Category Archives: banff norquay

Free Skiing and Riding Christmas Day at Mt Norquay

Banff National Park,  AB – Mt. Norquay’s third annual Santa Shreds for Free takes place Christmas Day, 2014 offering a free day pass to those that arrive fully dressed as Jolly St. Nick, Mrs. Claus, an Elf or even a Reindeer.

“It’s less expensive to go buy a cheap Santa Suit than to pay for a lift pass, and you get to keep the suit”

“It’s less expensive to go buy a cheap Santa Suit than to pay for a lift pass, and you get to keep the suit,” said a Norquay guest taking advantage of the offer in 2013.

High Alpine Dining – The newly renovated Cliffhouse Bistro, will be open daily throughout the holiday season starting December 27th to January 4th. Norquay guests are invited to ride the historic North American Chair and take in legendary views of Banff whilst savoring the inspired flavors of new Executive Chef Morne Burger.

Experience winter in Banff from a whole new perspective. No longer exclusive to skiers and snowboarders, winter sightseeing from the North American Chairlift is available all season long, offering foot passengers the option of taking the chairlift up and down the mountain.

It’s going to be a great winter at Mt. Norquay – discover all that Banff’s closest resort has to offer.

All ski resorts in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies will be open this weekend and to celebrate, we are offering a FREE 3-day Tri-Area ski pass to one lucky Twitter follower (CA$279.09 value with tax). The Tri-Area ski pass covers Banff Norquay, Sunshine Village and Lake Louise ski resorts as well as the ski shuttles from Banff. Banff Norquay celebrated it’s earliest opening ever and is currently open weekends until November 30 2012. Sunshine Village and Lake Louise are set to open for the season this Friday, November 9 2012.

To enter, follow all you have to do is:

  1. Follow us on Twitter @HolidaysCanada
  2. RT the tweet below

One of tweeters who RT will be chosen at random to win the 3-day Tri-Area pass. The pass must be redeemed and used this season. Good luck and happy skiing!

New travel domains, Canada

Below are a few new travel domains utilizing the new .co domain extension.

Rocky Mountain Holidays now has the following:

Ski Holidays Canada now has the following:

Thanks for reading and enjoy all this snow we have been receiving!

April 2008 – Banff-Lake Louise-Sunshine events

Tuesday April 1st 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Beer Factor – Hoodoo 18+ only 10pm – late
Red Hot Karaoke – Wild Bills 18+ only 10pm – late

Wednesday April 2nd 2008
Wild West Wednesdays – Wild Bills 18+ only 8pm – Late

Thursday April 3rd 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Final Hockey Night: Ottawa vs. Toronto – Elk & Oarsman 5:30pm

Saturday April 5th 2008
Suds plays on the Kokanee Deck – Lake Louise Mountain Resort

Sunday April 6th 2008
TV Rock – Aurora’s 18+ only 9pm – Late

Monday April 7th 2008
Get Wild (Bake your own calzone)– Wild Flour Bakery 5pm – 6:30pm

Tuesday April 8th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Beer Factor – Hoodoo 18+ only 10pm – late
Red Hot Karaoke – Wild Bills 18+ only 10pm – late

Wednesday April 9th 2008
Wild West Wednesdays – Wild Bills 18+ only 8pm – Late
Ski Norquay Closed for the Day

Thursday April 10th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Ski Norquay Closed for the Day

Saturday April 12th 2008
End of Year Beach Party – Ski Norquay

Sunday April 13th 2008
Projected closing of Ski Norquay

Monday April 14th 2008
Get Wild (Bake your own calzone)– Wild Flour Bakery 5pm – 6:30pm

Tuesday April 15th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Beer Factor – Hoodoo 18+ only 10pm – late
Red Hot Karaoke – Wild Bills 18+ only 10pm – late

Wednesday April 16th 2008
Wild West Wednesdays – Wild Bills 18+ only 8pm – Late

Thursday April 17th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info

Friday April 18th 2008
Rob Bosinger Memorial Weekend – Sunshine Village

Saturday April 19th 2008
Rob Bosinger Memorial Weekend – Sunshine Village
Suds plays on the Kokanee Deck – Lake Louise Mountain Resort
Aaron Pritchett playing at Sunshine Village 2pm

Sunday April 20th 2008
Rob Bosinger Memorial Weekend – Sunshine Village
Aaron Pritchett playing at Sunshine Village 2pm

Monday April 21st 2008
Get Wild (Bake your own calzone)– Wild Flour Bakery 5pm – 6:30pm

Tuesday April 22nd 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Beer Factor – Hoodoo 18+ only 10pm – late
Red Hot Karaoke – Wild Bills 18+ only 10pm – late

Wednesday April 23rd 2008
Wild West Wednesdays – Wild Bills 18+ only 8pm – Late

Thursday April 24th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info

Friday April 25th 2008
ANZAC Day

Saturday April 26th 2008
Spring Episode ’08 – Lake Louise Mountain Resort
Kokanee Freeride – Lake Louise Mountain Resort
Coors Light Peak Party illScarlett playing – Sunshine Village

Sunday April 27th 2008
Spring Episode ’08 – Lake Louise Mountain Resort
Coors Light Peak Party illScarlett playing – Sunshine Village
Projected closing of Lake Louise Mountain Resort

Monday April 28th 2008
Get Wild (Bake your own calzone)– Wild Flour Bakery 5pm – 6:30pm

Tuesday April 29th 2008
Greek Night – Balkan visit www.banffbalkan.ca for more info
Beer Factor – Hoodoo 18+ only 10pm – late
Red Hot Karaoke – Wild Bills 18+ only 10pm – late

Friday April 30th 2008
Wild West Wednesdays – Wild Bills 18+ only 8pm – Late

Ski Holidays Canada

Thinking of a ski holiday in Canada? Considering visiting any of the following ski resorts: Banff Norquay, Fernie, Jasper Marmot Basin, Kicking Horse, Kimberley, Lake Louise, Nakiska, Panorama, Sunshine Village, Whistler Blackcomb? Then read on!

Things to consider before deciding where to go on a ski holiday in Canada. The following is based on statistics gathered direct from the ski hills by rocky-peak Ski Holidays.

? Price

We all have a budget to stick to, well, most of us anyway!

Best value ski resort: Jasper Marmot Basin

Most Expensive ski resort: Whistler Blackcomb

? Terrain (Based on % of resort)

Mostly beginner: Jasper Marmot Basin

Mostly intermediate: Nakiska

Mostly advanced: Whistler Blackcomb (Kicking Horse is close second)

Mostly Expert: Panorama

? Time of year

Earliest opening: Sunshine Village, Banff

Latest Closing: Whistler Blackcomb

Be aware that the coldest months are January and February. Some of the best rates of the season are in January and as long as you have plenty of warm clothes just in case, it is definately worth taking advantage of these rates.

? Duration

Longest season: Whistler Blackcomb (Sunshine Village, Banff close second)

Whistler Blackcomb opens November and closes in early June – how great is that?! Blackcomb Mountain also has a glacier which can be skiied on in the summer.

Sunshine Village, Banff closes end of May. If you are wanting to stay a season then go for the resorts with the longest season. If you are coming out for just week, it is best stick with just one resort, that way you will get to know the runs well. For two week ski holidays think about spending one week in one resort, and the other week in another.

If you don’t want to do the split resort ski holiday, Banff, for example, has access to Banff Norquay, Lake Louise and Sunshine Village and if you are prepared to travel a couple of hours, Kicking Horse onboard the popular Kicking Horse Express Ski Bus. Lake Louise also has easy access to all these resorts too.

? Snow Quantity

Greatest average snowfall: Whistler Blackcomb (Fernie is close second)

This might be why Fernie was rated number 5 best ski resort in North America in Skiing Magazine’s “Top 25 Resorts in North America”. Whistler Blackcomb was number one again!

If you are after deep powder, then increase your chances by visiting the resorts with the highest average snowfall. One thing to remember though is that you can have a powder day in most resorts if your timing is right (and you are lucky!), however, skiing while that snow is coming down is not that much fun as you can not see too much so don’t pray for too much snow at once!

? Snow Quality

Best quality: Sunshine Village, Banff

Quality not quantity comes to mind. Head to the higher resorts for the best quality snow. If the temperatures rise a bit, you still know you will be getting good quality snow, not that horrible slushy stuff. The higher the resorts, the lower the temperatures are going to be so that is something to bear in mind.

In my opinion, Sunshine Village, Banff has the best quality snow. It is ideally located on the Continental Divide and is a high resort and so Sunshine Village, Banff often receives snow when the other ski resorts aren’t.

? Best Powder

Kicking Horse without a doubt! Kicking Horse has it’s famous "champagne powder" that you can just cruise through. The air is so dry, you will find it is almost impossible to make snowballs out of this light fluffy powder. If it looks like the snow is going to hit Kicking Horse Mountain Resort while you are out here, be sure to hop on the Powder Express Bus to Kicking Horse.

? Racing

Do you like to Race?

The best for racing are Lake Louise and Nakiska. With their groomed runs you fly!

? Greatest Vertical

Do you like long runs?!

Whistler Blackcomb has the greatest vertical in North America (closely followed by Vail) and Kicking Horse has the greatest vertical in the Canadian Rockies. You will find your ankles will burn if you try to do the run from top to bottom in one go. It is certainly a buzz when you do a great last long run from top to bottom to finish your day.

? Skiable Terrain

Whistler Blackcomb comes first to no surprise. Lake Louise has the greatest skiable terrain in the Canadian Rockies. Both these resorts have enough runs for you to be finding new runs year after year!

? Family friendly resorts

All the resorts cater to families, some more so than others. Sunshine Village, Banff, Banff Norquay, Lake Louise, Jasper Marmot Basin and Whistler Blackcomb are all excellent for families of mixed ages and abilities.

? Accommodation preferences

You may want to decide what sort of ski accommodation you would like before you choose the ski resort as not all accommodation types are available at every resort. Larger resort homes are available in Whistler Blackcomb and Fernie unlike Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper which have just mostly hotel rooms. Ski-in, ski-out properties can only be found at Kicking Horse, Fernie, Kimberley, Panorama, Whistler Blackcomb, and Sunshine Village .

I hope I have been able to give you a few things to think about when planning your ski holiday in Canada. For more information and expert advice, be sure to contact rocky-peak Ski Holidays for your ski holiday in Canada.