 Poster: A snowHead
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We have booked flights to Vancouver for 18/12 until 1/1 and very excited. The plan is to have our first ever North American family ski adventure in Whistler for 10 days. Booked accommodation this week but reading in Where to Ski they really hype up how busy and crowded it is there.
Okay, we know its Xmas and New Year but really how bad is it? Have you been then? Please advise.
Alternatively, is there somewhere else we should be considering like Banff?
Thanks
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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It's fine up to Boxing Day then picks up as US tourist increase. You could always try the Okanagan or Mt Baker for a few days at the end if you have a car.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Thanks for that Dave. How far away are they?
If we didnt want to do that, really, how busy is it at W?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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You have a city of 2M close by and the US on vacation - It's busy.
Be in lessons of some sort and you can skip the line-ups (and get to properly find your way round the mountains)
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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stuarth, thanks for that. Nice to get a local perspective! Could you define busy for me please? How long would the longest wait be?
As a local any tips of a Plan B location for 10 days?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I'm usually around at that time. It's not a quiet backwater. It gets busy at peak times, but they have the capacity. They have civilized queue management systems, speed cops and family zones. Smokers can't make you breathe their COPD fumes in the lift line, and the locals know about soap. They have "singles" lines so you don't have to queue if you're on your own. So it's not particularly a problem.
It gets busy for a couple of days and then they all go away. Xmas day it's mostly quiet, and New Years morning the same.
Banff is not much different in this respect, although I've not been there at Xmas recently.
Whistler's not "bad" at this time. It is early season, so you're taking more risks with the snow than later in the season. This year the pistes were all good at that time, although the "off piste" crowd weren't getting the goods as the snow machine was a few weeks late in starting up. The year before the machine was cranking at Xmas... it comes and goes. Mostly there's plenty.
Tourists all ride in the same places, so if you want quieter stuff then just learn to read the piste map. Most tourists set off late in the morning and finish early, so they're easy to avoid if you've a little more about you. If you want to stop for lunch at the same time as everyone else... you'll still get served quicker and more politely than most French places, but it's not what I'd do.
There are lots of other places you can easily get to from Vancouver, but broadly you're going to have to drive back there to get anywhere else. The city hills can be fun and are accessible by public transport, but they are more weather dependent than Whistler. Further East the snow gets drier and you can ride untracked powder on piste three days after a storm... but those places aren't what most tourists are looking for.
Whistler's a great place to start, although it's not at all typical. It's primarily a large destination resort created for tourists; most BC places aren't like that. If you're going to stay in one place for 10 days then Whistler would be my first suggestion.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Fri 27-06-14 18:07; edited 1 time in total
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philwig, thanks for that appreciate your comments and love the euro references  We are there 20-30th. Of those 10, what is the crazy time? 26-30?
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Looking at the calendar I'd guess that the locals will drive up for Boxing day, and that weekend will probably have traffic jams on the highway near Whistler at peak times. Compared to the back country all ski resorts are zoos, but this one is very well managed.
I'll probably turn up around 20th. I'll likely ride a few days at the resort, including Xmas day (because my buddies shut their cats down that day), when it's definitely quiet. I never really worried about it.
I'm trying to think of European equivalents, although it's been a while since I rode peak season in Europe so I may be out of date. It's like Verbier, or Val-D'Isere - you're not going to be on your own, but there are only a few places and a few times where you'll find queues, and you can easily avoid them if you want to.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Main clues - get up early if you're going to upload from Village, avoid Emerald chair 1000-1400. Skiing down to Creekside for lunch can be a good bet. Crow D's in bowls/peak follow openings. Blackcomb always quieter than Whistler. Crystal chair used to be top tip but I think they might have vamped it up.
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| Dave of the Marmottes wrote: |
| Main clues - get up early if you're going to upload from Village, avoid Emerald chair 1000-1400. Skiing down to Creekside for lunch can be a good bet. Crow D's in bowls/peak follow openings. Blackcomb always quieter than Whistler. Crystal chair used to be top tip but I think they might have vamped it up. |
yes, crystal chair has been replaced with a high speed quad. This one picks up the traffic from the glacier now so you can do fast spankie's laps. It also means excelerator is less of a bottle neck.
Since the alpine often opens slightly later, you'll note the number of mid-mountain lifts on Blackcomb is higher than Whistler so that helps.
6-seater Harmony chair upgrade on Whistler also helps reduce the big-ass queues there (though does also mean the schrelp train gets it's business done even faster!)
I think crowd wise Boxing day is probably about the worst day of the year to go skiing at Whistler.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| philwig wrote: |
| ...you're not going to be on your own, but there are only a few places and a few times where you'll find queues, and you can easily avoid them if you want to. |
And nope, really you can't avoid the crowds at the weekends/holidays (unless you go for a hike). That said they are often not bad first thing and do tend to die down a lot as the day goes on.
If it's a powder day (and it's early season so the locals will be pow hungry!!), then there will be substantial lines on the alpine lifts
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| stuarth wrote: |
| philwig wrote: |
| ...you're not going to be on your own, but there are only a few places and a few times where you'll find queues, and you can easily avoid them if you want to. |
And nope, really you can't avoid the crowds at the weekends/holidays (unless you go for a hike). That said they are often not bad first thing and do tend to die down a lot as the day goes on.
If it's a powder day (and it's early season so the locals will be pow hungry!!), then there will be substantial lines on the alpine lifts |
[img]
I once waited over 2 hours for first chair on harmony to pop following a storm. Was still worth it - pure elevator ride smooth first line down Sun bowl one of most memorable in my life. Had some explaining to do re the demo board I'd taken out for an hour mind.[/img]
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Take an umbrella
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You know it makes sense.
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stuarth wrote:
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crystal chair has been replaced with a high speed quad.
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It's the old one from Harmony. This year my first experience of it was on a Saturday morning, when it seemed like they'd not only moved the chair, they'd moved the queue along with it!
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