Ski Louise

Had a fantastic time skiing in Canada. First time with the kids there this year -- one snow-plough turning, the other learning to board. It might not seem to make much sense to go to Canada from the UK for a ski holiday, but at half-term school holidays the alps are absolutely packed, and incredibly expensive. Plus a bad snow year in Canada would be a good year in the alps. The all-around service level is much higher in Canada. And the quality of instruction is just amazing. Every instructor, from the kids to adults, was just great. Canada takes ski instruction very seriously, and it's reasonable to expect consistently high-quality and coherent tutoring anywhere you'll find certified instructors. That said, all of them we've met have been fun, laid-back, and great about tailoring style and pace to the individual, despite (almost secretly) being really rigorous in skill-building.


In previous trips, without the kids, we'd stayed in Banff and at Lake Louise, skiing Mt. Norquay, Sunshine, and Lake Louise, but liking Louise the best. This year, with the kids, we tried the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, a ginormahoosive hotel on Lake Louise proper, about a 7-minute drive from the ski area. Character-wise, it's not exactly my ideal place, but it worked out perfectly for the family trip. Within the hotel are a variety of restaurants and shops, including a 24-hr deli that was a real deli, not a convenience store. At 3am we'd bump into other jet-lagged parents getting some bagels & cream cheese. The pool opened at 5am. The buffet breakfast perfectly suited each of us. I skipped the french toast (regular, plus some made with flattened croissants), pancakes, cereals, muesli, pastries, and fruits and went for the variety of egg dishes, ham, tomatoes & cucumbers, smoked salmon, etc. [Smoked salmon with sliced peppers & capers, plus eggs every morning!] The restaurants included a saloon with lots of sports on TV & sofas, which was perfect for olympics-watching. Very nice hotel, all around.


The ski area is not on the same scale as the larger linked european areas, but is quite large and diverse. The "easiest way down" is marked from the top of each lift, plus there are really nice intermediate runs, plus a ton of in-bounds but off-piste bumps and steeps and wooded runs (depending on snow) to satisfy all levels of ability. I personally spent most of my time getting faster on piste.


There are no accomodations at the ski area itself, but there's a large day-lodge with several different dining options, and of course a ski shop, service place, rentals shop, ski school, and such. The only on-mountain dining is the Temple Lodge behind the main mountain, at the bottom of the "larch" area which was originally the only ski hill. It includes cafeteria-style, table-service, and outdoor grill areas. The food was all pretty good. Not like the best on-mountain alpine food, but not bad. I usually skipped lunch and just went with a great breakfast, skiing all day, then a hearty early dinner at the hotel.

Overall, wonderful time. Can't wait to go back.