Whistler Blackcomb: How to ski North America’s largest resort usatoday.com

Every winter, more skiers and snowboarders pick Canada’s Whistler Blackcomb than any other resort in North America. It is stunningly large, with the most skiable terrain (8,171 acres) and highest vertical rise (5,280 feet) on the continent, and each of its two interconnected mountains is bigger than other top-tier destination resorts. The result is virtually every snow condition, level of challenge, and type of terrain you could imagine.

“If you can’t find your favorite terrain here, you can’t find it anywhere,” wrote the editors at Ski Magazine, who ranked it North America’s best for 2017 – for the third year in a row. Conde Nast Traveler, Global Traveler and Travel Weekly are some of the many other publications rating it North America’s best, while London’s skiing-obsessed Telegraph awarded it best in the entire world status.

So what’s the big deal?

Whistler Blackcomb claims 8,171 acres of designated in-bounds skiing, including more than 200 marked trails, plus expansive bowl and glade zones, with even more available to experts hiking its ridges (it is also one of the few resorts that operates on-site heli-skiing, with access to another 430,000-plus acres).

This terrain is served by a vast network of three dozen lifts, including three new ones for the coming season. The highlight is a 10-passenger gondola that replaces two chairs previously required to get from the bottom of Blackcomb to the top, now a much faster single-ride ascent – for 4,000 skiers per hour, the greatest capacity of any lift in the U.S. or Canada.

This is part of the single biggest investment year in the resort’s history, $52 million spent by new owner Vail Resorts. The group “immediately poured a ton of money into improving the customer on-mountain experience in preparation for the 2018-2019 ski season,” said Rick Reichsfeld, president of Alpine Adventures, a ski tour packager. He noted other improvements including new high-speed 4- and 6-passenger chairs and additional on-mountain dining. The company also added Whistler Blackcomb to its multi-mountain international season pass, the Epic Pass, meaning skiers who hold the season pass for their home mountains – including thousands in places like New York, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Denver and Boston – can now ski here for free.

The user-friendly pedestrianized village is also a big attraction of Whistler, and matches the mountains in scope with more than 100 dining and drinking options of every ilk. You’ll also find hotels, condos and rental homes in every price point, up to luxury full-service resorts from Four Seasons and Fairmont.

Nightlife is big in Whistler Village, with lots of bars, restaurants and shops, all easily accessed on foot.
Nightlife is big in Whistler Village, with lots of bars, restaurants and shops, all easily accessed on foot. (Photo: Justa Jeskova, Tourism Whistler)

“It’s just such a favorite that people keep going back again and again. There is also so much happening in the village and the varied terrain really does make all levels of skiers happy,” noted Sarah Plaskitt, founder of ski travel planning specialist Scout Ski.

Adjectives used in describing the resort always include superlatives, but all this begs the question: How big is big enough? No one skis more than 200 different trails in a vacation. All top ski resorts brag about their size, lift capacity, terrain and expansions. But does it matter?

I decided to find out by skiing a lot, for five days, making it a point to visit every part of both mountains, exploring all the different types of terrain and climate zones. This took me to nearly two-thirds of the runs at Whistler Blackcomb, and as an educated guess, I’d say that the average five-day visitor skis less than a quarter.

On one hand, no one needs 200 trails, but in another very real sense, having that many lets you cherry-pick the 40 or 50 that are best for you and your ideal snow conditions, and that is what makes a really big mountain better. The feeling that you’ve run out of terrain and have to ski the same stuff over and over limits a great ski vacation. There are more than two dozen resorts in North America that are big enough to offer this virtually unlimited feel. Whistler Blackcomb just happens to be the largest.

“It seems to be an East Coast thing, people come here and ask, ‘How many runs do you have?’ But we don’t think of it like that, we think in terms of how much varied terrain we have, all these different zones. We have a mix of the best Colorado-style terrain and the boundless European high-alpine zones and glacier skiing you would see in the Alps,” said Marc Riddell, longtime ski patroller turned resort marketing executive.

Adjacent and interconnected, Whistler and Blackcomb mountains form the single largest and most-visited ski resort in North America, with a very large and well-planned resort village between them.
Adjacent and interconnected, Whistler and Blackcomb mountains form the single largest and most-visited ski resort in North America, with a very large and well-planned resort village between them. (Photo: David McColm)

Blackcomb and Whistler are adjacent sister mountains, and the bases are so close that you can stand in the plaza in the middle and decide whether to walk one minute to the lifts at either. The slopes themselves are physically separated, but in recent years they became linked by the Peak 2 Peak gondola. It was the longest unsupported single-span in the world when it opened, and a sort of theme park attraction in its own right – especially if you opt for one of the cabins with a vertigo-inducing glass floor.

Whistler is slightly bigger in terms of acreage, while Blackcomb is slightly taller, but both have over 100 trails, reach into what is known as a high-alpine zone reminiscent of the Alps, and both have multiple bowls, backside bowls, and glacier skiing. From top to bottom the three zones tend to feature either powder if it has snowed (lots of it!) or windblown hardpack, groomers and soft spring skiing conditions. Some people prefer one and stay in that zone all day, but a top-to-bottom run – a must at some point in your stay – will take you through noticeably changing surface conditions. It will also require stopping to catch your breath, more than once, and really demonstrate the size of these mountains.

In terms of sweeping generalizations, Blackcomb draws more locals, skews slightly more expert, and offers easier access to unique glacier skiing, while Whistler’s double black expert terrain is more in the form of open chutes, steeps and bowls than technical cliff bands and exposed rock. But in practice, both are laid out in very similar fashion and have plenty of every type of terrain for every skier and snowboarder, including first-timers. The easiest way to choose which to begin on any given day is to simply look up, see which is sunnier.

You will ski both during your visit, but don’t bother trying to ski both in one day, except for riding the Peak 2 Peak for the novelty, or as an expedient means to get back to your lodging. Each is bigger than most major ski resorts, you won’t get bored, and moving from one to the other is simply a waste of precious ski time.

Because the mountains are so big and sprawling, the easiest way to break it up for visitors is by lift. Spending a few hours riding the same lift while skiing different trails is the most efficient way to organize the slopes into understandable clusters, minimize map reading and commuting, and these 10 “must-ski” lifts cover the entire gamut of terrain the resort is famous for.

Each cabin on the Peak 2 Peak gondola connecting Whistler and Blackcomb holds nearly 30 skiers.
Each cabin on the Peak 2 Peak gondola connecting Whistler and Blackcomb holds nearly 30 skiers. (Photo: Mitchell Winton)

Blackcomb

Showcase T-Bar: One unique appeal of Blackcomb is its glaciers, offering an alpine experience to anyone who has never skied on one before. Blackcomb Glacier includes both a manageable blue intermediate run plus the extreme double blacks of Garnet, Diamond, Ruby and Sapphire bowls, set within cliffs and Blackcomb’s calling card for true experts.

Glacier Express: Yes, it serves some of Blackcomb’s most extreme terrain on the steep walls of the glacier, but the main appeal is for “regular” experts who are not up for the hike over the ridge and stay on the front side. The quad bridges the high alpine and wooded central zones and serves a concentrated cluster of single black runs in the middle of the mountain, all of which begin in the open bowl expanse of the Horstman Glacier before dropping below treeline. These expert trails are a nice mix of long and winding and short and steep, all within the skill set of most advanced skiers and riders.

Seventh Heaven Express: On the front of Blackcomb’s high alpine summit, this quad packs a lot of bang for the buck, serving a broad array of blues and entry-level blacks, nearly a dozen in all, an unusual assortment of such accessible above-treeline trails, all funneling to the base of the lift. Solid intermediates might spend half a day skiing this one chair. It is also the choice of the most advanced experts, who come from around the world to drop into the mostly double black cliff zone of Jersey Cream Bowl, especially Sudan Couloir, a 2,500-vertical-foot steep chute that is tough enough when not bumped up yet often is. It hosts an annual extreme competition and has been ranked among both the 10 steepest and scariest trails in skiing.

Crystal Ridge Express:Something for everyone lies off this chair bridging the middle and lower sections of Blackcomb. To a skier’s left are a couple of single blacks, a handful of blues, and access to large expanses of single black glades such as Rider’s Revenge. Under the lift and to the right are several long beloved intermediate blue runs, while far right offers even more black and double black glades. Few chairs in skiing offer this much variety suitable for everyone from basic intermediates to true experts, with more sheltered spring-like conditions.

Blackcomb Gondola: This fast ride from the base serves an enormous variety of terrain spanning the middle and lower parts of the mountain previously covered by the Wizard and Solar Coaster Express chairs. This includes several terrain parks, the mountain’s super pipe, and a unique feature, a public snowcross course where you can experience one of the newest alpine Olympic disciplines. It also accesses beginner slow zones, several long, winding groomed green runs, a bevy of intermediate blue cruisers, and “entry level” short single blacks that make this area perfect for progressing.

Both Whistler and Blackcomb have extensive European-style high alpine terrain, with lost of bowls, chutes and glaciers.
Both Whistler and Blackcomb have extensive European-style high alpine terrain, with lost of bowls, chutes and glaciers. (Photo: Vail Resorts)

Whistler

Peak Express: The chair dramatically runs up the face of vast Whistler Bowl, the centerpiece of the upper third of the mountain. This is desirable expert terrain, with a few single black runs down the center, flanked by two double back chutes skiers right, and to the left a long ridge from which several black and double black trails drop into Bagel Bowl and West Bowl. For advanced skiers, there are an endless number of routes, and you could spend a whole day up here, but there is no easy way down.

Symphony Express: This high-speed quad serves the intermediate paradise of Symphony Amphitheatre, a large collection of bowl skiing on the backside of Whistler. The area includes mostly blue trails and extensive blue glade areas, a rare combination of large open bowl, glade skiing and runs cut through the trees, all accessible to less advanced skiers. There is also a ridge hike from the chair to black and double black faces down Flute and North Flute bowls. Head here if the sun is shining!

Harmony 6 Express: This fast six-passenger chair drops you on intermediate Harmony Ridge, which runs the full length of the alpine upper third of the mountain. As you descend you have endless choices of side routes off the ridge that include access to several bowls, lots of shorter single black runs, a few blues, and it also serves as the gateway to the Symphony Express chair. This is a perfect choice for advanced intermediates or newfound advanced skiers looking to step it up a notch without any scary topography.

Emerald Express: The prime lift for parks, families and beginners, this serves a mid-mountain slow skiing zone of groomed blues and greens, three terrain parks, and a long winding green trail to the base.

Creekside Gondola: Creekside Village is the only other access point to the resort besides Whistler Village, and the resort’s longest runs finish down here, including the thigh-burning Peak to Creek intermediate trail that winds from the summit to this lowest point. But the main reason people head to this overlooked corner of the resort is the famed Dave Murray Downhill, the site of the 2010 Winter Olympic Downhill. It is a long, fast but not technical single black, in two sections, upper and lower. The gondola only accesses the bottom half, but it’s the only way back from Creekside. Scout Ski’s Plaskitt picks this as her bargain secret: “My tip is stay in Creekside, a smaller village with direct access to Whistler Mountain. The lodging is a better value than the main village, with some great ski-in/ski-out options.”

More: Sushi Village: Whistler’s legendary ski-town eatery still wows visitors

Facebook
Twitter
Google+
LinkedIn
Whistler’s legendary Sushi Village still wows visitors
Fullscreen
More big mountain skiing

A ski resort is “big enough” if you can visit for five days, ski different areas every day, choose from terrain for all abilities – including bumps, steeps, bowls and groomers – and not have it feel old. This is hard to quantify exactly but as a rule of thumb, any mountain with 2,000-plus skiable acres and over 100 trails should qualify, which includes several dozen major resorts.

But these five are massive in the same way Whistler Blackcomb is, and easily offer all the skiing you could want from your vacation:

Park City, Utah: An amalgam of two existing resorts, the hybrid now spans more than 7,400 acres, has 330 trails, and gets some of the world’s best snow.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Wyoming: Jackson Hole has the nation’s highest vertical and sports 133 trails and more than 2,500 acres inbound – plus an adjacent 3,000 more in lift-served backcountry, open to better skiers.

Big Sky, Montana: Another combination of two existing resorts, Big Sky now sports more than 5,850 acres and around 250 runs serviced by three dozen lifts.

Heavenly, California/Nevada: The largest single resort in the popular Lake Tahoe region, Heavenly spans 4,630 acres and nearly 100 trails, showcasing very diverse terrain.

Vail, Colorado: For many years the most popular resort in the United States, Vail is also the largest single mountain ski area – you can be 5 miles from the base and still skiing the same peak. It has 5,289 acres – more than half of which is in open bowls – and just shy of 200 trails.

Report Story