Viewing 20 posts - 1 through 20 (of 20 total)
  • Whister
  • neil853
    Free Member

    has anybody been? is it much better than the alps? whats the sort of cost?

    i’ve looked and i can find an all in barring flights for around £600, i think thats alright?

    mrmichaelwright
    Free Member

    what are you looking for?

    if it’s just the lift accessed trails then no need for a guiding company

    if you want to explore a bit more then look into guided holidays or at least a couple of days

    we booked with Allura direct

    go for whistler village or village north for close access to shops/nightlife/lifts

    neil853
    Free Member

    Looking for some guiding and some free days too. taking my scott ransom so for want of a better phrase I want to go ‘all mountain riding’ errr I hate that word.

    Lift access is of course something we want to do.

    I’ve been to the alps a couple of times and I’ve heard that Canada is better?

    Any thoughts?

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    mrmichaelwright
    Free Member

    having only done the lift access stuff i’d say if you don’t want to ‘go big’ then you’ll be bored after a couple of days. it is however excellent for progression/pushing yourself). guiding will open up a bit more of the xc/singletrack stuff. i’ve only done lift accessed singletrack riding in the alps which was a different kettle of fish to our whistler trip

    our flat was here and was good VFM, modern and had good facilities and a communal hot tub (you’ll be needing that)

    EVERYTHING is expensive, avoid the week after american high school graduation, it’s like a see of hormone infested rich yoofs with an attitude.

    Whistler has the highest instance of STDs in the north americas, this will go some way to explaining the main theme of the night life!

    DO have a jug of Kokanee in the longhorn after your last run down the mountain

    DON’T forget to take mirrored sunglasses for enjoying ‘the view’

    scruff
    Free Member

    I’ve been to the alps a couple of times and I’ve heard that Canada is better?

    Sweeping statement there.

    2 mates live in Vancouver and ride Whistler but prefer riding North Shore and Squampton.

    frepster
    Free Member

    ive been out there in whistler for the last 3 seasons and in my opinion you really do not need to be guided. Whistler must be the most heavily mapped area you can go on a mountain bike. You can get maps froma ny of the bike shops there and there was a good trail guide book published last year. There are tons of trails in the valley that would keep you entertained for 2 weeks and they are all on the map and you can cycle to them all from the town. For accomodation I would reccomendhere. The guy who runs it is a local biker and will give you the lowdown on what isnt on the map if somehow you get bored with what is
    I mean if you have the money and dont mind paying for it then go with a tour company but they are only going to take you to the same trails that are on the maps.
    There are also numerous companys that will help you with skills in the bike park for the few days you may spend there, I would recomment Shaums March and his MMR camps. If you already have the skills to ride DH then again you dont need guiding as the trail guide and just talking to other riders on the lifts is all you need to make sure you ride the right trails for your level.

    steveh
    Full Member

    I’ve done a season in the alps and been over to Whistler for a holiday as well. I don’t thik you can say either is better.
    Whister is good as everything is based around 1 lift and it’s a fairly small area even with the xc trails. So it’s convenient and easy to get around. There are a wide range of trails so it is good for progressing. There is a full time maintenance crew to keep the trails in good condition. The compactness is the best bit but also the worst it means lift queues, popular trails get busy etc. Cost is the other big downside as a 2 week whistler trip cost me £1000 with flight and everything doing it on a mega budget and without guiding etc. 2 weeks in 3 different resorts in the alps last year in luxury cost about £700.

    I don’t want to sound too down on the place though. It’s definitely worth a trip and I’ll go back again at some point. I’d second the try and get some other places thing though. I did a day in squamish for about 80 dollars i think and also a day on the north shore. Both were great days.

    mrmichaelwright
    Free Member

    that’s a thirded for moving around a bit

    if you are likely to go to canada a lot then stay in one place but if this is likely to be an infrequent trip then try and get some different riding in, i’d recommend Bushpilot for guiding if you decide to see a bit of the interior. Whistler is a pretty long way from some of the more southern riding though

    shteve
    Free Member

    i used to live in whistler and the bike park is pretty intense and you can occupy yourself for weeks. there are quite a lot of good technical descents but you definately don’t need guidance in the bike park. Maybe just a few suggestions on what trails to hit first!

    there is a bit of local riding to be found too and of the ones i’ve ridden, they tend to be more XC / northshore than DH but they can be quite hard to find so would be good to ask the locals where to go.

    i’d agree with mrmichaelwright too, although its a close one between a jug of beer at merlins, longhorn or the GLC.

    jimmerhimself
    Free Member

    I’ve ridden in Les Arcs in the Alps and spent a couple of weeks out in Whistler with Ticket2Ride two years ago. As has been said, they are different and one can’t be said to be better than the other.

    I found Les Arcs steep, rocky, mental and a real brake killer. It was technically difficult from the off and pretty raw. Off the bike where we were was a bit isolated however and the evenings a bit dull.

    By comparison Whistler Bike Park is very, very progressive, pretty smooth for the most part and there are trails for everyone. I went out there as a committed Jeyboy and within a couple of days was fairly comfortable hitting black runs and getting moderate levels of air on a Turner Flux XC bike.

    The beauty of going with a company like T2R however, was that I got to see an awful lot more. We went out to Squamish and Pemberton which took an hour or so to get to by pick-up, but the riding was completely different. What I found great about riding even XC trails local to Whistler, like Kill Me, Thrill Me, is that they are a big step up in terms of technicality when compared to a UK trail.

    Whistler village itself has plenty of bars and restaurants and is nice and chilled in the evenings and not any more expensive than the UK I found. I’m heading out again this year for one very good reason, it’s still around CAD1.75 to the Pound. Europe looks as expensive, if not more so this Summer.

    According to locals I spoke to, the best time to go is September, because it’s dry, warm and quiet. It’s worth going to at least once!

    smoke
    Free Member

    Thanks for the plug, Mike.

    The thing I’m always reminding people about is that BC, which is a province of Canada, is larger than any single European country. Whistler, as rad as it is, comprises a tiny fraction of the riding available. Statistically speaking, Whistler is actually 0% of the available riding. There’s only a couple hundred km of singletrack there. The trails are typically a lot rougher and more technical than other places, and the bike park gets a lot of usage that results in some rough riding at times.

    What makes the place so great is that you’ve got good facilities right there. Hotels, restaurants, chair lifts, and it’s all set up to deal with bikes. It’s a no brainer place to get some fun rides in.

    Because BC is SO large and sparsely populated, it can be a bit of an adventure just getting a hotel in a lot of places. The best term would be “raw”.

    Other options to explore if the goal is quiet, uncrowded, pristine singletrack include:

    Sunshine Coast (3-5 days)
    Williams Lake (4-7 days)
    Vancouver Island (at least a week)
    the Okanagan Valley (another week, more if you include Kamloops)
    Revelstoke (really only a couple of days here, but it’s spectacular)
    Rossland and Nelson (up to a week)
    North Shore (3 days or more)

    Keep in mind the distances. Although you don’t have to deal with UK traffic, to go from Vancouver to Williams Lake to Nelson is about 15 hours of driving time, and it’s still another 8 hours back to Vancouver. Lots of people call up wanting to do it all in a week. You’re better off choosing one or two spots and concentrating on those.

    Guides are a great idea if you’re short on time and can afford it. For folks on a budget, Canadians are pretty friendly folks and usually fall all over themselves to show you the goods. The downside to this is that they don’t usually understand that you might not be used to the degree of difficulty they take for granted, and also you can waste a LOT of time trying to line up the info.

    GNARGNAR
    Free Member

    My advice would be to go to whistler, sooo many trails you’ll never get bored, break it up with a days heli biking on rainbow mountain. You’ll probably need a day to heal or deal with mechanicals too.

    BearBack
    Free Member

    Good guiding will maximise your riding experience.
    Bad guiding is a waste of everyones time.

    Our packages are comparable to the cost of a hotel, but you get food, transfers and great guiding included… and a bunch of like minded people to enjoy it all with.

    Whistler’s XC mapping is very good, but we’ve seen no end of people ride trails so far out of their comfort zone that we would never have contempleted taking them on. e.g. people picking up a map and heading into comfortably numb in the middle of the afternoon?!?!

    I’m sure Smoke will agree that their guided riding is tailored to the ability of the riders to ensure the best possible experience.

    Feel free to get in touch if you want info on our extremely well priced holiday packages.

    I really should hit Smoke up for a trip further into BC 😉

    markgraylish
    Free Member

    I’ll second what jimmer himself says. I’ve ridden Les Arcs and Morzine a couple of times and now live out in Vancouver so have ridden Whistler quite a few times as well as a couple of other BC bike parks (Silverstar and Sun Peaks), Squamish, Pemberton, Sunshine Coast, NS etc.

    One thing you’ve not mentioned is when you intend to come out here but bear in mind that the upper part of Whistler Bike Park may not be open due to snow if you come early season and, frankly, the lower runs aren’t enough to maintain interest for more than a couple of days (IMHO). Having said that, a group of my riding buddies spent two weeks riding A Line!

    Whilst I’m enjoying the “progression” of riding over here, I still think the most enjoyable riding I’ve ever done was with TrailAddiction in Les Arcs

    GNARGNAR
    Free Member

    markgraylish –
    One thing you’ve not mentioned is when you intend to come out here but bear in mind that the upper part of Whistler Bike Park may not be open due to snow if you come early season and, frankly, the lower runs aren’t enough to maintain interest for more than a couple of days (IMHO).

    Looks like the bike park will be opening early this years as there has been relatively little snow this year ( not a lack but a very low base apparently).

    MadPierre
    Full Member

    I’ve ridden Portes du Soleil, Alpe d’Huez, Les Arcs and Whistler.

    None are “better” than the others. They are different.

    As other have said the bike park is great for pushing yourself and is far more compact than anything in the Alps. Much of the XC around Whistler would be called “Freeride” in the UK!

    I can thoroughly recommend bearback for sorting you out with a cracking holiday. Indeed we are using their services again this year.

    Check out my web site for videos and photos of Whistler and the Alps for comparison….

    domino
    Full Member

    Have bookmarked the link for BushPilot / Smoke – I shall be looking out for the summer schedules. Flights are booked for August for three weeks. Current plan is to hire bikes ad hoc and ride in different places along our road trip from Calgary to Vancouver, any suggestions welcome (I am a wheels on the ground girl but will be takling the bike park again). Will hit the Whistler trails towards the end of our holiday again, have ridden there twice before for a couple of days.

    walleater
    Full Member

    Teh Alps have less trees.

    Out of all the areas I’ve ridden in BC, I like Whistler the least. I just found the trails a bit ‘faffy’ for want of a better explanation. Riding on the Shore can be at least as hard but still more fun, and riding in other areas (Harper, Smokes back yard etc) more flowy. Sure, going to Whistler Pyjama Party (the Bike Park…) is good for some uphill free riding (uphill free riding? I think I just invented a new niche…) but I’d rather ride elsewhere.

    Again, Smoke / Bushpilot is the way to go if you want guiding. All the experience and without all the ponciness of some other companies.

    GNARGNAR
    Free Member

    walleater

    Out of all the areas I’ve ridden in BC, I like Whistler the least. I just found the trails a bit ‘faffy’ for want of a better explanation.

    I nominate you for worst explanation ever.

    PinkOrange5
    Free Member

    Hellooo Mark G!

    I liked Whistler, went last year when the ruddy Sea to Sky road collapsed, only added 10 hours to the journey.
    I’ve been to Les Arcs and Morzine etc etc and agree with the comments above. We are going again to Whistler this year and there was no discussion about not going again.My OH half being one of the people that spent two weeks riding A line !!

    Price is a consideration though for some, is it really worth it compared to the three weeks in Europe?
    We went with Ticket2Ride who looked after us fine and I would recommend them. Going with BearBack this time as the person who has organised chose them.

    Has anyone mentioned the bears yet ??!!

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