Big White Ski Resort Opening
Big White Ski Resort will operate lifts for the first time for the 2012-2013 season, Thursday November 29th. They are scheduled to open will be the Ridge Rocket High-Speed Quad Chair, The Plaza Quad Chair and Lara’s Gondola (8 passenger) commencing at 8:45 am Thursday. Ticket prices will be reduced by 50%. Runs expected to open will be limited to Easy Out, Highway 33, Easy Street, Hummingbird, and Lower Perfections. More runs to operate snow permitting.
From Owner Directs Blog: Ski Season is Here!
Enjoy it in a Ski Condo….
Now is a great time to book a ski vacation! The resorts are opening and there is lots of snow in the forecast for this winter. A variety of rental accommodations is available for you to enjoy after a day of skiing, tubing, skating or tobogganing. Take your family or friends, and enjoy relaxing in front of a cozy fire or soaking your muscles in a hot tub. Owner Direct can help you find the right cabin or condo for your needs. Here are some tips for some of our favourite resorts.
Big White Resort
Big White, famous for its ‘snow ghosts‘ and light fluffy powder, offers plenty of lodging options on the mountain but you can also choose to stay in Kelowna to enjoy the city amenities. To get the most value out of your ski holiday at Big White:
Purchase multi-day tickets and save $10/day. Prices also include night skiing.
Redeem your Air Miles for a lift ticket (with no blackout dates) 525 air miles get you one full day lift ticket. Pretty sweet deal!
The Okanagan is famous for its delicious wines so why not plan your ski holiday around one of two wine tastings events at Big White: Big Reds takes place December 7th and 8th, while Big Whites takes place March 23rd. Both events offer a selection of locally inspired appetizers.
United Airlines Announcement: Los Angeles-Kelowna Non-Stop Flight
Big White Ski Resort is happy to share the exciting news with skiers and boarders that United Airlines will offer United Express year round daily service from Los Angeles (LAX) to Kelowna (YLW) beginning December 19th, 2012. Flights will leave LAX at 6:40pm and arrive in Kelowna at 9:44pm. The Okanagan has often been referred to as ‘Canada’s California’. Now a new route will unite the two regions.
“This is very exciting news for skiers and snowboarders in the Los Angeles area and beyond. The 3 hour flight makes Big White Ski Resort the closest and most accessible ski resort in Canada from the LA region,” said Michael J Ballingall, Big White Ski Resort’s Senior Vice President. “As Canada’s largest totally ski-in, ski-out resort, incredible snow conditions and world famous family friendliness, we are the perfect fit for this ski market.”
If you arrive via WestJet into Kelowna, you can ski for free the same day of your arrival! Customers that arrive at the Big White ticket windows and have a valid same-day (arrival only) WestJet boarding pass can exchange it for a lift ticket. The regularly scheduled shuttle bus can get you on the slopes in an hour from the airport.
Coquihalla Highway Tolls have been dropped so now it's more cost effective than ever to drive to Big White Mountain!
OwnerDirect.com:
Big White is located 45 miles from Kelowna in the Central Interior of B.C. It receives an average 24.5 feet of light 'champagne powder' every year and offers outstanding skiing and riding opportunities, with a wide variety of terrain. An eight passenger gondola links the 'Happy Valley' area (ice skating, Alpine Mega SnowCoaster Tubing, Cross Country Skiing, Dogsledding, Snowmobiling, Snowshoeing and lodgings) to the center of the Village. The 'Mega SnowCoaster' Tube Park, currently the largest in North America, has 9 lanes over 900 feet long and two lifts capable of uploading 600 people an hour.
The Big White Kid's Centre, awarded as "#1 programs and facilities for kids" in Canada for the last 3 years, offers a large variety of programs for beginner, intermediate and advanced levels, for children 3 yrs and up. Complimentary helmets are available. There is a Daycare facility for children 18 months and older.
Big White Ski Resort Official Site:
Big White Goes Big
By Tess Weaver
For years, riders at southern BC's Big White suffered through a tedious two-chair ride (two quads, or a quad and a t-bar) to reach the resort's main goods, an 800-vertical-foot stash known as The Cliff. At the same time, jibbers had little to work with and a long hike up the pipe. Relief came in the form of the Cliff lift and the TELUS terrain park. Now, White Heads can access their favorite cliff band with one quick ride and slide rail after rail in the new lift-accessed park.
Forty-five minutes southeast from Kelowna in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley, Big White is often referred to as "Big White-Out" due to an occasional dense fog. The key word there is "occasional"—seeing as the resort nabbed Ski Canada's "Best Weather" honors last year. Topping out at 7,606 feet, Big White offers more than 2,500 feet of vert and close to 2,800 acres of terrain dotted with massive bowls, hidden glades and above treeline, wide open steeps. And with more night skiing than anywhere in western Canada, the après scene stays on the hill.
"Though we are proud of the fact that Big White is a family-friendly mountain first and foremost, we have taken some steps to broaden the appeal of our resort to both freeskiers and terrain park skiers and riders," says Big White Media Relations Director Steve Threndyle.
The Cliff chairlift eliminates a pesky run-out and dramatically reduces lap time in Parachute Bowl, a horseshoe-shaped bowl offering 800-plus vertical feet and more than a hundred acres of terrain. The new lift also eases accessibility to East Peak—an area loaded with cliffs, chutes and big-mountain style lines.
In addition to the Cliff chair, double chair services Big White's TELUS terrain park, offering a 500-foot long World Cup standard Superpipe, a half pipe, a skiercross course and a multitude of rails. Beginner, intermediate and advanced lanes separate Joey from the Whistler/Pemberton crowd sessioning under the stars.
Daily flights from Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto offer service to Kelowna. From there, Big White and its sister resort, Silver Star, are less than an hour's drive.
Winter Weekly Events include:----- Mondays - free Kids Center Craft night; Tuesdays - Kids Skating Party and free Bingo night; Wednesdays - Big White Idol night; Thursdays - free Family Carnival Night; Fridays - Evening entertainment at Happy Valley Day Lodge; Saturdays - free Family Carnival Night; Sundays - Family movie night. Every night is a bonfire and hot chocolate at various spots around the resort too.
See the Big White Ski Resort site for more info on events, activities, etc Big White Ski Resort
Costco in Kelowna should be your first stop before heading to Silver Star and Big White as we introduce our Ticket To Ride Card to the Okanagan.
Purchase your Ticket To Ride card for just $54, which includes your first day of skiing at either Silver Star or Big White. Then every time you use the card after that you get $10 OFF a regular priced lift ticket.