My wife and I have landed a deal for a number of free nights at a Westin resort and she wants to go somewhere in Canada to Ski. From looking at Westin web site, it looks like these are the three best options - anyone been to one of the these and have any opinion on the resort, the skiing and the town (i.e. restaurants, character of town, galleries, shopping, etc...)?

The Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler
4090 Whistler Way ˇ Whistler, British Columbia

Le Westin Resort & Spa, Tremblant, Quebec
100 Chemin Kandahar ˇ Mont Tremblant, Quebec

The Westin Trillium House, Blue Mountain
220 Mountain Drive ˇ Collingwood, Ontario

Thanks much,

Rick

 

Three absolutely different experiences. Blue Mountain kind of falls into the "pretty good skiing for Ontario" category, somewhere you'd go if you lived within a couple of hours and wanted to drive. Still a glorified 'local hill', despite Intrawest's best efforts. Maybe 600 or 700 feet of vertical, crowded, good party atmosphere, but the 'village' lacks a certain authenticity. (My country place is twenty minutes away from there, so I know it well).

Tremblant is fun, great atmosphere mostly as a result of being in Quebec and its proximity to Montreal. 2500 feet of vertical or thereabouts. But famously, famously cold. A great choice if going west isn't an option.

But, for you, it is... Whistler is the real thing. Thousands of feet of vertical, real alpine skiing, a big, fun, well established village at the base with something for everybody. All else being equal, there really isn't much doubt which of the three would give you the greatest experience.

My .02, anyway. Have fun!

 

Whistler by far! Blue Mtn is a bump, and Tremblant is crowded and VERY cold! BTW, I've skied all those places numerous time.
All of them are owned and operated by Intrawest Resorts and the shopping and nightlife can be pricey with Whistler having the best selection of restaurants, bars and shopping.

 

Whistler hands down! It's the most expensive but worth it. Mont Tremblant is very nice too but compared to Whistler no contest.

 

Great info...thank you. I think we'll be heading to Whistler.

 

The hills with decent vertical, snow and temperatures are in BC and Alberta. There is nothing worthwhile in Ontario. Quebec is cold and icy.

Whistler is by far the best in the west. Most vertical, rarely gets real cold and usually has lots of snow.

All of the other ski hills in the west are fairly small compared to Whistler.

 

Whistler by far, and I spend most of my time at Tremblant. A stayed at the Westin in Whistler a couple of years ago. Great spot, short walk to the lift( mostly indoor mall) with complementary ski storage just before you walk outside. They have a great outdoor hot tub where we met nice people from the Miami(??) Ski Club every evening. We only figured out on the last day that they were actually a swingers club.

 

go to Whistler

 

Whistler is the only choice. You can ski there until April.
Lots of shops, bars, and restaurants in the village.

 

whistler. Tremblant wayyyyy toooo cold for anyone over 35 years old.

 

Whistler is great but think of staying in Banff and having your choice of 3 or 4 major mountain resorts. Personally, I like the backside of Lake Louise. Now that's real skiing. Sunshine, Nakiska, Kannaskis and even throw in Norquay.

 

Yup, and gotta love that bus ride every day.

 

I can vouch for Whistler too; two great mountains side by side.

I leased a chalet there for a year and loved it!
Darn expensive though..... the locals call it the Whistler tax.

They just built a 2.5 mile gondola spanning the two mountains.
2010 winter olympics are being held there too.

You'll love it!
Cheers

 

Enough people have said it... but because I am have lots of experience at all three, I am going to add that you should not even consider Tremblant, and Blue Mountain should not even be on the list.

I guess that really depends on what you are looking for... but I have not met many skiers who want short runs, rude service, cold weather, long lift lines, and poor ski conditions.. so Blue Mountain is out. If you don't want to ski, but just want to shop and be close to a big city to do more shopping and pretend to be on a Ski vacation, Tremblant is your choice...

If you want to actually Ski, then Whistler it is... You may want to consider Heli Skiiing in the area or visiting another mountain for an added experience...

Hope this helps,
P

 

I've skied in the West for over 45 years, and have spent numerous days at Whistler, which is Canada's King Kong area.

A few years ago, I stayed a few days at Tremblant, and really enjoyed it. It's a bit hard to describe, but the geometry of the runs is really interesting, and changes constantly as you go down. The runs are mostly below treeline, and the trees are deciduous instead of evergreen. I like the French ambience at the area, and the Quebecois were very friendly. It was a nice change for a Westerner.

Skier area preferences are very subjective, but you can't go wrong in choosing Whistler.

You just have to hope you get good weather....