enthusiast go again? Definitely not. She was bored and felt isolated for much of the time and access up the mountains for non-skiers is very limited.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (08 February 2009)

  Was in Whistler with my wife in January for 10 days and it was a fantastic skiing experience. We class ourselves as intermediates and 99% of our time has been spent on piste. We found some of the runs quite challenging as they are not always groomed. You can check what has been groomed on the electronic boards at the top of most of the lifts. It was off peak so the issue of queuing wasn’t a major problem although it did get considerably busier at the weekend. The 7th Heaven on Blackcomb was brilliant, probably our favourite area on both mountains although we did spend a fair bit of time skiing the runs on Whistler that led to Creekside. Lots of tree lined skiing and most of the runs and lifts are long so you don’t feel like you are constantly hopping on and off them. Skiing in at the end of the day wasn’t the greatest, always busy and quite slushy but you could take the gondola down if you wanted. Our favourite runs were everything in 7th Heaven, Ridge Runner, Blue Line, Zig Zag, Springboard on Blackcomb and the Dave Murray and Franz's on Whistler. As with all resorts there are always the runs that buck the trend when it comes to rating i.e. a blue (red in Europe) that you feel is as tough as a black and a black that doesn't seem that difficult but overall we felt the rating system was accurate. We did find some of the non-groomed runs a bit challenging as they tended to become a bit mogully but it’s nice to have some variety! All gondolas and lifts were ok. Emerald Express on Whistler and 7th Heaven Express on Blackcomb tended to be the busiest. It would be quicker to walk up the mountain than take Franz's Chair (W) or same with Catskinner (B). Lifts open at 8.30 and while we were there they closed around 3pm – still gave us plenty of good skiing time. It's not Austria but actually found the mountain restaurants very pleasant and good value. Yes there are huge places - Rendezvous and Roundhouse – but there are a few diamonds in the rough such as the Chic Pea (W) and the Crystal Hut (B). Crowding wasn’t an issue for us but I imagine it could be in the peak season. It rained in the village during our stay but this wasn't a problem as there was plenty of skiing terrain above the cloud/mist. Did a 1 day Supergroup for Intermediates. Ended up just my wife and me with an instructor. Quite intense and spent the day focussing on technique, trying to get rid of the bad habits we had picked up. Overall very pleased. Took the Peak to Peak a couple of times but more to take photos than for any other reason. Didn’t manage to get on the glass bottom gondolas (there were 2 while we were there) but still a good experience and yes you are very high! We stayed in the Pinnacle in Whistler which was a 5 to 10 minute stroll from the base of Whistler. Our apartment came with kitchenette, plasma TV, fireplace and Jacuzzi bath. It was great. The walk to and from the Gondolas was always nice at the beginning and end of the day as we left our boots and skis at the base (at a cost). There are lots of bars and restaurants to stop in for a few après beers so it never felt monotonous. Tried all the main haunts – GLC and Longhorns were always quite busy, the upstairs at Blacks tended to be quieter. Wandered over to Blackcomb for a few beers in Merlin’s one evening but most of the action appeared to be in Whistler. A pint of local beer cost about C$6. Visited the Rim Rock Café as a treat. Quite expensive but interesting menu. Also had a very nice meal in Hy’s Steakhouse. Spent one afternoon on the Zip Trek Eagle Tour which was fun and on our departure day we did the Vancouver City tour (rather than checkout at 10am and hang about till the BA flight later that evening). It was excellent and I would recommend it. All in all a fantastic holiday and given the euro exchange rate may be back there quicker than we originally thought!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• clifford dent (04 November 2008)

  this is simply the best kids ski resort in the world. if you have children under 12 the kids ski school is amazing, and if you are a little older, ask for John Pearson or Santiago Locanza who work from the blackcombe base. I've been 8 times !!!!!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (14 October 2008)

  Agreed with most of the comments below. We came back on the last ski day on whislter but there was still plenty of snow to use. Whistler/Blackcombe is ace. Loads of run of all levels although most blacks are moguls and pretty scarey, but there are plenty of intermediate runs. A really well run resort. Weather can get a bit bitter even in April (-20°C on the head of the mountain one day), There was a lot of drifting mist on some sides of whistler but there were other places that were clear at the same time. I'd go again tomorrow, well worth the money.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Alanna Greenhill (31 May 2008)

  We (2 adults and our 14 and 12 year old sons) spent two weeks at the beggining of April in Whistler. The skiing was awesome with a huge expanse of varied terrain allowing you to feel you were the only people on the mountain. Everyone working on the slopes were very helpful and friendly, and went out of their way to make sure your skiing experience was fantastic. The ski guides let you know where the best runs of the day are, where has been groomed etc. (not all the runs are groomed daily so the skiing can be bumpy but fun nonetheless).

  What struck me was the length of the runs compared to those in Europe - these are seriously thigh quivering distances (or am I just unfit?). We did the Peak to Creek a few times (un-groomed) and I was grateful for the cold beer at 'Dusty's' at the bottom! There are quite a few runs with moguls, which I've never really enjoyed before, but as there were no other options in some area, I took a deep breath and followed my intrepid family. I got to the bottom in one piece having enjoyed the experience for the first time! There is really something for every sort of skier/boarder here and if you love your skiing this is the place for you.

  The weather was mixed; we had one day when the sun was so strong the lower piste was ghastly by 2pm, but also days with perfect conditions. There were one or two days where visibility was really poor and you really could not see more that a few feet, but as the area is so vast there are usually different conditions on the other mountain. We had sunny weather most evenings and in fact not the amount of rain we were expecting for April. It snowed a fair amount and kept the slopes fresh (with good powder on many days).

  The ski hire shops were good and helpful. We booked ours online before leaving and had a good discount (try the Whistler/Blackcomb website for more info). Whistler itself was a little Disney-fied but all very pleasant. The Telus Snow Music Festival was on during our stay so there was lots of North American rock and lots going on. I imagine this would have been too noisy if you were staying in the centre of the village, but we were in the upper village( try Holiday Whistler for great deals on condos) which was brilliant. There are free shuttle buses running every 6 minutes or so, making everything really effortless, so you don't need a car once there. We hired a car for 24 hours from Vancouver to Whistler but went back on a Greyhound Bus – fantastic! Incidentally we flew with Zoom Airlines and they were excellent – no delays, and for a budget airline brilliant value.

  Eating on the slopes is not a gastronomic experience, the restaurants are big and functional and rather impersonal, apart from the hut on Blackcomb. There are a few excellent ones in the village (try Araxi). It may be useful to know that we experienced problems with Mastercard – let them know in advance that you are going to Canada and will be spending some money! A few expensive calls later we were OK . Visa was fine however.

  Overall we had a fantastic time – the skiing was the best ever and if the village lacked an Alpine charm it made up for it with great shops. We would definitely recommend Whistler.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Alan Brown (20 April 2008)

  As someone who was in two minds whether it was worth the long flight to travel to Whistler or to stay and ski in Europe, I must stay I made the right choice this time. We (my wife and I and our 12 and 8 year olds) arrived in Whistler on 30 March and left on 12 April. Every day was a joy with fantastic skiing. Although there was snow and cloud there was only one day when the visibility was poor enough to make drinking hot chocolate preferable to skiing. The kids were in ski school the second week and loved it. The oldest skied in ride tribe and despite being 12 this was possible with parents’ permission.

  We stayed in the holiday inn, which was great. It was very central and after reading some reports about it being noisy on trip advisor I was a little worried; we did hear some people in the street below when in bed, however if there had to be a compromise between location and some late night voices I would settle for the location every time.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (23 March 2008)

  Have just returned (23/02/2008) from 9 days sking in Whistler and have to say that we really enjoyed ourselves sking was excellent and accommodation Delta Whistler Village Suites was really good far superior to anything in France for similar money.

  One point though - one of our party had a bad fall and managed to break his leg quite badly and nobody could tell us where we were on the mountain, I didn't think the pistes were very well marked at all, unlike Europe as I always know where I am. It was also very difficult to find out where you were by looking at the piste map as soo many runs run into each orther and change there names lower down. This point was raised many times by other people as well, This meant that our friend spent over an hour waiting for somebody to help us and he had border line hypothermia, shock and had to have a blood transfusion, This is not good from a world class ski resort they need to get the pistes marked better.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (15 February 2008)

  I have just returned from 10 days skiing in Whistler and having done most of the big European resorts (Val, Zermatt, Chamonix, Courcheval, Meribel and Verbier) with the notably exception of St Anton, all I can say is I haven't really experienced anything like Whistler before. It really is as good as everyone says!

  The plus points

  1. The range of skiing is superb. From tree skiing, groomers (pistes), steep and deep, beginnners, intermediates, advanced and experts, Whistler has it all. Not only this, but accessing all of these areas is superbly easy as all of these can be accessed by the lift network. In addition, as long as you are skiing within the boundary you can have confidence that these areas are patrolled and therefore you do not need a guide and can feel comfortable that should something go wrong you will not be stuck out in the back of beyond without any help - Do not underestimate how liberating this confidence can be!

  2. The snow. During the time we were there (2/2 - 13/2/08) it snowed practically everyday which meant vast amounts of powder. In addition, Whistler operates a scheme called 'First Tracks'. Here for a ticket price of around $17 you are allowed up to the Roundhouse restaurant on Whistler mountain early in the morning, usually arriving at around 7.30-7.45ish. You then can help yourself to a buffet breakfast (leave plenty of space as this is superb) and when the slopes are declared open, usually around 8.00am, you have free reign on these until they are opened to the general public at 9.00am. This allows to you have unspolit access to the mountain with all its courdroy and powder until 9.00am - genius and very highly recommended!

  3. Spending more of your time skiing. Getting to the hills is extremely easy and took us no more than 10 minutes in a taxi or bus. The lift queues in the village were never a problem and the maximum time we waited was probably no more than 10 minutes to get into one of the gondolas (Chamonix please take note!). Once on the mountain the queues again were never a problem and it was a very welcome change to have these managed by mountain hosts, so that we had none of the usual barging etc that you get in the alps when its busy! The signposting on the mountain was truly exceptional which meant we did not really bother with the trail (piste) maps. In addition, we noticed that many different grades of runs would all end up coming back into a common lift. This had the advantage of allowing the less experienced skiers to take the less challenging terrain whilst the more experienced skiers could take the more challenging terrain. The very significant advantage of this is that everyone felt they had had a good ski, whilst maintaining the integrity of the party - genius!

  4. The on hill amenities are excellent. From the very good restaurants, customer satisfaction centres, family-dedicated areas, kids facilities (including Nintendos in the restaurants - albeit unobtrusively), slow down areas, free on-mountain telephones, great lift coverage, mountain hosts, through to the orderly and well-managed lift queues (and yes even the sniffle stations and extremely friendly lifties!), everything has been thought through from the customers perspective. The consequence of this is that you maximise your enjoyment of being on the mountain and your enjoyment of your (precious!) holiday.

  5. The Apres (Ski) is very good. The range of bars is very good (I can highly recommend GLC, Longhorns, Cittas and the Amsterdam), the nightclubs are rocking, and the number of food options in the village is particularly impressive ranging from Zogs (I highly recommend the chilli and chesse dog) at c.$5-7 per head to the high-end Barefoot Bistro at up to c$200-300 per head. Plus there is are two very good and convenient supermarkets should you wish to do your own thing. In addition, the village also has a 8 screen cinema, should you wish to catch a film.

  6. The standard of accomodation is very good. We stayed in a couple of chalets and all had great sleeping, living, drying and storage spaces and all had hot tubs. In addition, the range of accomodation is excellent from the high-end hotels, self-catering condos and chalets (some with full spa facilities and most with hot tubs), through to the full-catered chalets.

  7. The other things that matter. Getting around is very easy, ranging from the free shuttle buses, paid for buses ($1.50) and taxis ($6-12), to the very good (and well maintained) road network.

  Finding out stuff like what's on, where are the doctors etc, is all very easy as you can either pick up a yellow pages (big tip; this also contains menus for a large number of the restaurants), go to a guest relation centre, or go to one of the on-street guest information stalls.

  Support services like nannies, physios etc are very easy to arrange. My experience of the phyisos (Whistler Physios) was excellent with friendly, happy and very professional staff, convenient opening times and all at very reasonable rates - Granted not something you choose a resort for but extremely important when you need them!

  As you would expect there are large range of ski shops and therefore replacing last minute essential items is a snip, as well as buying all those essential souvenirs and presents! In addition, the other shopping is also quite good with a range of galleries and specialisty shops (try out the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory - but be prepared!).

  The negative points

  1. The visibility. During our time it snowed so much visibility initially became a bit of an issue i.e., very flat light and white out conditions. However, over time you get used to this and as the locals say you would trade poor visibility for great snow anyday. Therefore low light googles are an essential piece of kit.

  2. Its not Austria and therefore the apres ski will not have you dancing on the tables in your ski clobber until 4.00am. That said, as a hardened Londoner, I was more than satisfied and it definately beats many of the other resorts I have been to.

  3. On hill restaurants. Whilst I thought the on hill restaurants were very good in terms of value, choice and the quality of the food, they do not offer that alpine restaurant experience. For example, there is nothing like a La Fruitiere or a Zum Zee. If Whistler could rectify this (which could be very easily done) then for me this place would be as near to skiing perfection, so far, that I have experienced.

  Therefore to summarise, if you're into skiing (and presumably boarding?) then you really do owe it to yourself to check out Whistler. However, be warned! Many of the places you would have previously considered to be fine to ski in, after having experienced Whistler, will very significantly pale in comparison.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Tim Carswell (13 February 2008)

  Returned from a 9 day trip to Whistler on 26 January. Our first time there, normally we ski in the higher Alpine resorts particularly Zermatt so that's probably our benchmark for comparisons. Overall, we had a great time.

  The first thing to say is that the range and extent of skiing is fantastic, particularly this year as even by their high standards they're having loads of snow so everything was open and in great condition. There really is something for everyone, from beginners to powder hounds to bump bashers and it's all so easily accessible. You can be skiing down one of the many pistes (mostly within the tree line and very pretty) and if you fancy a change can drop into a gladed run through the trees (a great idea that more Alpine resorts should copy) or head for a mogul field or if you fancy an off-piste bowl then that isn't normally more than a couple of lifts away. And there won't be any queues during the week. At the w/end there may be short ones (when the locals from Vancouver arrive) but they're politely monitored by friendly marshals (mainly young Antipodeans!) who ensure that each chair goes up full with the result that any queue moves smoothly and quickly.

  Everything on the slopes is very slick and well organised, and everyone operating the lifts and in restaurants etc. are friendly and helpful. Also, you sense that, unlike the US, it's genuine!

  On our first couple of days we took advantage of the free Mountain Tours that are available every day starting at 11.30 and last a couple of hours. They're run by volunteer Ski Hosts, mainly semi-retired people from Vancouver who know Whistler like the back of their hands. The two we had were delightful company and we learnt a lot about the best runs and routes etc. as well as the surrounding mountain range and history of Whistler/Blackcomb. It's a fast track way of getting to know where to find the best skiing for your standard/desires and something that the Alpine resorts should consider.

  We had a couple of days group lessons and they were excellent. Small groups with really friendly and knowledgeable instructors who were able to impart some great tips very effectively. We covered a lot of ground and discovered some interesting off-piste runs including one with a hidden snow hole some 8 feet deep that my girlfriend fell down; the snow simply gave way under her as she skied through the powder and she suddenly found herself down a well like hole up to her chest in freezing water! Luckily she was unhurt and we managed to pull her out and get her back to the hotel before she froze too badly. Apparently the resort normally fill them in with logs but this was one they'd missed and, rather disappointingly, nothing was done about it over the next five days even though our instructor had reported it.

  Whilst most of our lunches were all in 'motorway' style self-service restaurants the range and quality of the food was very good, probably better than in comparable Alpine restaurants. Check out the Asian broth and stir fry at Glacier Creek, made to order and delicious! We were also pleasantly surprised by the cost, an average of about $25 for a good lunch for two people. For a table service restaurant try Christine's at the Rendevous Lodge on Blackcomb although it's necessary to book.

  The only minor grumble about the skiing was that they close the lifts very early in January. Some of the top lifts were closing at 2, others at 2.30 and the lower ones at 3 with the result that we were back at the bottom by 3.30 at the latest even though it was light until 5. They do, however, extend that by 30 minutes at the end of January.

  The town itself is well laid out and built in an attractive timber frame style. However, as with any town conceived on a drawing board it lacks real charm and there's just a hint of Disneyland about it. But then maybe we're spoilt by going to Zermatt a lot! There's certainly loads of shops, bars, restaurants etc. and even a cinema. There's also an excellent, and free, shuttle bus service to/from the skiing so no need to walk around in ski boots too much if you don't want to.

  The one big caveat is that, in common, with all North American resorts, the good folk of Whistler/Blackcomb simply don't get the concept of apres-ski. Anything like the Krazy Kanaguruh or Moosevert in St Anton would completely freak them out! So, if you like a beer, or something stronger, and some music just before you take your skis off for the day then it may not be the place for you. Although there are bars in the town the atmosphere is a bit sterile and it simply isn't the same as the Alps.

  In summary, purely for skiing it's probably hard to beat and I think I'd return. But I did sorely miss the charm, atmosphere, mountain lunches and apres-ski of Zermatt and I think I'd need to counter-balance any trip to Whistler with one to Zermatt which, in a good snow season like this, still, for me, has the edge on Whistler as an all-round experience and re-charger of battteries.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (21 January 2008)

  We had 7 days in Whistler after skiing for the past 10 years in Europe, mainly France and apart from fantastic snow, the ambience and service you receive in WB is first class. A cheery hello on the lifts, someone to help with your skis into the gondola, mountain hosts always available if you have a question, on the mountain everyone is geared up to be helpful.

  Oh so different in Europe, especially France, why oh why do we all put up with it! As for the lift queues, everyone wants to get up the hill, so the lifts if they are for 4 people, always take 4 people not just 1, so well organised. For the extra for the flight cost, it is so worth paying, Pierre Vacances wake up buddies you cant go on expecting us to put up with your accommodation when you can get a condo with a hot tub for the same cost as a one room bunk house!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (20 January 2008)

  I just returned home from a wonderful two week ski vacation in Whistler with my boyfriend. The snow conditions were amazing. Whistler has been having fantastic snow over the last few years or so, the locals told us. Just like everyone else has said here, the service and people that work in the resort were on a much higher level than 95% of resorts in Europe.

  The Whistler village is amazing! The restaurants are to die for.

  
  The lift queues were a little bit busy but very orderly, unlike France.

  One great tool we found on the internet before our trip was Whistler ipod ski guides. The guides are free and you can load them on to an ipod or ipod like music or video player. They have audio only guides and audio video guides. The video guides are truly amazing! I found them on Apple's iTunes music store. to find them search for "whistler ski guide".

  If you are planning a trip to Whistler I hope you have as good of a time as we did. Best of luck with your travels.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (11 January 2008)

  Visited, December 29th - January 7th 2008

  As someone who has skied in Europe for more years than I can care to remember - and done all the 'major' resorts - I was really looking forward to Whistler.

  All I can say is why have I ever bothered with Europe?! Poor snow, grumpy gondola attendants, badly organised queues, dreadful customer service, pushy and impolite skiers in queues, standardised food on the slopes (although I agree many resorts have pretty on slope restaurants that I would prefer to pass a white out afternoon in) etc. etc. Nothing is about you, the customer.

  Yes, Whistler is not cheap (especially at this time of the year, and it's busy too) but then you get superb customer service and facilities. Everything is about you. Ski hosts to show you around, attendants to take your skis out of the gondola, well organised queues that despite the crowds move quickly, sniffle stations (really liked that one!), affordable international cuisine on the slopes and large helpings (and there are at least three little European style huts selling home made waffles or warmed cider), well groomed slopes - just a shame about the weather we experienced. Some snow everyday and low cloud but with tree lined runs up to 2100 metres, skiing in 'white out weather' was relatively easy and it was generally in 20cms of powder, but higher areas of the resort were closed down.

  As previous correspondents have mentioned the skiing is really challenging, varied and plentiful. It does not pussy foot about. Yes, many of the greens are blue and most of the blues are red but given that the resort starts at 600 metres and rises vertically behind you to 2500 metres its hardly surprising as European resorts squash their runs into 1300 - 2500 metres over larger areas which means runs are flat by comparison; skiing back home at the end of the day really is a vertical experience. The snowbowls are fantastic too and the combination of a couple of pisted runs surrounded by go where you want to 'offpiste' and/or gladed tree skiing, with everything all ending up in one place is unbeatable.

  Whistler needn't be expensive if you get yourself organised and DIY. Cheap flights curtesy of Zoom, don't go at peak times, buy discounted lift tickets by mid November, book accomodation with alluradirect - many private condo owners advertise there. If you need to hire equipment book it early to get a discount. I'd most probably avoid the mass hire ones at Blackcomb and Whistler lift stations and look around the Village especially towards the end of the season. The new Salomon centre will be worth trying.

  Other bits and bobs - if you are not in Whistler Village or Creekside and are self catering a car is advisable and make it a 4WD!! Start early, take a mid morning waffle break and lunch late; remember some remote lifts start shutting down at 2pm depending on the time of year;.even if you don't like wearing goggles get a pair - you will need them if the weather is bad; nearly everyone wears helmets and that includes the adults.

  Eating out, Earls was good and plentiful but not cheap; The Brewhouse smothered their steaks in goo....ugh!! New Years Eve was a real disappointment compared to Europe and Intrawest the owners could put on a real show. With two mountains rising to 6000 feet and so many runs overlooking the three villages you could do better!!

  Quibbles - only the weather. I would imagine that end of season skiing might be on the heavy side.

  Final thought: if they haven't done so already all European ski resort owners ought to spend a week at Whistler learning how to make the customer feel wanted and valued. We may have invented skiing but in 2008 we do not have the divine right to think we are still the best. We have rested on our laurels for too long!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (10 January 2008)

  My girlfriend and I have just spent Christmas in Whistler (19/12/07 to 26/12/07); all in all we had an amazing holiday and loved the resort.

  We stayed at the Hilton in Whistler Village, I chose this hotel because of its location and the fact that is a brand hotel, and as boring as it sounds, you know what you’re getting. I am very pleased to say that in fact it surpassed my expectations and it was the BEST Hilton Hotel I have every stayed in, everything about it was perfect for a skiing holiday, especially how close it is to the gondola’s (I have a pet hate of having to walk anywhere with my ski's or in ski boots!).

  We booked our holiday with Virgin and therefore had breakfast included in the price and I have to say it was very good indeed, you could upgrade from a continental to a full breakfast for $3 per person (no brainer).

  Whistler Village is very, very big and to walk around it and have a good look in all the shops would take the best part of a day. I think I can safely say there is nothing you can not buy in the village, from boutique’s to The Bodyshop and everything in between. There is also a small cinema as well.

  Eating out we found to be really good and very, very reasonably priced with food for to suit everyone; Sushi Village is a must! Again there is something for any budget.

  Skiing from two points of view: (1) Advanced skier, well it has everything you could want and just so much of it. Once you get away from the main runs you have a range of off-piste skiing and bowls almost entirely to yourself. I skied for 7 days solid, finishing at 3pm most days and I only managed to get 1 day in at Blackcombe. I need a week just to go back and explore that alone (and I will). I would also recommend joining up with the ski hosts for the mountain tours (especially if you are skiing alone) they are free and really good fun. The other thing I found really great as a person skiing alone is the single skier’s line for the chairlifts and gondolas, perfect idea. (2) 2nd week skier, well as the person before me said, 90% of the green runs really are European blue runs and can be very daunting indeed. My girlfriend was told to by her ski instructor that the greens are certainly steeper than any that you maybe use to in Europe or the US. She had 3 days of private lessons which she enjoyed and found really, very useful and she had nothing but good things to say about the lessons. I can’t advise on the whole ski school but if the private lessons are anything to go by it is bound to be good.

  All in all I can not recommend Whistler highly enough. It is, in my experience the number one all round ski resort and has something for everyone. Just be slightly careful if you are a beginner/early intermediate (although I think you will be fine after a day or 2).

  If you are visiting from the UK I would recommend a 10 day holiday because of the time difference and the size of the ski area. We had 7 days in Whistler and 3 in Vancouver, next time I won’t bother with Vancouver!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (02 January 2008)

  This is my personal view of Whistler, many will not agree however, in the Ski Club democracy, this is what I thought after a very recent trip.

  Went to Whistler with hubby December 12-22 2007, great time of year to go, there was fantastic snow, and slope not too busy. At weekends you could see a difference in the amount of people, and, as the days got closer to Christmas. However, over all, we felt it was a great time to be there.

  Stayed at the Four Seasons Resort, which was not cheap, but what a fantastic experience it was. The ski concierge was worth its weight in gold, they prepared your skis for each day and looked after boots etc, and collected them from the slope after a days skiing. Pampered? Definitely, but it was lovely.

  As beginners/low intermediates, in my opinion, Whistler is not the place to go. There are few runs that are true beginners slopes. The system they use to grade the mountain is very different to Europe as we found out talking to a senior instructor on a private lesson. Basically the mountain is graded in sections, and the green run in that area is the easiest way down at that point, not necessarily a 'green run' but just the easiest way down the mountain. We did get caught out by this and scared ourselves quiet a bit.

  The ski school does have a couple of areas on each mountain, the one on Whistler is high up than on Blackcomb, however once you have mastered these runs, the jump to the next level is rather intimidating we found.

  Like I've said this is just what we found and others may totally disagree, but whilst we loved the resort, I think we will wait a couple of years and a few more skiing weeks before returning.

  Another thing they did which we did not really like, is the ski school for children 'Whistler Kids' regularly sent small children 4-6 years up the mountain on chair-lifts with strangers, they asked my hubby to take to kids up with him, he asked the instructor if they knew what to do at the top, he was told "yes, they did, of course", evidently they did not, they spoke no English and at top of the slope, skied off the chair-lift right over the tops of his skis and he nearly ended up in a heap. To be honest not what I would want for my kids, I think you when putting your kids into ski school expect a certain duty of care and level of supervision, this was not what I would have hoped for, and it was not an isolated occurrence.

  All in all, if you have never been on skis before, it probably would be fine, but if you have learned to ski, say for example in the UK indoor or dry slopes or have 1-2 weeks only of skiing it could be a bit intimidating.

  Moral of this tale? Green does not always mean very easy in Canada, just the easiest way down that part of mountain. If anyone does go, try the cross country skiing we did, and it was great fun, felt a bit like skiing on pencils, but hilarious.

  >

  Anyway, its a great place and I will look forward to going back, in a couple of years time.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (11 December 2007)

  Whistler was magnificent. The skiing was awesome with tonnes of snow. There are some great bowls to hike to if the weather permits and just so much to cover that one week is not long enough to fit it all in. In my opinion the #1 resort in the world.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Gary Lister (30 April 2007)

  Another fantastic spring trip to Whistler - guess we are hooked!. Seriously, call it luck but tons of snow and loads of the fresh stuff in 2nd week April - amazing. So OK , it rains in village sometimes, but go up the mountain and that wet stuff turns to snow. There is a huge vertical range to play in so in variable weather, there are always zones to ski in. As always, Intrawest "own" most things and so there is no competition for ski school and it adds up. We find its good in most cases but if you are not happy then make a case and they will tend to move you/children to different instructors. Anyone like us going to near end of season, be aware especially with Childrens Ski/Ski Boot rentals that you should double check what they give you. Its been used many times so boots may be worn, ski binding may be suspect. Again, check and replace if you are not happy, most times they are happy to help. Storage of Ski gear, just remember to give enough time to get your ski's etc if you are at Ski school or your critters are there, as it can be very slow. Eating, try going to places off the main trail e.g edge of market place or down in Creek - these smaller places can give great food at less prices and with Children they are quicker to serve. Overall we cannot fault this place - it has amazing ski area and Telus week just adds to the experience. If we could move & live there, we would tomorrow.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (22 March 2007)

  Whistler is a superb place, but oh dear, the weather! The report states that what lands as rain in the village is snow up top. Whilst this is broadly correct, you must also consider that with Whistler Village being so low, the rain will persist until at least mid station and will only turn to snow with altitude. .

  Given the variability of the climate, be prepared to encounter belts of fog / mist as temperature zones meet. This makes for episodes of what can only be described as appalling visibility. This is particularly noticeable at the top of the Harmony and 7th Heaven chairs. Indeed, so awful has been the visibility at the top of 7th Heaven every time I have gone up there, I have named it 7th Circle of Hell. I understand that on good day's it's lovely up there; it's just that we have never had a good day up there on 2 separate holidays!

  The Whistler gondola has to be among the worst-designed known to mankind. It takes an age to get up to the roundhouse top station and the seats - if they can be called seats - are too narrow and too high to make the seemingly interminable ride remotely comfortable. The Blackcomb gondola is much more comfortable, but the downside of skiing Blackcomb is that you have to ski across to the 4 man Excelerator chair to get up any higher. Do the math; the gondola capacity is greater than the Excelerator and you invariable encounter queues - on weekends these are truly horrendous. Whist queuing in Whistler is infinitely more genteel than in European resorts, it remains tedious.

  Another thing to factor in is, put simply, Whistler is pricey. It is in danger of pricing itself out of the reach of most people which is a pity. We had to pay in excess of £300 EACH for a 9 day lift pass. Admittedly we could have got away with a bit less if we'd prebooked, but thought it would be cheaper to buy in resort. Wrong. Ski hire is also not cheap

  Food-wise what you pay for is what you get. I'd recommend Earl's and The Keg for decent steaks; we liked 21 Steps as well. Unless you are prepared to fork out the budget of a small sub-Saharan country, I'd give places like Quatro, Araxi and Hy's a miss - the food's superb, but really expensive, so perhaps they're best for really special nights out.

  Most accommodation is room only, so you need to sort out breakfast; we found that it was better value to get up either mountain and get breakfast up there rather than eating in the hotels or restaurants in the Village.

  Is Whistler the premier resort in N America? I'd say the jury's out on that one. In terms of weather, I'd say there have to be resorts that offer better weather in terms of sunny days (I have seen 1 sunny day in Whistler in 22). In terms of snow, it probably can't be beaten for sheer amount and for the huge variety of terrain. For value for money, perhaps not. Suffice it to say that we shall be looking for a resort that offers us better weather - or at least the potential of less rain - for 2008.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (21 February 2007)

  Just returned from a fantastic week in Whistler. Plenty of snow, and cannot recomend the Dave Murray 3 day camp highly enough. Turned my wife from a cautious blue hacker to a bumps & powder nut! Whistler Brewhouse and Earl's are good places to eat. Taxis - use "Sea to Sky" and avoid "Resort Taxis" who let us down badly one night despite repeated calls. When we talked to a local they said it's well known amongst those who live there. Will probably go back there next year for the third year in a row as we had a ball & the kids love the ski school.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (15 January 2007)

  I have to confess that I am a dyed-in-the wool Whistler fan; I will be there for the 10th time this winter. I have tried Val d’ Sloane Square, the rest of the Espace Killy, Chamonix, St Anton and I have yet to get close to the all round quality of Whistler. The skiing has everything from easy groomers awesome off-piste and enough pipes and parks to keep some of the worlds best park skiers and boarders very happy, all in 8100 acres of avalanche controlled and patrolled skiing heaven (That’s about 12.6 square miles or 34 sq km). Oh and the backcountry and heli-skiing is almost without limit. The steeps are steep and the 12 alpine bowls can get deep in the 30ft of snow in the average year. A personal faves are the harmony horseshoe bowls and Couloir Extreme. 200 marked runs and a large number that the locals know but are not on the ski map.

  Whilst the queues have increased in recent years they, are orderly and outside peak holidays and week-ends are modest by European standards (Tip: Take lessons at the week-ends and skip the lines).

  The ski school is excellent; my two kids prefer it to skiing with Mum and Dad! (maybe that’s just us) and have to be dragged away from ski school and not to it. It’s the “can do” high energy North American fun approach that works. For the adults choose from the social Ski Esprit to the really challenging Extremely Canadian (two days with these guys and girls will transform your skiing, and it can be Extreme).

  There are some truly excellent restaurants in the village; from some fab sashimi to classical restaurants (e.g. Araxi and the Bear Foot) and everything in between. If you self-cater the local supermarket will deliver a la Tesco. Most condos have hot tubs, which with a cold beer in hand it is a great après après ski treat. And being North America you can always order dinner in.

  Nightlife is good, with a wide range of clubs, pubs and bars to cater for all but the wackiest tastes.

  You may hear people rant about either the restaurants on the mountain; they are fine; what are you going halfway round the world to one of the finest ski resorts to spend your day on the mountain doing; eating or skiing? Or the weather; look, snow comes from clouds, get over it, if you want sun go on a summer holiday. If all you want to do is stay on piste and ski from bar to lunch to bar, frankly Whistler would be wasted on you (although is can provide this too).

  The people are friendly, the skiing awesome and the village splendid and the shops are open late for retail therapy or just to replace your goggles.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (08 January 2007)

  Just returned from Whistler - a long way, but worth the effort.

  Overall opinion is that it is an excellent skiing location. Intrawest certainly know how to combine great village facilities with a wide range of skiing for all abilities and great mountain organisation. Different feel vs a European skiing holiday (wider village facilities, civilised and polite queuing for lifts!)

  Positives -

  Snow was abundant (sometimes a bit too much in places which meant thigh deep powder - alot of fun, but hard work if used to groomed pistes!)

  Wide range of runs - there was something for everyone

  Cost and range of food and bars in the village was great and good value for big portions after a hard day on the slopes.

  New symphony lift opened up a new area this season. 'Ode to Joy' down to the Symphony lift is a wonderful gentle run down through the trees.

  Negatives

  Private lessons were extortionate - tip - try to plan trip for discover Whistler days where discounts apply on lessons and passes etc

  The piste map and piste labelling was not very clear (esp on top of Blackcomb mountain) so be careful!

  Mountain restaurants were not as plentiful or as good quality as European resorts

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (12 November 2006)

  Thinking of where to go skiing this year at Christmas 2006 and having spent New Years 2006 in Whistler i am so tempted to go back after such a great dump of powder last year. Whistler is an incredible resort and most physically similar to a European resort in my view as the town centre provides that central locality for drinks, dinner and shopping. The vertical ski down from the top in Whistler is incredible and have never experienced powder like I did last year. What people have to be prepared to do though is get up that piste despite the rain in the town centre as all that means is luscious powder snow is falling right at the top. So good water proofing is essential but really worth it for some of the most unique skiing in the world.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• skiclub.co.uk visitor (09 August 2006)

  (5-19 Jan 05 and 4-18 Jan 06)

  A great resort. The skiing is extensive, a selection to suit every level of ability and mood. Have spent 4 weeks there so far and there are 19 runs we have yet to conquer at all. 7th heaven is fantastic first thing on a clear morning, but people catch on quickly and it gets busy by mid morning. When you are feeling energetic do 'peak to creek' from the top of Whistler mountain - its absolutely stunning. There is a timed slalom (Pontiac Race Centre) open to all that starts halfway down Jersey Cream, to quote a liftie 'if you don't gob it, you aren't trying hard enough!' Glacier Creek Restaurant is the best of the big ones on the mountain..recommend stopping for lunch about 2 to avoid the crowds. The gladed runs are lots of fun with plenty of scope for making it up as you go along, as long as you don't go out the ski area boundary. The mountain is totally geared for skiing, everyone who works there knows that's what you are there for and works to make it the best resort ever.

  The Food - There are two reasons to go on holiday, one's skiing, the other is food. The triple a alberta steak, hung for 28 days, is fantastic. It is safe to order steak exactly as you like it, because the canadians know exactly how to cook it. There are a couple of gems: Hys Steakhouse (we like steak!) - the filet mignon is delish - and Umberto's for the reindeer carpaccio. Both have really decent cellars too. In Creekside, the Rimrock Cafe is good; taste wild boar, caribou, elk and reindeer. Obviously they serve great steak too.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Gary Lister (17 April 2006)

  We just returned from our first ever 2 week trip. First things first: little more one can say about whistler/blackcomb, it caters for any type of skier, more runs (listed and unlisted!) than you can ski probably in 10 years of going there. Ski school, well it’s very comprehensive, its expensive and its really a monopoly. That being said, here are some tips. The best instructors we found are ones with time under their belt. If you’re not happy with anything see the supervisor and get changed into another group. We did this with our children after first day and they really made progress and were happier. On children’s lessons, start and end times can vary in week so be aware as they don't always sync with adults. If you are looking to have more than 6 days of lessons then ask about a lesson season pass. They come in many variations and can save money! Ski passes, these can cost a mini fortune but with planning you can save. Check well in advance of holiday for any special offers e.g if you are going in spring check when spring pass becomes available, its valid until June and cost us less than 2 weeks pass and all it meant was we could not ski the 1st day we arrived but hey we were jet lagged so it was perfect. Ski club membership & rep. I regret not being a member of ski club earlier. This was my first year, and i joined up with the ski rep several times. Luke was great; he took us skiing to places that were treasures and traffic free. I met a great bunch of people and this really made the skiing better than I'd ever had. Each day was different and catered for different level of skiers. For this service alone skiclub GB is worth every penny of its membership. Food, there are plenty of choices and we went to some recommended and some were great, some were ok, some were poor, but we also found days varied in the same place. We had SC and we did find that food shopping was expensive in resort and so much so that when we added up what we spent for a meal cooking it, we'd have spent just as much eating out. However, we did not find many places open until 8am onwards for breakfast, so that can cause problems if you are at ski school from 8.30am! Break from skiing, if you are looking to have a break for a few days, we went to Vancouver and to be honest with children we wished we stayed closer to the resort and done other activities, we thought we'd planned a good itinerary but they just got bored within half a day. One thing we'd recommend it to rent a car in advance though if you do decide to explore. Overall, whislter/blackcomb is worth it if just for the expanse of superb skiing terain. We have never had so much fun in and out of the tree's, on and off piste and meeting up with the members of ski club at the end of the day trading stories.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Andrew Benfield (09 April 2006)

  (9th April 2006) Have just returned from 10 days in Whistler arranged through the Ski Club. It was our first visit. I considered myself a lapsed intermediate, not having skied for 15 years. My wife isn’t a skier and didn’t attempt to, it was my son’s first time on skis. So did Whistler disappoint? Not at all, we had a great time. I pre-booked ski school for two of us and ski and boot hire through the Intrawest Central Reservations on the Whistler Blackcomb website. The telephone number was a free 0800 number and the service was very friendly and helpful. I phoned them several times in fact and encountered the same helpful service on each occasion. All the hotels seem to have hire shops so it needn’t have been a concern before leaving (Our hotel/apartment block was even a bit cheaper for rentals). For myself I wanted to jump start my skiing again and improve my technique if possible. I signed up for a Dave Murray 3 day Ski Camp. It looked challenging which I hoped would do me good. The quality of the instructors is the highest calibre; you’re being coached by some of the best instructors with backgrounds in racing. Video analysis on the mountain was well organised and very helpful. In my class we all felt we had learned a lot. It was my first camp. There were plenty who were well known to the coaches and one on his 53rd camp so that has to be an endorsement! I hope to do another. My 10 year old son, the absolute beginner, had the shakiest start as I tried to teach him the snow plough the day before ski school. I thought I’d ruined his experience, but five days at the Whistler Kids Ski School crafted a remarkable transformation and he thoroughly enjoyed it. We skied together on the last two days down green/blue runs on Whistler Mountain and the ‘7th Heaven Zone’ on Blackcomb - our favourite. He even got down ‘Bear Paw’ and ‘Sunburn’- Black runs - I couldn’t believe how much he’d picked up in five days. The Blackcomb glacier is “awesome” - seven mile run with a one vertical mile drop according to our guide. My Wife enjoyed plenty of walking on well marked and scenic routes most reverting to walkers rather than cross country skiers at the beginning of April. There was still patchy snow on may routes. Whistler is excellent for shopping or browsing. There are lots of shops and refreshment stops and the sales have started. Reductions of 30 - 50% are common on clothing and the hire shops have started selling skis off. (A good year to pick up ex-rental skis due to the abundance of snow this year). Ex rental skis/bindings are going for $299.99 a set as we left). If you are considering buying new boots try McCoo’s. The boot fitter there is highly experienced - he won’t sell you boots but look at your bare foot and tell you what boot would best suit your foot shape before you buy. Any fine tuning needed for a custom fit is where he could finish the job off. Avoids major adjustments. You will be spoilt for choice eating out. The Val D’Isere was very good. The Keg does an excellent steak with variations - try it with lobster. Caramba produce excellent wood fired Pizza’s while you watch. Merlin’s bar at the base of Blackcomb we thought is a better bet if you want a bar rather than an eatery. (Ref comment 12 March 06). I tried the Magic Burger – perhaps it was a different Chef! My son and I joined a group led by the Ski Hosts that take visitors all over Whistler Blackcomb ski area for free. You get lots of useful info from a local. We were recommended Glacier Creek Lodge on Blackcomb Mountain as a personal preference of our host. I’d agree, we had a great lunch stop. Crystal Hut (top of Crystal Chair) was highly recommended for their waffles; sadly we didn’t manage to try them. Ski down to Dusty’s at Creekside; it’s got a great deck for a sunny lunch break in a nice spot. (A pleasant hour/hour and half if you walk from Whistler according to my Wife). Last week (1-7th Apr) the snow below 1000ft is getting heavy going by mid-afternoon as the sun lifts temperatures. There is no shame in taking the lift home from the lower stations. If you are going to tumble it’ll be on this stuff when you are tired. We did have light rain on and off in the resort for a few days, and low cloud or snow up on the mountain. When it cleared there was just more snow and fabulous views. There are acres of space and the snow was still squeaky perfect at 6000ft even if it was soft close to the village. Stay on the Horstman Glacier or pop over the top into the Glacier Zone and there’s a vast playground! - though it’s a one way trip as there are no lifts on the Blackcomb glacier. Service is certainly something you notice. Soft Paper handkerchiefs to wipe your glasses in the loos in the mountain Café’s and sniffle posts(soft paper hankie’s again) for that runny nose in the lift queue. Where else would you find such attention to detail? Would have found a proper Piste and Resort map really useful before we left just to mark with recommendations or compare hotel locations easily. I’ve brought some unused spares if anyone wants one. I’ll drop them on eBay with just postage and zero reserve if interested. I can mark any of the places commented on if requested.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Susan Nihm (16 March 2006)

  Blackcomb whistler are not green power users.(Unless you count solar panels for radio repeaters to be significant}

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Philip Scrase (12 March 2006)

  My Wife and I stayed in Whistler during the first two weeks of February. We were very fortunate with the snow and had large dumps during the first week and then sunny skies the second. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Sunspree, in a self catering room that sleeps two. If there is just the two of you going, there are very few two person self catering rooms available in hotels in the resort. The others all attract an under occupancy supplement which can dramatically increase the price. It was only five minutes walk from the lifts and ideally located in the village. The skiing area is excellent, with challenges for all and very few poorly laid out areas where queues form. These can be avoided by going to other, less popular areas on the mountain. If you are going for two weeks, we would recommend travelling on the weekend and if you are going to take a day out, then also do that on the weekend to avoid the queues, which are usually at that time, and on a Friday. The wide open bowls are fantastic and all runs are well signposted on the main pistes. The double diamond black skiing difficulty is very dependant on conditions, but in contrast to Europe, most of them take no prisoners, with rocks and a very steep and narrow entry into most of them. Be warned : on Whistler Mountain it is possible to ski into the Secret Bowl and look to take the easier route down, only to find this closed. The only other route is the Couloir Extreme, which is vicious. It is best to check if you do not feel too confident on the harder stuff and don't want a long climb. Eating on the mountain is best done before 11.30 or after 13.30, as it gets very busy. We went to Merlins at the base of Blackcomb a number of times and found it quiet and well priced. The Magic Burger is very good! It does not take too long to get back up, and the run down is normally a nice fast cruise as not many other people are doing the same thing. When eating out in the evening, it is best to book, as most places get very busy. The Spaghetti Factory does well priced, good food and is popular. We both did the Ski Esprit programme and in my group, I was the only person not to have done it before. All the others (from Australia, UK, Hong Kong, USA) had returned for more as it was so good. The combination of guiding and instruction, especially for more advanced skiers is fantastic and you are taken places you would not otherwise find. This year it was half price at the time we went, which meant we had 4 full days instruction for around £65. Excellent value. The day continues into Apres Ski, at a local bar, with food brought round for you. It does rain at resort level sometimes, and this effects the quality of snow right at the very bottom. As you invariably only ski this at the very end of day, it normall survives ok, and there is snowmaking to restore it every night. The care of the slopes is generally good, with a daily update on which runs have been groomed. The only disappointing run for us was the Peak to Creek run down to Creekside. This is the longest run on the mountain and Intrawest claim it is too long to groom all of it in one night. This means that the bottom half is not done and becomes a 2 mile long mogul field. Hard work, especially if you do not like moguls down to lunch. My wife and I would certainly return and like most were struck with the contrast in customer service between North America and Europe. It really is as different as everyone says.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Vicky (10 March 2006)

  I love this resort, it's simply the best place I've ever been to. The standard of instruction is fantastic, I really enjoy the Rideguides (board equivalent of ski esprit) There are loads of great places to eat out (Canadian steaks put Britain to shame) Apres is fantastic here and the customer service is amazing compared to Europe, everyone is so friendly and willing to help. I've been on holiday here 3 years running and I'll be back next year for sure and the year after.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Hattie (16 January 2006)

  Whistler and Blackcombe... Wow! 10 times better than the Alps!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Dave Millener (12 January 2006)

  Well, is all the hype worth it? Just got back from a New Year visit to Whistler Blackcomb with my family, and I would say "Just about". Resort - made up of 3 villages (Creekside, Whistler and Blackcomb) each with its unique character. Creekside, about 3 miles from Whistler, is the smallest and perhaps most attractive, slightly unspoiled but currently going through major redevelopment. A few shops and bars but not a lot else. Blackcomb (or the Upper Village, as it is called) is more upmarket, with a range of 5* hotels and above average appartments. A few shops & restaurants and a lively bar adjacent to the main lift. Whistler is another matter, full of shops, restaurants and bars to fulfil everybody's needs. Eating Out - we stayed in an apartment (see later) so we were keen to get out fairly regularly. Restaurants we went to were good quality on the whole but certainly not cheap. Umberto's in Whistler was good fare but very expensive (£45 per head with one bottle of wine). Best we came across was a little place in Blackcomb called Ciao Thyme - looks like a biker's cafe but is anything but. Great food at sensible prices. Don't tell all your friends! Mountain restaurants reasonable value, but typical North Amewrican fare I'm afraid. You can avoid the fries if you try hard enough. However, Round House on Whistler sits 2000 - not like we're used to in Europe. Drinking - be aware that Canadian law restricts drinking under 19, and after 8pm under 19s cannot even enter bars. They are obliged by law to check your age every time if they have reason to believe you are under 25! Our daughter is 17 - we had a quiet New Year's Eve! Merlins in Blackcomb was our chosen haunt on the whole, reasonable value and great apres ski atmosphere. Check out the Nachos plate at £6 - enough for a family of five. Accommodation - we stayed at the Aspens in Blackcomb. Highly recommended. Puts European apartments to shame. Ski in - ski out and fabulous hot tubs! Treacherous walk down the ski slope to get anywhere in the evening so not really suitable for younger kids. Also a fair treck to Whistler (15-20 mins) but enjoyable enough walk. Skiing - left the best to last. Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous!! Two mountains, a vast number of quality runs and powder to die for. Beginners be aware that the resort only pistes green runs and leaves blues and blacks to the powder monkeys. Great place for intermediates to learn to mogul ski! Be warned – Canadian blues are like French reds or even blacks. And the blacks are like serious blacks. As for the double blacks. I’ll get me coat. Tried parts of the two downhill runs set aside for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Bliss! No real favourite runs, too many to mention. Only two minuses - we went on 28 December and our first few days were ruined by massive crowds. 22,000 skiers on the mountains on 30 December. Long long queues (up to 45 mins), not what we expected. Finally, dig deep in your wallets to pay for your skiing. £900 for nine days for two adults and a junior. Spoke to a few Canadians and they thought Europe was more expensive. I put them right! Would I go back - yes. Would I recommend you go there at least once - yes.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Andrew (26 November 2005)

  Having been to Whistler 4 times in the last four years I must disagree with Nick's comments. Whistler is renowned for rain in the resort and we have only experienced it once regularly during a stay and that was this year in late January/early February. The skiing has something for everybody, although it is undoubtedly getting busier as the all the main 'super' resorts have over the years, a mixed party of ability can go and enjoy evrything the two superb mountains have to offer and still get to see something of one another on the hill during the day. The 'Pineapple Express' as the locals call the freakishly wet and mild conditions that ruined last season, was the worst on record. Our instructor from the Dave Murray Ski Camp had been skiing Whistler since before it officially opened in the late 1960's and it was the poorest year he could remember. The effect of global warming has to be to blame, but if the resort didn't have such a huge vertical and massive skiable terrain our two week holiday would have been a total non event - rather than still having 4,000 acres to ski rather than usual 8,000 because half the runs were closed. Only one day did we get 'rained off' at the top and we still had two fantastic powder days after a 30cm dump one evening. Most other resorts would have been totally closed! As for the pasta...if it's the mounatin restaurants that were to blame it's probably a fair comment. They're massive, very busy and geared up to letting people re-fuel and go. That said we have never had difficulty in finding somwehere to sit and they serve their purpose, if the conditions are good...who wants to stay indoors? If it's an abundance of charming mountain restaurants you're looking for stay in Europe. We like to ski on both sides of The Pond but the overall experience in Canada and the US wins hands down with their service orientated approach. Europe has much to learn from the North American way of increasing lift capacity. How? Through intsilling some organisation, discipline and all-round manners to those that choose to buy a lift ticket, even a long lift queue can be pleasant you know?! As for Whistler all-round skiing. This is the place where my skiing started to extend the envelope. The fact you can ski advacned/expert terrain inbounds is the way forward. Knowing the area is partolled provides a certain amount of piece of mind and the tuition available is excellent...not to mention in 'real' english if language barriers have been a frustration/problem for you in Europe. The nightlife is just as varied as the skiing, the typical 'national' charm you may find in Italy for exmple may not be there, but you don't get bored too esily when there are good reaturanst serving evrything fro Thai, Indian, Chinese, N American Grub, Italian, Sushi, haute cuisine etc. All in all we love the place, the skiing the mountains and the people. Last season was highly unusual in terms of the serverity of the warm weather. Although it's not uncommon to get wet in the resort sometimes, there's so much to go at up top (where normally it'll be snowing when it's raining down below) that it's worth the inconvenience of getting a bit wet - just go with an open mind and I think you'll be pleasnatly suprised both off and on the hill.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Nick (24 January 2005)

  Jan 2005 Whistler's rain is a far more serious problem than many reviewers suggest. In the January I spent there it destroyed most of the lower slopes and decimated all the slopes right upto the peak. The hot summers over the last few years have also removed much of the snowbase. Unless they can move Whistler inland and up a 1,000 metres I won't be going back - oh and they overcook their pasta!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Alice Collins (23 August 2004)

  I have been to Whistler for the past four winters and been with Cold Comforts a small specialist chalet company, the owners are English and are great at tailormaking holidays for the UK market!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Nicky (11 October 2003)

  Can't wait to be back in Whistler for the 4th year running. It should probably come with a warning - highly addictive! We're big foodies and can't beleive you missed out Crab Shack, Mongolie, Teppan Village, Dusty's for lunch / apres ski and Spaghetti Factory for reloading those all of those well spent carbs.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• David (22 September 2003)

  What can I say, in five years of visiting Whistler neither my family nor me have ever been disappointed. The skiing is fab, the restaurants in the village are great and the tuition first class. With a combination of private tuition, Dave Murray clinics and last year my first foray into the extreme with the Extremely Canadian guys and girls. I have gone from a blue run hacker to Couloir Extreme initiate. Where else can you do this? Kids are skiing great too. The places that I have been in Europe are not in the same league, Val D’isere; not even close.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• christopher melton (17 April 2003)

  I am e-mailing from Whistler where we have had a week's rain in the village but perfect conditions up top. I am writing just to say that there are 4 main reasons why this is our fourth year here and we will return for at least another four. First, the children's ski school on Blackcomb is first class. The teachers are mostly 20-30 years old and have a real enthusiasm for the job. Most importantly their first language is English (they are Canadians, English, Aussies or Kiwis). Our 4 children (ages 6-11)look forward to ski school every day, and have done ever since we started coming here - not what we had at Mark Warner or any other package dependent on Frenhc Instructors etc. Second, the accommodation is large and comfortable. Third, the ambience of the place is young and friendly. Fourth, a two week ski holiday put together after research on the web costs us less than two weeks in Europe.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Laura Davies (17 March 2003)

  What can I say - the weather was fantastic, the food was fantastic, but most importantly, the people were fantastic. The ski school was well organised and the instructors brilliant. The only negative I can think of was lift queues at the weekend. We had thought the prices would be expensive, but due to the strength of the pound, it actually turned out to be quite reasonable! We will definitely be going again!

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.
• Alban Wood (28 December 2002)

  Hello! A little feedback about the whistler restaurants. I quite agree with all you said, although Uli's Flipside is standard quality, not more (the food is good but not extremely tasty). The 'fine' restaurants you outlined I agree with. There is a burger place that I think is absolutely worth mentionning. It's in the upper village, and it's called "Splitz burger". It's next to the Alpen Glow. I discovered it only the second week of my stay in whistler, and to this day my stomach still growls at the thought of those burgers. It's not refined food, but it's fast food at its best. There famous splitz sauce is also incredibly good, whether with fries or the burgers themselves. And they will dress the burgers with whatever you want. I now live in switzerland (I am canadian) where the food is fine, but I miss Splitz burgers dearly... So I hope you can give them a mention. Oh the price. If I recall, it's near 10$ CAN which is really nothing. Cheers, Alban.

  This is the opinion of a skiclub.co.uk visitor, not the Ski Club of Great Britain.

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