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Voted 1st out of 6 reviewed ski resorts in Canada
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Brilliant holiday in Sunshine Village
Reviewed 6 Jun 2016
Our holiday was absolutely brilliant; myself and my sons thoroughly enjoyed it and there’s not one negative point I can think of! It’s the best place I’ve skied in the world and I wouldn’t hesitate to go back - we had one of those holidays you fondly remember. The access to the ski areas and the actual skiing was superb - both in Sunshine Village (where we stayed) and in Lake Louise.
The sheer amount of powder is fantastic and the groomed runs are immaculate all the time – the amount of snow ploughs and bashers they have means every run is groomed. Because of the whole ensemble of different slopes there’s a mix for everyone – we met complete beginners, expert borders and skiers who were miles beyond our capabilities. There was no shortage of runs.
The scenery is stunning in both resorts. The whole time we were there it snowed every day – not so heavy that you couldn’t see but so it was incredibly picturesque. On some of the gondolas the views go on for miles.
We didn’t have a bad meal and the people were incredibly nice.
I spoke to someone who had stayed in Whistler while we were in Sunshine Village, and they said Whistler had been ridiculously busy with long queues. Whilst the slopes were brilliant, the time you spent off them waiting in queues wasn’t great… Which is why we went to Sunshine – while Whistler is known as the best, it’s also the busiest. When the weather is that cold (it was -18 when we arrived in Calgary and -30 up at Goat’s eye on the first day) you don’t want to be standing about waiting for lifts.
The one and only thing of the whole holiday was the car rental from Alamo – we picked the car up at 6pm and set off, to realize that there’s no antifreeze in the windscreen. It was snowing and very cold and we had a long drive ahead, but it would freeze instantly.
Banff 2016
Reviewed 9 May 2016
Really beautiful, you wake up on Banff Avenue in the morning and from your window or veranda, you look out and there are snow-capped mountains as far as you can see. The town centre probably has enough if you’re there to hike or ski for a couple of weeks, but you wouldn’t go there just for designer shopping… It has shops galore in terms of trinkets, Banff T-shirts and keyrings though. Everything is moose and caribou themed, they really promote the wildlife they have there. There are the hot springs as well. Buses are about $2 which is nothing, and they take you quite far.
I did 3 days of skiing and was lucky in the sense that there wasn’t a massive amount of people wanting lessons – one day there were 2 of us, another day 3, then the last day a few people dropped out. If I was to go again I would definitely take my own boots – the hire boots are horribly painful. The initial ski package I had included 3 days in the 3 resorts, Norquay, Sunshine Village and Lake Louise. However I wasn’t keen on skiing lots of different places and the rep advised that Lake Louise was best for beginners as it has lots of wider, easier slopes.
A beautiful town
Reviewed 24 Jun 2014
Our holiday went fantastically well. We went in March – it wasn’t overly sunny this time, they had had some really, really cold snaps a few weeks before we arrived. We had beautiful weather though and perfect conditions. We’ve been before in March and it’s been very sunny. The town of Banff is beautiful. There are lots of restaurants and bars. The lift passes for the areas are quite expensive, but they are the same price across the board, no matter where you buy them from. So don’t waste your time looking for cheaper lift passes. You can just buy your pass in the shop if you are hiring your equipment.
Banff is amazing - been twice in group & loads with wife
Reviewed 13 Mar 2014
Banff is amazing – I’ve stayed here as a group twice and with my wife loads. It’s as equally good for couples as for groups, not so great for families as you have quite a lot of shuffling back and forth but on the slopes themselves there’s lots on for children. Personally I’d take teenagers here but not little kids.
You have to catch buses to the ski areas but the buses are comfortable and well organised, you never have to wait long if the first bus is full. Always good snow and great skiing, awesome off piste. Ski in Lake Louise for the best scenery or for nice open area skiing ski in Sunshine. For the best runs, go to Goats Eye in Sunshine. Worth knowing that Banff can be very cold and if you’re here on a Canadian holiday or over the weekend its quite busy. As well as skiing we’ve done loads of other things here like snow shoeing, skidoing and wildlife walks.
The food and drink on the mountain is reasonably priced and good value for money. In Banff itself, Wild Bills is great but not as good as it used to be. Still has a lively atmosphere and great pub grub. Magpie and Stump do a great Mexican and my favourite place to eat is Caribou – great bar at the front, a sort of no frills sports bar that shows all the big games like ice hockey and a restaurant at the back where the food is really good with a lively atmosphere with everything from pizza to elk steak.
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