 Poster: A snowHead
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My fiance and I are looking to visit from the UK for a 10 day trip between Boxing Day and early Jan later this year. Struggling to decide between Whistler or Banff (/ Lake Louise), so any thoughts welcome!
Bit of background -
We're mixed ability - I'm good-to-advanced, whereas my fiance is a rather nervous novice-to-low intermediate. So anywhere with big, wide groomed slopes would be ideal.
We'd likely be flying in/out of Vancouver (we're using a BA companion voucher, so Calgary doesn't look to be an option unfortunately). Whistler naturally seems like the more obvious choice and also seems that it's easier from a day-to-day logistics perspective. However, if the conditions would be more enjoyable / suitable for us in Banff, we'd be happy to make the trip out there.
Lastly, appreciate the conditions will always vary year-by-year, but if any one spot is known for being more snow-sure over that time of the year, that would obviously be a big factor in the decision (have heard Whistler more temperamental, though Banff being colder doesn't necessarily mean better snow?).
Any thoughts much appreciated!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I have never been to Whistler. Been back to Banff maybe 6-7 times.
My concern over that period would be that Whistler has a reputation of more a party resort (so I gather from here??) and might be overrun by crazy teens in the holiday week. Banff may also be popular, but lower temps might temper that. And might also temper your fiance.
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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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You can look up the snow records, but I'd pick Whistler of those two at that time.
Banff is colder, so the snow is generally of better quality... But you get less of it.
Early session, either place, the off piste may not be great, which is totally irrelevant for almost everyone.
I've ridden Banff a lot, but never that early. I shall likely be in big white pre-xmas, maybe Whistler a few weeks later .. Conditions are always good.
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Whistler will be Hella busy and expensive for lodging. However it's a short shuttle transfer from YVR vs a day's drive. Snow cover may also be better around Banff but will be likely matierally colder.
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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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Whistler will be more variable in all respects. And by this, I don't necessarily mean just the weather. Whistler is more of a risk in terms of crowding, lift lines, expensive accommodations, your overall experience, etc. It is also more high energy, high maintenance type of place in my opinion. Banff and its resorts are more chill. Whistler is much bigger, while in Banff the skiing is spread out over 3 resorts, none of which will be ski in/ski out, except for one on-mountain hotel at Sunshine. In Banff, it's best to stay in town, and take your car or the free bus to a mountain each day.
Whistler is a strange resort in that it is coastal, and as such, is more unpredictable weather-wise. More likely to have rain, but more likely to have a lot of snow. Also, more likely to have wet, and worse, snow.
The tie-breaker can be is you ever think it is reasonable for you to do a Banff trip in the future. If yes, then do Whistler this time, and than Banff next time when you can fly in and out of Calgary.
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If you’re a betting man, there’s no better place to improve your odds than this place: https://bestsnow.net Look under Whistler and Banff, under “Best time to ski”.
Everyone will tell you their 10 day trip one year in the past 20 and try to extrapolate from that one data point! This guy collected snow depth, storm days for 20 years.
No guarantee for good snow for the specific 10 days you’ll be there. But you’ll know you’ve made an informed choice.
People kept talking about Whistler being expensive. But Banff isn’t cheap either. So why pay just as much for worse condition?
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I don’t know what a BA Companion ticket is, but on one of our more recent trips to Banff, the cheaper return ticket involved a hop from Calgary to Vancouver then back to London, I think via Westjet. Presumably that’s an option. For you to see if is cheap or not.
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If you're flying into Vancouver, maybe have a look at Big White and Sun Peaks?
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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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Agree that W/B aren’t the only game in town.
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If you have managed to book a Vancouver flight with a companion voucher at that time of year, congratulations! I have never managed it in years of trying 
I have skied Whistler a lot around that time of year because I have in-laws over there and I fit a bit of skiing in around family stuff. Observations:
1. Snow quality has been very variable. I have had ridiculously light powder but also much less good conditions. That said, the worst year I experienced was still not too bad by European standards. Despite that, everyone in Vancouver was telling me I’d be better off mountain biking
2. It gets very busy, especially if the snow is good. This is what makes me most sad about the experience, esp when day passes are CAD 200+ now. The lines are well organised and move quickly (esp if you’re used to European line) but it’s still a bit annoying to be confronted with a queue all the way into the village first thing in the morning
3. There’s plenty to do in the evenings and some great restaurants if that’s your thing. Lots of other stuff to do off the slopes as well
I’ve only been to Banff in the summer so others can comment much more expertly on that
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Banff tends to be more chilled as a rule, so for me Banff. But you should probably try both. So If you can book the companion flt to Vancouver do that, otherwise do Banff(big 3, Banff, LL, sunshine).
Both have plenty to do in the evening, both have plenty to keep the two of you occupied on the slopes. As mentioned above snow is what the snow goods give.
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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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If the flights are the constraint then in all honesty WB is is easiest option - no rental car needed, lots of non skiing activities catered for, just at the cost of more crowds and of course the WB price premium. For 10 days or more worth looking at an Epic pass which might get you some booking promos on accomodation. I know some sHs last year said the discount on accomodation for 2 weeks virtually paid for their passes (not Xmas time though). Plus on the full pass you can have 7 days in the 3 Vallees and unlimited time in Andermatt/Crans Montana for later in the season.
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Whistler had a particularly awful start last winter. It's low altitude means it can suffer from warm temps and rain. However, it's proximity to the ocean means regular and potentially huge storms. I've been in whistler early December when it's went from green to 50cm deep snow in the space of one storm.
Banff doesn't have this issue, it will be cold, but storms are less frequent and usually much smaller.
Banff is perhaps a little more snowsure in that regard, but unlikely to get epic conditions, and early Jan I'd expect off piste coverage to still be a little sharky. Whistler has more variance, it certainly could be worse than baff but it's also possible to have some epic deep powder days.
Whistler is a bit better for piste skiing imo. Both have fantastic off piste and expert skiing but the likes of delirium dive at banff don't typically open so early. I'd say spankys at whistler has more chance of being open, but that early I wouldn't plan on it.
But above is perhaps a bit moot as if you are flying into Vancouver I'm not sure Banff is really an option. It is a very long drive or the hassle of more flights. You are probably going to lose a fair bit of time either way.
As mentioned above if you are doing whistler you probably need to consider an epic pass. It does include some free skiing in Europe, so maybe worth considering that if you are planning to do another trip later in the season, as it can make the pass a much better deal.
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You know it makes sense.
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The OP mentions the fiancé is a nervous beginner so I’m not sure the mentions of deep pow off piste are particularly relevant.
The good thing at either will be the free guiding for different levels of skiers.
Re snow conditions; I was there one year when they were reporting the worst snow for 25 years and all staff were lamenting the terrible conditions. To me it looked like an average slope in Europe!!! These things are relative.
Go Whistler. My only concern is the crowded slopes of crazy teens. Only time I got hit there was by a boarder on Easter Saturday. Hence my support for a smaller resort nearby during the peak week.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| Orange200 wrote: |
The OP mentions the fiancé is a nervous beginner so I’m not sure the mentions of deep pow off piste are particularly relevant.
The good thing at either will be the free guiding for different levels of skiers.
Re snow conditions; I was there one year when they were reporting the worst snow for 25 years and all staff were lamenting the terrible conditions. To me it looked like an average slope in Europe!!! These things are relative.
Go Whistler. My only concern is the crowded slopes of crazy teens. Only time I got hit there was by a boarder on Easter Saturday. Hence my support for a smaller resort nearby during the peak week. |
I got hit by a boarder there in Feb as did another sH, both on approaches to liftlines I'd take it for granted at peak times that risk of getting hit by a crazy is high at Whistler. May be a factor for the OP.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Sorry I got hit at Banff not Whistler but yes it sounds like crowded slopes could be a factor for OP to consider carefully.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I'll just add my voice to the chorus of consider other options. There's plenty of good ski resorts between Vancouver and Banff (SilverStar and Sun Peaks are my favorites).
Flying to Vancouver and then driving to Banff in December is an interesting idea... in good conditions that's a 12 hour drive but in bad conditions it could take a couple of days... the Coq and Rogers Pass if it's snowing and dark are both pretty full on.
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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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| Quote: |
I'd take it for granted at peak times that risk of getting hit by a crazy is high at Whistler.
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No ski resort anywhere in the world even on its busiest day is the risk of getting hit "crazy high". It's a massive exaggeration. Perhaps relative risk is a little higher but the absolute risk is still pretty low, there's just not that many crashes.
Fwiw whistler has slow skiing areas that are policed pretty well. If someone is really nervous they can stick to them while they build up some confidence.
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Have only been to Whistler (twice in last 15 months) to see our daughter. Can't comment on Banff. 1st visit was Jan/Feb 2023 and stayed at Blackcomb Spring suites - which were ski in ski out. This year we went over Xmas for 10 days and the snowline was 200-300m above Spring suites. Despite the lack of snow it was very busy, albeit not everyone skiing - lots of folk staying for their Insta Xmas posts - most of which did go up on gondola, which led to big queues. We avoided the big queues by going up the chair, but as it was pissing with rain most days, we were soaked by the time we got to top. After we left on Hogmanay the snow arrived BUT so did the queues - saw some horrendous videos online. Even with the snow I'm not a massive fan of Whistler - really poor infrastructure compared with Austria and not the same eating experience on the hill as you get in the Alps. The terrain however is great and very easy to get to from Vancouver. Just a pity that the infrastructure is so limited compared to Alps, as you're queuing a lot. By comparison we were in Kirchberg a couple of weeks after returning and max queue was 2 mins - no exaggeration.
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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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Thanks all for such detailed and helpful responses! Seems like Whistler makes the most sense in comparison to Banff (esp as we’d like to go back in the future to Banff in summer time), but will definitely look into the other options like Big White and Sun Peaks. Deep powder and off piste not super high priority as will be just with the fiancé , so that’ll likely dictate where we ski, but obviously better conditions are preferred! Lots to think about and research to do!
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| boabski wrote: |
| a pity that the infrastructure is so limited compared to Alps, as you're queuing a lot. |
It’s a trade off between big queues at the lift vs crowded slopes (when there’re more uplift capacity than space on the snow surfaces).
I’m definitely a bigger fan of slow (and sparse) lifts and quiet slopes, over busy slopes (fear of being run into) however fast the lifts are.
In a perfect world, I’d love fast lift and quiet slopes, with abundant snow! But imagine how much it’ll cost to run a bunch of lifts for not many skiers? Ultimately, cat or heli-skiing would be the answer.
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| Quote: |
It’s a trade off between big queues at the lift vs crowded slopes (when there’re more uplift capacity than space on the snow surfaces).
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Doesn't need to be the case. Loads of places with efficient uplift and quiet slopes - only exception to that is St Anton in my experience. Whistler has more than enough terrain to cope with better uplift
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@boabski, if you think whistler "infrastructure" is bad you should see some of the other canadian resorts. No RFID cards so manual scanning and plenty of old fixed lifts. Whistler have pretty modern lift system, I think it's more a case of just sheer number of people. A big powder day during holiday season and alpine closed will always mean insane queues. But generally things are not that bad, a lot of the worst spots can be avoided e.g. arriving at base lifts 10min before opening will be drastically different experience to arriving 5mins after opening.
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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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| Orange200 wrote: |
| ... My only concern is the crowded slopes of crazy teens. .... |
I actually feel safer in WB than in many other big places. They have active speed cops. There are designated family skiing areas which are enforced. The speed cops come out at pinch points if you're riding when it's busy, and they're very effective. I've never been stopped by them, or hit by numpties, and I have always felt safe there over a few hundred days spread over the last 40 seasons. I'll happily carve high speed circles as I get back to the village.
For sure there's no shortage of injuries in WB, in winter as well as summer. I'm not sure that their accident rate is higher than other resorts though - that seems unlikely: the resort is carefully designed and appears well controlled. If anyone has such evidence I'd be delighted to learn about it though.
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| saw some horrendous videos online |
Yeah? I stood in an "horrendous" Chamonix lift queue earlier this season. We were of course waiting for the snow safety stuff to be done. Nonetheless the line went way outside the lift building, and the tourist board would not likely post video of it. I don't know the specifics of whatever "horrendous" stuff you've seen online, but online doesn't necessarily reflect reality. Perhaps that's why you saw it online, not in real life. In both cases, Cham and WB, those queues certainly happen, but they do not reflect my own not experience of either location.
I don't ride Whistler that much - a few days each season over the last 40 seasons - but my own experience is not remotely "horrendous". I was in Whistler the other season when it was cut off from the rest of Canada, and all of the USA and Vancouver rocked up for xmas day. It was busy, but the lift lines were limited by snow safety not numbers of guests.
This image below was shot on my last day in WB this season [so far], sometime in March. You may be able to see someone else in the shot if you look closely. People were probably queuing up somewhere. I should have videoed it and posted it to YouTube as incontrovertible proof that everyone was stuck in the rain in the village videoing themselves queueing for the lift!
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Did they have 2.5 hour download lines at Banff during Christmas holiday week like they did at Whistler?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Sun Peaks looks like a convenient drive from the airport, from what I see on my phone.
Of course this is theoretical, lift pass and accommodation prices may swing it one way or another.
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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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| Orange200 wrote: |
Sun Peaks looks like a convenient drive from the airport, from what I see on my phone.
Of course this is theoretical, lift pass and accommodation prices may swing it one way or another. |
From which airport? Kamloops, sure, but YVR is a looong way and through some sketchy terrain whether the Coq or Hwy 1.
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| Scooter in Seattle wrote: |
| Did they have 2.5 hour download lines at Banff during Christmas holiday week like they did at Whistler? |
What download line? You lost me there.
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You know it makes sense.
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There was big download lines I Whistler at Xmas week, due to fact that home run was closed/roped off. If you skied down it was actually fine though. If you downloaded, like my wife did, it was around a 40 min wait for her to get down on gondola.
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don't know the specifics of whatever "horrendous" stuff you've seen online, but online doesn't necessarily reflect reality.
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Last Jan/Feb the queues were way down the village after a dump of pow. We had taken a day off that day but I genuinely have never seen queues like it anywhere. It's not common but does happen.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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There was big download lines I Whistler at Xmas week, due to fact that home run was closed/roped off. If you skied down it was actually fine though. If you downloaded, like my wife did, it was around a 40 min wait for her to get down on gondola.
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don't know the specifics of whatever "horrendous" stuff you've seen online, but online doesn't necessarily reflect reality.
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Last Jan/Feb the queues were way down the village after a dump of pow. We had taken a day off that day but I genuinely have never seen queues like it anywhere. It's not common but does happen.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@boabski, but if you get there early (not ridiculously early - like 10 mins before opening) and take the chairlift rather than the gondola, you barely have to queue
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| boarder2020 wrote: |
| Quote: |
I'd take it for granted at peak times that risk of getting hit by a crazy is high at Whistler.
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No ski resort anywhere in the world even on its busiest day is the risk of getting hit "crazy high". It's a massive exaggeration. Perhaps relative risk is a little higher but the absolute risk is still pretty low, there's just not that many crashes.
Fwiw whistler has slow skiing areas that are policed pretty well. If someone is really nervous they can stick to them while they build up some confidence. |
I said "by a crazy is high". There's no other explanation for a dude trying to straightline across all the lift maze entrances as people were turning in. It's a feature of most resorts in N America, the more high profile touristy a place is, the more blue run heroes will have an overinflated opinion of their own heel balancing skill set.
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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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Kamloops airport is cute, but notoriously unreliable. Kelowna is better (you can work out why) but from here you're multiplying those risks. For no good reason.
The access road to sun peaks isn't that great; people have died on it.
I'd be a bit wary of what looks simple or short on Google maps. All those access roads get blocked.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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So in summary:
2.5 hour queues at Whistler but at least you’re unlikely to die getting there
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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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| Quote: |
but if you get there early (not ridiculously early - like 10 mins before opening) and take the chairlift rather than the gondola, you barely have to queue
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We did every day but because they have no bubbles on any chair, you end up soaked when it's (often) raining by the time you get the next chair up.
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@boabski, fair enough - I’ve always used that tactic on powder days. Surprised that the queues for the gondola were so big on rainy days. I can understand you being underwhelmed by that
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@awong94, in my limited experience. I’d agree with everyone that says a road trip from Vancouver to Banff between Xmas and New Year is an added risk that probably outweighs the reward.
I’ve only done it twice. The first time was just after last Christmas (cue Wham) the road was okay, white in places, no ice, but I stayed just under the limit the whole way. This meant the big lorries sprayed my windscreen relentlessly on every downhill. The wipers couldn’t keep up.
The second time was end of March. The road was clear and bright. Overtook all the lorries. Then my wife (who got a bit obsessed with the Coq … joined fb groups, the lot) logged on to see, 6hrs after we arrived, the weather had closed in, the road was iced over, a few Lorrie’s had shed their load sending a good few more cars off the road.
It’s a lottery that isn’t worth undertaking when there are ski hills that are much closer.
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I would never consider winter driving conditions from Vancouver to Banff as part of a relaxing two-week holiday! Bounce across to Calgary by plane or not at all.
Fair comments about the roads in real life being more difficult than the maps.
Looks like it’s the Wild Wets then 
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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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As dode implies it's a complete lottery on the weather. Drive it on a cold but clear and dry day and you'll wonder what all the fuss is about... drive it in the dark at -5C with 2cm/h snow and you'll be wondering why it was ever a good idea - or you'll be sitting in Revelstoke or 3 Valley gap for 5 hours praying for good cell service whilst trying to re-arrange your flights...
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I am not sure I would go Whistler in that week. How about BC resorts like Sunpeaks, Silver Star or Big White?
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FAQ
