This Review article is part of a Narcity Media series. The views expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
I took a weekend trip to go snowboarding in Whistler and it proved to me that, despite the cost, it's so worth it.
There are definitely some tips that you should keep in mind though if you are planning to go for a visit this season.
Luckily, I live in Vancouver, B.C., so I'm just a two-hour drive from one of the best ski hills in Canada.
It was actually one of the reasons my boyfriend and I decided to move from the East Coast of Canada to the West Coast — for the incredible skiing. Not only did it not disappoint, but it was even better than we had imagined.
I had been to Whistler once before when I was pretty young, so couldn't appreciate some of the best parts — like apres-ski time. Now older, and somewhat wiser, I needed to try it again.
So last weekend, we packed up the car, picked up a couple of friends, and headed to hit the slopes for the weekend!
Day One
We made the drive up on Friday night and arrived at our Airbnb, which was pretty close to the hill. There are so many places to stay in the area, but make sure to book in advance because they fill up pretty quickly.
Going with some friends is always a great idea because you can split the cost.
We just hung out on Friday night, played some board games, and got a good rest for the big ski day.
We woke up at 7 a.m. on Saturday, eager to get out on the slopes. Unfortunately, we aren't exactly the fastest group around. Although we had hoped to beat the lines at the hill, by the time we had our coffee and got changed, it was already 8:15 a.m.
Chairs didn't open until 8:30 a.m. though, so we had a bit of some time to get our snowboards waxed, and get our lift tickets.
We purchased them ahead of time, for the steep price of $150 for a day pass.
To get your pass, you just walk up to the tent and show your barcode. Overall it was easy — and we were ready to get on the hill!
Be prepared though, you're going to wait about 40 minutes in line for the first gondola on a busy Saturday morning.
We were pumped full of excitement to get on the hill, so the wait was nothing.
We got on the gondola and we were doubtful that we would get any view at all, at first.
The cloudy day was starting to lower our spirits, but just when we had lost all hope for mountain views — we made it above the cloud line.
We decided to head right to the peak of Whistler to start the day and it was definitely the right way to do it. You have to take one gondola from the village, and then one chair lift to make it to the peak — and you get views the entire way almost.
When we reached the top it was like being in a different world from the one that we had left just that morning.
Even on a pretty cloudy day, you can see hills all around you. It's as if you walked right into a painting — it looks that perfect.
We stopped and took a bunch of photos before hitting the first run — enjoying the beauty of the day already.
Then we hit the slopes, and the conditions were amazing. For me, there's nothing like spending the entire day outside on a ski hill.
Whistler is huge, so it has a ton of different trails that you can explore.
The thing I hate most about skiing on the East Coast is that you spend your whole day on the chairlift because the runs are short and it's so fast getting down the hill. At Whistler, you get a nice long run before having to wait in the chair lines once again.
Surprisingly, the lines actually weren't too bad once we made it on the hill. One of them even had some free entertainment — little birds that come and land on poles, or even hands.
We spent the morning exploring Whistler, having one of the best ski days of my life.
If you're in a group, make sure to stick together and plan out your routes on the chairs so you don't get separated from each other. We learned the hard way.
We got hungry fast — like I always do when skiing — so we decided to hit up a lodge for lunch before heading over to Blackcomb. To get to Blackcomb (the mountain right beside Whistler) you have to take the Peak 2 Peak gondola. It literally takes you right across from one mountain to the other.
We grabbed lunch at the lodge right beside the gondola. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, you only have 45 minutes to sit down and eat, so we grabbed some burgers and were on our way fast.
The ride over to Blackcomb managed to impress me the most. You look out the window and you're travelling alongside snowy white peaks the entire journey.
Once we made it over, we only had about an hour left until lifts closed, around 4 p.m., so we made good use of it.
The conditions were even better at Blackcomb and for our last run, we took the "Easy Way" down.
It's the perfect last run of the day because it's nice and long, traversing the entire hill. On every side of the trail, you're surrounded by snow-covered trees and mountains. Honestly, I felt like I was in a fairytale.
You can ski right down from Blackcomb to Whistler village, ending just in time for apres-ski time. After a long day of skiing, nothing sounded better to me than a beer and some nachos.
In the afternoon, the village is super fun with music blasting, people everywhere having a good time, and even a juggler performing.
The wait times to get into a restaurant can be super long, so you have enough time to go back to your Airbnb and change out of your ski gear.
We got drinks and food at a spot right at the base of the hill.
There was a fire outside to keep us cozy, and we could watch the last skiers coming down.
Day 2
Day passes for the hill are pretty expensive, and although it's super worth it — going for two days was too pricey for us.
On Sunday morning, we woke up and relaxed at the Airbnb, before taking a walk through the village. It was a gorgeous day with the sun shining down.
We grabbed some coffee and shopped around. There is a ton of stores there — like Lululemon, Aritzia and Patagonia.
Then we decided to head home in an attempt to beat the traffic. Unfortunately, we weren't so lucky, and the trip back to Vancouver took over three hours.
We had incredible views along the Sea-to-Sky Highway though. So with the music blasting, we enjoyed the trip.
Everything from the drive and the village, to the epic skiing, makes Whistler my absolute favourite resort to go to.
Especially if you live close, there is no denying that it is super worth the cost of going. You're basically guaranteed a fun weekend that you'll never forget.
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