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Essential Travel Ski Guides
click here for a ski insurance quotation Travel to Fernie Alpine with ski insurance from Essential TravelLocated in the southeastern corner of British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies, Fernie Alpine is a growing, yet uncrowded and unspoilt ski resort with lots of quality snow.The slope-side resort, Timberline Village, is undergoing continual development to reach its full potential and has resort rentals, a superb ski school, a grocery store and liquor outlet, and childcare for newborns to six-year-olds. The nearby, rustic old mining town of Fernie has additional facilities and shopping. Fernie Alpine ski resort has 220kms of trails that traverse an 860-metre vertical, and some of the steepest inbound terrain in North America. There is a wide variety of runs for beginners and intermediates alike, while advanced sliders have lots of powder and snowboarders have a half-pipe and specialist park. Ten lifts, including high-speed quads, have an hourly uplift capacity of 13,716 people. Kimberley Mountain ski resort offers alternative sliding and is a 90-minute drive northwest of Fernie Alpine resort, on highway 3. A lot quieter than Fernie Alpine resort, Kimberley has plenty of groomed cruisers, moguls and glades. Also, the Canadian Rockies Super Pass allows the use of several other top resorts in the province. Fernie Alpine’s ski season runs from December to April, and kids aged five years and younger ski for free. Most people fly to Calgary and take a shuttle bus or hire a car to get to Fernie, while those who prefer greater convenience can fly to nearby Cranbrook and transfer by car from there. Skiing in Fernie AlpineFernie Alpine ski resort is located to the south of Calgary, about 50kms north of the US border with Montana, and is a growing resort with significant potential. The 220kms of skiable terrain is incredibly diverse and includes some challenging off-piste. Snowboarders have access to all slopes as well as the terrain park, with its jumps, rails, wall jump, bank turns and assorted rollers.Fernie’s 220kms of trails are divided into 30 per cent for beginners, 40 per cent for intermediates and 30 per cent for advanced and expert sliders. Experts have lots of powder and fantastic steeps, and snowboarders are offered numerous gullies. The pistes are served by 10 lift systems that glide over the 860-metre vertical at a rate of 13,700 people per hour. Cross-country skiers have 15kms of trails. The December to April ski season at Fernie ski resort has its best natural snow conditions in February and offers free skiing for children under six years. The most practical travel option for getting to Fernie is to fly to Calgary International Airport and transfer to the resort by shuttle bus. Après-ski in Fernie AlpineThere are over 4,300 beds at Fernie Alpine ski resort divided amongst hostels, houses, hotels and some upmarket condos - one of which has a dining room and lounge, sauna, jacuzzi, pool, and hot tubs. Nearby, the town of Fernie offers an additional 6,700 beds. Ten mountain eateries and a ski bar at the base make up the après-ski.Other winter activities and facilities at Fernie Alpine ski resort include: back-country touring, sleigh riding, snowshoeing, dogsled tours, and extensive snowcat riding. For relaxation, the 220-room condo has a sauna, jacuzzi, swimming pool, and hot tubs; while après-ski consists of a cinema, bowling, an aquatic centre, several mountain restaurants, and a ski bar at the base. Facilities at the resort include: a ski/sports and rentals shop, a commendable ski school, a grocery store, and excellent childcare for infants to six-year-olds. There is every type of lodging at the resort, from hotels and condos to hostels and inns, with over 4,000 beds available at the slopes and a further 6,700 in Fernie town. Transportation in Fernie AlpineFernie Alpine ski resort is located in the southeast of British Columbia, exactly 300kms southwest of Calgary and five kilometres from the town of Fernie itself. Due to its remoteness, the only real option for getting here is to fly, with Calgary International Airport offering the best choices.If you’re driving from Calgary, the best route in the winter goes south on provincial highway 2 to Fort Macleod, from where highway 3 goes west to Fernie town. Weather permitting, a shorter route goes via Black Diamond and highway 7, from where highway 22 goes south and intersects with highway 3 (west) for Fernie town. From there, head south on highway 3 and turn left for Fernie Alpine ski resort. Calgary International Airport is the nearest major international airport and services most major airlines, including those with flights from London. From the airport, Fernie Alpine is a four-hour drive, or slightly more going via Fort Macleod. For more convenience, there are flights to Cranbrook Airport (west of Fernie Alpine) aboard Air BC or, alternatively, Glacier International Airport in Kalispell (Montana) also receives many flights. The Rocky Mountain Sky Shuttle from Calgary International Airport offers a reasonably priced roundtrip service. If driving from Cranbrook Airport, head northeast, then southwest along highway 3, via Wardner and Elko. From Kalispell, head north along highway 93 to Elko, from where highway 3 goes to Fernie Alpine ski resort. While you are in the resort and if you don’t have a car, Kootenay Taxi runs a ski shuttle between the mountain and town. Fernie Alpine Partner & ResourcesMountain Ash Lodge Fernie Fat-Tire Adventures Fernie Vacation Planner |
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