As a resident, business owner and frequent skiier at Whistler, I have realized that there are “secrets”, things to see and do that the average visitor to Whistler has NO idea about. I’ll try to pass along a local’s knowledge, but know that Whistler is a paradise all of its own – these secrets merely add to the magic!

Hotels can be $300 a night and up during ski season, and peak summer season – but three ideas have saved me money on accommodation. First, there is a condo booking agency called ResortQuest that can offer off season specials – I stayed in a gorgeous townhouse a block from the village square, with hot tub, fireplace, kitchen, sleeping 4-6 people for $100 in the early fall – ask about any deals like that!

If you are sociable, and willing to both ENJOY and put up with the common areas of a bed and breakfast – Chalet Beau Sejour had bed and breakfast in a spectacular chalet looking out on the mountains for $90-125. Very social hosts, and a dining table looking out on the mountains with double sided fireplace and mulled wine while visitors from around the world discuss snow and ski conditions simply can’t be beat!

Lastly, there are two hostels – the venerable Shoestring Lodge, just north of Whistler maybe ten blocks distance, and slated to be “developed” into townhouses before the Olympics, has beds for $25, as does the hostel across the Lake from Whistler – you may share a room with some interesting strangers, but that price leaves plenty of money for food and entertainment!

Whistler has an incredible array of high end restaurants, but one I found outstanding was the Edgewater Lodge, just north of Whistler a few miles. Check the picture in the website, combined with the Zagat quote “venison to die for” (they have their own venison farm) and you’ll be on your way!

At the other end of the spectrum, the mall beside the Whistler Conference Center hosts Shakespeare’s Pies – Australian meat pies for under $4 that you will come back for over and over, especially after visiting Whistler’s bars and nightclubs!

Three bars stand out as amongst Whistler’s best, and offer a unique experience. Tommy Africa’s will attract the early 20s crowd, with glass DJ booth, the best local DJs and a zebra striped door! The Savage Beagle is a two level bar on the main walkway, with a crowded dance floor downstairs, and a “belly up to the bar” section upstairs. The “cougar bar” for 30s and up is Buffalo Bills, at the other end of the main walkway – live bands, great DJs and comedians have offered many great nights over the years.

Ski lift passes are often available at the 7-11 in Squamish or Vancouver on your way to Whistler for a discount that can be $10-20 per lift ticket. Lift lines are shortest at the Whistler Creekside lift, if you want to get going quickly, but I prefer the skiing at Blackcomb, the other mountain (they are joined at Whistler Village)

The best kept secrets about Whistler are the summer activities – there are a group of pristine lakes to swim or canoe, mountain bikes with full protection gear are rocketed to the top of the mountain for rapid or tricky, descents, and the ski hill has a glacier at the top that is kept open until August!

Oh yeah, some guys named Palmer and Nicholas have golf courses, and there are ski camps, tennis camps, zip trek lines, heli hiking, white water rafting, fishing, horseback riding, ATVs – there are a LOT of great things to do, but bring money!!

Enjoy it now, before the Olympics – because 2 weeks of staring at this on TV is going to make the world go crazy for Whistler!

Author: Andrew Larder
Whistler BC Canada – Greatest Skiing In North America!
 

What makes a golf course good may not necessarily mean it is beautiful, but it sure helps to have the perfect location. Play these five courses in Whistler Pemberton and you will be certain you have found Nirvana.

If British Columbia is a golfers Paradise, then Whistler golf clubs will get you to where heaven begins. It is a destination known around the world for its spectacular mountains, unsurpassed skiing, limitless outdoor adventures, charming alpine village and now its golf.

This picturesque valley, surrounded by immense, snow-covered peaks, pristine lakes and glacier-fed streams, is home to five of Canada’s top 100 golf courses. Your Whistler golf vacation will be played on these spectacular courses these gentlemen, Palmer, Nicklaus, Trent Jones Jr., and Robert Cupp have created. Masterpieces in this unequalled setting.

Everyone knows the amazing story of Jack Nicklaus. Apart from his on course accomplishments, his reputation as the worlds best course designer speaks for itself. With over 300 courses built world wide, Nicklaus North at Whistler is a jewel. With snow capped peaks in the distance, clean, clear air to breathe and a setting fit for royalty, Nicklaus North offers forgiving fairways and captivating greens at every turn in this incredible 18 hole layout.

Whistler Golf and Country Club owes its life to The King, Arnold Palmer. Every professional golfer today owes a debt of gratitude to Palmer. His amazing golf game and his ability to raise the financial stakes reflected in million dollar purses, have elevated him to the well deserved title, The King. Incredible views, signature Palmer design and risk/reward fairways and greens. These things aside, it is the friendly attitude that surrounds you, from the cart boy to the starter to the servers at the bar, you’ll quickly notice that Whistler Golf and Country Club is truly different.

Robert Trent Jones Jr. and Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club. Is this pairing class, or what? Links Magazine calls it “mountain golf at it’s finest”. It has been rated four and a half stars by Golf Digest. Opened in 1993 the championship par 72, 18 hole layout shows Mr. Jones skill as a course designer to be exemplary as he allowed nature to dictate the path without any commercial influences. Creeks, lakes, granite outcrops and huge Douglas firs all come into play. With elevation changes of four hundred feet, and the most magnificent scenery known to man, your score will be long forgotten before the memory of this scenic beauty fades from memory.

Pemberton’s Big Sky Golf and Country Club is awe inspiring. Bob Cupp was chosen to build it. Who is he, you may ask? Well, he was senior designer for Jack Nicklaus for fifteen years before setting out on his own. In designing Big Sky, he incorporated an emerald green river, seven lakes and rollicking creeks into one fascinating course. Pemberton Valley will add strokes to your handicap with it’s stupendous backdrop of snow capped mountains. It will be hard for you to stay focused while navigating this beauty.

Pemberton Valley Golf and Country Club. This semi private course may look like a push over but don’t be fooled. Like Big Sky, it’s tough to keep your mind on the game with the scenery coming into play on every turn, let alone hole. Sixty four hundred yards from the blue’s it is a great challenge. The bent grass greens are beautiful. The locals call the front nine, The Warm Up. The back nine, with it’s narrow fairways and target golf requirement will have you shaking your head as it is tougher than it looks.

About the author:
Joe and Irma Mac Millan have enjoyed the Whistler Mountain and valley area of British Columbia for many years. They have camped, hiked and skied the mountains and fished and kayaked the rivers and lakes. Their website http://www.whistler-outdoors.com/ is a must visit for anyone considering a trip to Whistler as well as the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. They invite one and all to take a look.

What does a person say about one of the most beautiful places on the planet? That is our dilemma as we set out to tell you about Whistler, British Columbia. We could use all of the adjectives in the dictionary but they are only words, aren’t they.Irma and I have been visitors to Whistler for a good many years. If we wanted to take you with us for a visit we would probably begin our journey from the city of Vancouver, certainly one of the worlds most beautiful. The two hour drive to Whistler will take us along the deep blue waters of Howe Sound where we view the ferries delivering people to the many destinations such as the Sunshine Coast, as well as Vancouver Island, Gabriola Island, Victoria and Campbell River, better known as the salmon fishing capital of Canada, lying in the distance.

The highway clings to the mountainside. Great vistas of water and snow capped peaks open up before our eyes. As we reach the small town of Squamish at the head of the Sound, the first of many glaciers come into view, contrasting with the greenery of the cedar and Douglas fir forests filling the valleys. Shortly, we pass the signs for Diamond Head and Elfin Lakes where hiking enthusiasts may spend hours or days enjoying the fantastic views of mountain lakes and lush meadows carpeted with the most beautiful and aromatic wild flowers nature has to offer.

As we drive the winding highway we pass a few Provincial Parks quietly inviting us to pitch our tents or park our RV’s on their perfectly maintained campgrounds. The excitement builds as we reach the first part of Whistler called Creekside with it’s residential areas surrounding the first of the High Speed chair lifts. Now we enter the glorious valley of Whistler Village, home to 9,000 permanent residents who spend most of their time pampering the more than 2 million visitors who drop by every year to enjoy the many activities the Valley has to offer.

Whistler Mountain Accommodations come into view now, the top rated hotels, condos and private homes blend into their settings perfectly situated to take advantage of the Whistler Ski Area with it’s more than 200 amazing ski runs served by perfectly placed high speed quad chair lifts and gondolas to whisk you anywhere you want on the two mountains of Whistler/Blackcomb. Visitors may wish to heli ski the pristine mountain bowls, take a snowmobile tour over glaciers with snow and ice lying 1,000 feet thick. Perhaps a quiet afternoon of cross country skiing or snowshoeing is more your style. Summer visitors (almost the same amount visit in summer as winter) will love the top rated golf courses built by the likes of Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer to name a couple. The adventuresome will want to take a ride on a jet-boat or a glider out of the magnificent Pemberton valley only 25 minutes north of Whistler.

By the way, Whistler is named for the cute little Marmots who call to each other with highly distinctive whistles. Hiking to a high mountain area such as Blowdown Pass will give you ample opportunity to view these wonderful creatures up close. Fishing, touring, gold panning, white water rafting, kayaking, and horseback trail rides will all lead you to the many outdoor activities waiting for you to enjoy while vacationing in the wonderful Whistler outdoors of British Columbia.

Whistler British Columbia lies a two hour drive north of the beautiful city of Vancouver. You could travel the world for a lifetime but not find a more picturesque, magnificent or exciting place to see or visit. Just when we thought it couldn’t get better, the 2010 Vancouver Olympics are going to set the place on fire. You really must come for a visit.

About the Author

Joe and Irma Mac Millan own the very informative website www.whistler-outdoors.com featuring all of the vital information visitors should have before they come to this beautiful destination.

Author: Dan Wallace

The increase in tourism has been rapidly increasing in Whistler for many years. Noted for being one of the best skiing and snowboarding areas in the world, having the largest skiing area in North America as well has having summer activities to match the winter, including world class golfing, mountain biking and hiking, thanks to the abundance of mountains warmed by the sea air in the summer making it an outdoor enthusiasts dream.

Up until a couple of years ago, the increase in tourism had been fast but steady and controlled. Since the decision for Whistler to host the winter Olympics in 2010 things have changed.

The recent unprecedented level of resort development comes with some urgency, as most developers want to take advantage of the attention the 2010 Winter Olympics will bring to the area. Despite skyrocketing construction costs, developers are feeling confident. The Government of Whistler has challenged the tourism industry to double in size by 2015 and interest in recreational real estate is so high that many projects are sold out before construction even begins.

With a strong economy and the boost in global awareness that the Olympics will bring, the future of tourism in B.C over the next few years looks healthy. The questions arise when long term growth comes into question. Firstly the capacity – will enough people come to Whistler to fill the beds?

Much of North America considers Whistler a difficult place to get too, and with impending tourism increase means possible problems with traffic, demand in air travel and traffic problems around B.C., which may put people off going there. Another potential problem is that most resort development is predicated on the sale of recreational real estate, whether its condo units, time share units, cabins or real estate lots. For a lot of people their considerable investment in recreational real estate means they are going to spend their vacation time using the property. They are less likely to be traveling around the province and sampling the various resorts being developed.

With increasing costs in Whistler and BC, Canadians may be put off the idea of visiting Whistler, instead choosing holidays abroad or to other destinations away from the spotlight that Whistler has fallen under.

These are not potentially catastrophic problems for the area but illustrate a need for long term planning and thought into the development of Whistler, and how to maintain momentum once the Olympics is over.

Poor planning has often led to post-Olympic areas being turned into ghost towns, with unused facilities, empty housing etc. however, with limited space in Whistler, careful thought has led to large areas of the Olympic village being turned into housing after the event, the majority of which for employees of the event. This will limit the possibility of unscrupulous developers ruining the area trying to cash in and potentially destroying the beauty of Whistler.

Despite the doubts and the potential for problems beyond the Olympics, the area looks set to continue with impressive growth in tourism, with 88 major tourism related development projects already underway, worth a combined 17 billion CAD.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/tourism-beyond-the-winter-olympics-199631.html

About the Author:

Skiatwhistler.com offers real time bookings of premium properties in the world class ski resort of Whistler, British Columbia. Our business is to market property rentals in Whistler to high end vacationers in order to maximize property owners’ return on investment (ROI).