Ski BC

There are many BC ski resorts that are worthy of avid powder hounds. Check out the BC ski resorts map icon at the top of this page for a visual of their location. The map also includes many of the heli skiing and snowcat skiing outfits, which are an integral component of British Columbia skiing for powder hounds.

Western BC Ski Resorts

Whistler Blackcomb is located out west near Vancouver. Whistler has mega terrain that ranges from mild to wild, an abundance of non-skiing activities, and plentiful lodging that ranges from backpacker digs to opulent hotels.

Sun Peaks, Silver Star and Big White are a little further inland and have some similarities to each other. These three BC ski resorts have decent sized terrain and are incredibly family friendly. They have ski and snowboard terrain for beginners, intermediates and advanced riders, but have minimal on offer for those who love super steep, white knuckle terrain.

Powder Highway Ski Resorts BC

A little further into the BC Interior in the south-eastern corner of British Columbia is the famous Powder Triangle (aka the Powder Highway), but there’s a bit of debate as to how far the BC Powder Highway extends.

Revelstoke Mountain Resort is east of Silver Star near the town of Revelstoke. The ski resort has a very firm foothold in the advanced riding market. Revelstoke is also a cat skiing and heli skiing Mecca.

Kicking Horse is a fraction further east again near the town of Golden. Kicking Horse has some similarities to Revelstoke except that it caters to expert skiers and snowboarders even better than Revelstoke.

Panorama Ski Resort is a very good all-rounder and provides an affordable family skiing option as well as heli skiing.

Fernie Alpine Resort is another all-rounder that is family friendly. It’s also popular for powder skiing, which can be supplemented with nearby cat skiing.

Red Mountain is a British Columbia ski resort located near the US border. Red Resort is popular with families, hard core expert ski bums, and others looking for a good value BC ski holiday.

An hour north near Nelson is Whitewater, a back to basics BC ski resort with the best powder in Canada. Nelson is also an epicentre for snowcat skiing and a couple of heli skiing operators.

Northern British Columbia Ski Areas

And way up north on the Northern Powder Highway are a few ski resorts that are very no frills and have low skier traffic. Other than the locals, these northern BC ski resorts are mostly frequented as a warm up for heli skiing in the region.

Vancouver Island

The two ski hills on Vancouver Island are mostly just visited by Van Islanders. Mt Washington is a small destination resort, which is popular with folks that live in Victoria. Further north is the completely no frills Mt Cain which is well and truly off the beaten path of major ski resorts in BC. This little gem is renowned for massive snowfalls and wicked backcountry terrain.

Best Ski Resorts in BC

The best ski resorts in British Columbia overall are:

1. Whistler Blackcomb
2. Red Mountain
3. Big White

The best skiing in BC for powder hounds at a ski hill:

1. Whitewater
2. Baldy
3. Powder King

Considering the very high quality of the British Columbia ski resorts, it may come as no surprise that our awards for the best ski resorts in Canada are comprised of mostly BC ski hills.

Heli Skiing BC

Heli skiing was pioneered in Canada, and British Columbia continues to be the home of heli skiing considering the prolific snow and amazing terrain. Heli skiing in BC involves huge tenures and many of the operators only offer multi-day packages in remote backcountry lodges. There are also a small number of companies that offer single day heli skiing.

If you’ve got the budget for it, heli skiing is the absolute ultimate when it comes to British Columbia skiing and snowboarding. See the heli skiing Canada page for more information.

Cat Skiing British Columbia

Snowcat skiing was also invented in BC and it’s now the epicentre of the best cat skiing in the world due to the abundance of light powder, the phenomenal tree skiing, and the very high safety standards. Much of the cat skiing in British Columbia is situated on the Powder Highway, a term created to recognise the quality and quantity of the snowfall in the region. See the cat skiing BC page for more information.

New Ski Resorts in BC

New BC ski areas in the pipeline include Garibaldi at Squamish on Mt Garibaldi, north of the town of Squamish. This proposed ski resort would hopefully alleviate some of the major crowds at Whistler Blackcomb.

The Valemount Glacier Resort has been in the planning for many years, and if it comes to fruition, this new BC ski resort should be amazing, with year-round skiing on high alpine glaciers, and huge vertical and tenure during the winter season. The location is just inside the BC border, close to Jasper in Alberta.

Jumbo Glacier Resort has been talked about for years, but it looks like all plans have been halted.