I decided to base my trip in March in and around Banff. Two hours away from Calgary and on the Alberta / British Columbia border, this small town sits in the heart of the Banff National Park and is surrounded by beautiful views of snow-capped mountains, with dark green fir trees on their lower slopes and clear blue rivers running in between. By not being a resort in itself, Banff has the advantage of offering all the amenities required from a town, yet being just a 15-45 minute drive from the slopes. Although only linked by bus, Mount Norquay, Sunshine and Lake Louise are all covered by the Tri Area lift pass and this makes Banff a fantastic base for exploring all three. If you are used to the ski in/out convenience of European resorts then you will find it a change to have to go everywhere by bus, but they are well-organised (picking up from all of the main hotels and apartment complexes), run on time, have plenty of space for skis and boards and the drivers are friendly!

The awesome tree-lined runs of Sunshine

Although it was still cold when my friend Issy and I arrived, it had apparently been a bad winter in Banff this year, so we decided to make the most of the fresh snowfall in Sunshine the day before we arrived and start our skiing there. 20 minutes on the bus from Banff and we were at the base of the gondola that takes you onto the mountain to start skiing at 2160m. There are three mountain areas all linked together, providing excellent terrain for all ski abilities – Mount Standish for beginners, Lookout Mountain for intermediates and Goat’s Eye for the more advanced. What I loved was that unlike European resorts, the pistes aren’t marked as such, so it is more a case of skiing in a green, blue or black diamond area, thus giving you much more freedom and you can get the feel of going off-piste whilst staying in controlled areas. There are lots of tree runs which make it perfect in bad weather, but luckily we had sunshine and blue sky overhead with fresh powder underfoot for both of the days we were there. I loved skiing either side of the Continental Divide Express and the Sunshine Coast run which takes you from the top of the Goat’s Eye Express and leads into some lovely runs all the way down to the bottom. At times we were the only ones on the piste giving the feel of having the whole mountain to ourselves. Wonderful!

Two days in Sunshine were enough to cover all the pistes properly without getting bored, and so on our third day we headed for Mount Norquay instead. The smaller of the three ski areas and closest to Banff, this is much more of a beginner-friendly resort.  With the snow falling heavily as we got on the bus, we were glad we chose that day to do Norquay. The majority of the slopes are at a lower altitude and tree-lined making it perfect for a day when visibility is poor. Fresh powder and empty slopes meant we were perfectly happy messing about for a few hours without having to really challenge ourselves with the jet lag still taking its toll!

Kirsty enjoying the spectacular Canadian scenery

Day four dawned bright and sunny and so we boarded the bus to Lake Louise. This is certainly the most famous out of the three areas and has the most variety, plus the runs are generally much longer. The Powder Bowls area is fantastic for those who want some off-piste action on a blue-sky powder day. For those who prefer to stick to the patrolled areas then there is more than enough to keep you busy for a few days around the Grizzly Express Gondola, Top of the World chair and over the back in the Larch Area. The only slight issue was that the pistes were very icy first thing in the morning and then began turning to slush just after lunch so our time skiing on nice snow was a little limited, but then we were skiing at the end of March.

As with Sunshine and Norquay, there isn’t really anything in the way of an après-ski scene at Lake Louise so if this is normally a big part of your holiday in Europe, you may find it a bit quiet. If you are looking for a resort with nightlife then Whistler is definitely the place to go to. There are a few bars in Banff which are good for a few pre- or post-dinner drinks and a couple of clubs, all of which are really accessible if you are staying in the town centre. We were in the Tunnel Mountain area, approximately 20 minutes walk uphill so the prospect of doing this after a few drinks and a full day’s skiing was not particularly appealing!

Overall, Banff is a great place to spend a week discovering the delights of Canadian skiing. With three ski areas there is a great variety of terrain, the people are incredibly friendly and there are none of the stresses and strains usually associated with skiing in many of the big French resorts. The town has some fantastic restaurants and although it is relatively quiet, there is generally a very relaxed feel to the place. It made a fantastic change to skiing in Europe and one I would happily experience again!

For more information on any of the resorts discussed above, or if you’d like a general chat about ski holidays then please call our office or drop us an email.