Travel to Red Mountain with ski insurance from Essential Travel

One of the oldest ski resorts in Canada, Red Mountain ski resort (also known as Red Resort), located near the US border in south-central British Columbia, was the site of the first World Cup race ever held in Canada.

Facilities-wise, there is a complete ski and snowboard rental shop, gift shop, and a ski accessory shop. Children have dedicated ski programmes for ages three to 12 years, and there is childcare for youngsters from 18 months to six years. The bustling town of Rossland is also nearby and provides more services and a hospital.

Red Mountain is known for its fantastic tree skiing and riding, and deep and steep to wide terrain suitable for all abilities. The two mountains - thrilling Granite Mountain and the easier Red - have 83 trails between them and an 888-metre vertical. Eight lifts, including two high-speed quads, have a lift rate of 10,700 people per hour, and the longest run, Long Squaw, is four kilometres.

If you have a car and hanker for some alternative sliding, Kimberley Alpine is a laid-back ski resort four hours northeast of Red Mountain ski resort, and enjoys uncongested mogul and glade skiing as well as two excellent terrain parks and a half-pipe.

The ski season at Red Mountain resort runs from December to April and children ages six years and younger and seniors over 74 years ski for free. The most convenient way to get to Red Mountain ski resort is to fly to Castlegar, via Calgary or Vancouver, and transfer by hire car or shuttle bus.

Skiing in Red Mountain

Red Mountain ski resort (also known as Red Resort) is located in the West Kootenay region of south-central British Columbia, near the gold rush city of Rossland. The mountain, boasting some of the most exciting and challenging tree and meadow skiing in Canada, is for the adventurous slider.

Red Mountain resort has 83 superb runs down an 888-metre vertical; these are divided into 25 per cent for beginners, 40 per cent for intermediates, 25 per cent for advanced sliders and 10 per cent for experts. The longest run is four kilometres. Access is provided by eight lifts and, in addition to the pisted runs, there are two half-pipes for snowboarders and 50kms of cross-country trails.

All necessary ski services and facilities such as ski and snowboard rentals and a ski school with childcare services are available at the slopes. The old-fashioned mining town of Rossland is a joy to wander around and provides additional amenities and wide-ranging accommodation.

The best snow conditions of the December to April ski season at Red Mountain are to be had towards the end of the season. Nearby Castlegar has a regional airport with daily flights from Calgary and Vancouver, and shuttles, taxis and car hire are available from here for transport to the resort.

Après-ski in Red Mountain

Non-ski activities at Red Mountain ski resort include: unlimited touring in the Custer National Forest, ice-fishing, ice-skating, mountaineering, sleigh riding, snowmobiling, skidooing and tubing. A swimming pool is also available and there is a health club nearby. Some of the restaurants on and off the mountain are exceptional, and a few notable bars have lively après-ski.

The town of Rossland, 10kms away, provides the accommodation with its numerous hotels, motels, condos, bed-and-breakfasts and guest homes. Lift, rental, lessons and lodging package deals are available.

A number of superb restaurants serve diverse, upscale and contemporary cuisine at the slopes; while in the town, Rafter’s Lounge and Gypsy at Red provide the après-ski. Rossland offers additional après-ski.

Transportation in Red Mountain

Situated in Canada, the resort of Red Mountain (also known as Red Resort) is just 15kms north of the Washington state border, 190kms north of Spokane, and 620kms east of Vancouver. A combination of flying to Castlegar via Vancouver, Calgary or Edmonton is the most practical travel option from overseas, while self-drive is also feasible.

By car from Vancouver, Red Mountain is a 620-kilometre, eight-hour drive via Trans-Canada Highway 1 to Hope, from where highway 3 runs on to Castlegar, intersecting with the southbound highway 3 for Rossland; the resort is 5.5kms from there. The three-hour drive from Spokane goes via highway 395 to Colville, from where route 9425 and highways 25 and 22 go to Rossland.

There are daily flights with Air BC or Time Air from Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton to Castlegar, the nearest airport to Red Mountain ski resort; hotel pick-ups are available from the airport to the resort. The nearest major airport is Spokane International Airport in Washington state, with flights arriving from all over the US and from London in the UK. Shuttles are available from Spokane to Red Mountain resort.

Daily bus service and coach charters are also available from Spokane to Rossland. Shuttles run to and from Rossland lodgings and the slopes of Red Mountain ski resort throughout the day until a little after the slopes close at 15:30.

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