Just a stone’s throw from the United States-Canada border, Big White Ski Resort is a British Columbia skiing haven with terrain for all levels of skiers. There, you’ll find 15 separate lifts that access 2,765 acres of terrain—18% beginner, 54% intermediate, 28% expert—covered by an average of 294 inches of light, dry and fluffy powder per year. All of this is accessed by 15 lifts with a collective capacity of 28,000 skiers per hour. (In other words: no lift lines.) The skiing doesn’t end when the sun goes down, either; this resort offers night skiing until 8 p.m. Tuesday – Saturday.
Off the mountain, Big White has a great village—Canada’s largest ski-in-ski-out village, actually—offering a multitude of shops and restaurants, après bars and nightlife spots. And on top of the skiing, loads of other activities are available, including an ice-climbing tower, tubing park, snowmobile tours, ice skating, snowshoeing, dog sledding, top-notch spas, wine festivals, trivia nights and fireworks. The surrounding wilderness is vast and beautiful, too; massive snow-covered trees and stunning peaks make for epic drives and hikes.
British Columbia is filled with endless skiing options, but Big White should be heavily considered by skiers looking for an under-the-radar, down-to-Earth, powder-filled escape.
Do Big White Right
Welcome to the world of Okanagan Champagne Powder. Start your morning by warming up the legs in the Thunder Glades, which lead right into the Lightning Glades. These are two awesome, steep runs with varied terrain and a few surprises on the way down. Keep right for tighter trees, keep left for ones that are a little more wide open.
Get your heart pumping in Parachute Bowl, a double-black diamond run accessible by the Cliff Chair. Hike 4-5 minutes up to enter the bowl via the Slant Chute; you can ride the chute all the way to enter the bowl at speed or take an early left to enter the bowl with a bit more style and air. Either way, it’s super fun and you’re rewarded with the wide-open alpine bowl.
Ready for some bumps? Head off to the right of the Powder Chair and then cut back under the chair to get to Flag Pole, a challenging black run. There are lots of unique features in the terrain, making it more than just your regular bump run—everything from small drops to off-camber turns, plus some really nice glades on skier’s right.
Stop in for lunch at the new Black Forest Day Lodge, located by the base of the Black Forest chair lift. Grab a hearty bite to eat, choose an Okanagan craft beer (go for the Big White White IPA, made in collaboration with Okanagan Springs) and sit back to enjoy the view over the Monashee mountains. The ski-in-ski-out accessibility of the building will have you back on the chair in no time.
Spend your afternoon exploring the world surrounding the Gem Lake Express Chair, and check out The Fourth Ace for one of the newer runs on the mountain. To get there, hang a right off the top of Moonlight Run, then enjoy lots of interesting twists and turns with a couple of rock bands crossing the run as you head down.
Finish the day in TELUS Park—50 acres of well-thought-out, flowy features. Plenty of jumps and jibs, a permanent snow cross course, a dedicated park chairlift and an all-new sound system make this the place to be.
Eat, sleep, ski, repeat
Best Eats
Chow down on classic comfort grub—like lamb & Guinness shepherd’s pie or battered fish n’ chips—then wash it all down with a pint (or five) at The Blarney Stone Irish Tavern. Or, for something on the higher end, enjoy The Kettle Valley Steakhouse, nestled into the Happy Valley Day Lodge. Extra-hungry skiers should go for the 45-ounce beast that is the Tomahawk steak.
Best Drinks
Ski straight to Sessions Taphouse & Grill for the best après in town. Its 2,400 square-foot sun deck is part of the almost $1 million the owners have pumped into this place, and we’ll be damned if you don’t have a blast drinking on it. When night falls, mosey on over to Snowshoe Sam’s. It’s also located right at the base of Big White, and has kickass live music, bar games and a rough-n’-tough Canadian feel that’ll make you feel like a local.
Best Sleeps
If you’ve got some dough to spend and want to lay your head to rest somewhere extra-nice, settle in at Stonegate Resort. It’s a ski-in-ski-out, spa-hotel combo, offering multiple hot tubs, a huge heated pool, a movie theater, amazing rooms and more. For those on the lower-budget side of the ski scene, check into the Whitefoot Lodge. It has ski-in-ski-out access, too, and houses a modern deli and grocery/liquor store.
Must-Do Activity:
Explore the expansive wilderness that surrounds Big White via a snowmobile tour. Guides will take you on endless trails through the British Columbia backcountry, and even let you tear up some powder fields if you’re lucky.
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