Whistler Activities

There is a wealth of things to do in Whistler during winter beyond skiing and snowboarding at Whistler ski resort. Whether you want to extend your skiing beyond the boundaries of the resort into the backcountry, pamper yourself with spa treatments, or take a snowmobile or dog sledding tour, Whistler pretty much has it all!

Whistler Heli Skiing

The exhilaration of Whistler heli skiing or heli boarding will provide the perfect adjunct to your Whistler ski holiday. Ogling the views from the helicopter are an amazing experience in itself, but shredding all that fresh backcountry powder is what really gets powder hounds drooling! There are Whistler heli skiing packages available to suit intermediate to expert skiers and snowboarders from three heli ski providers.

The Whistler Heli Skiing company provides a range of packages. Their specialty is their 3 and 4 run packages with big helicopters (and big groups). They are best suited to first time heli skiers and those with limited powder skiing experience. Whistler Heli Skiing also has a small group, 6 run package. Whistler Heli Skiing has amazingly vast terrain so they have a huge choice of terrain to find the best snow available.

Phantom Heli Skiing is more of a boutique operation that's based out of Squamish, with transfers from Whistler. Phantom offers semi-private (4 in your group with helicopter shared with another group) or private (4 in your group with exclusive use of the helicopter). You can either go heli skiing from Whistler for the day, or to fully spoil yourself you can tack a multi-day package onto the end of your Whistler ski vacation. The lodging for multi-day trips is in a secluded boutique lodge. Alternatively once you've had a warm-up at Whistler Blackcomb you could head up to Tyax Heliskiing, which is 131km north of Whistler. TLH Heli Skiing offer multi-day packages (3, 4, 5 or 7 days) with unlimited vertical which means unlimited powder bliss!

Guided Backcountry Ski Tours

If you prefer to earn your turns, there are several operators in Whistler that offer daily or multi-day backcountry ski and snowboard tours. Whistler Blackcomb has a massive amount of lift-accessible backcountry, meaning you can access a lot of untracked terrain in a day.

Whistler Alpine Guides Bureau Certified guides based in Whistler. Offer backcountry ski/snowboard touring & instruction, ski mountaineering, multi-day ski touring, ice climbing, avalanche courses & more.

Cross-Country Skiing Whistler

There are lots of Nordic skiing opportunities around the Whistler area. Closest to Whistler is the Lost Lake venue, which features 32km of cross country trails and night skiing on some of the trails. Whistler Olympic Park and Callaghan Valley are located about 16 kilometres from Whistler, offering more than 90km of tracks. Cross country ski lessons and rental equipment are readily available.

Family Activities Whistler

There are lots of family activities in Whistler. One example is the tubing park on Blackcomb Mountain (catch the free Blackcomb Excalibur gondola up to the park), which is open until 8pm. Ice skating at the Whistler Olympic Plaza (North Village) on the outdoor rink is another popular family activity, or other options include snowshoeing and sleigh rides.

Whistler Adventure Activities

The tourist trade in adventure activities is alive and well, with a large range of things to do in Whistler.

Canadian Wilderness Adventures offer dog sledding tours that run for a few hours. The dogs will take you for a ride on beautiful trails in the Callaghan Valley.

Canadian Wilderness Adventures (aka Canadian Snowmobile Adventures) also offer a variety of snowmobiling tours for beginners up to advanced riders, with the latter heading heading into the backcountry for some powder chasing. One of the tours is a Whistler fondue dinner trip. It starts with the guided snowmobile tour up to the Crystal Hut on Blackcomb Mountain. The dinner includes a couple of fondues, dessert, wine and live music, before you head down the mountain and enjoy the views of the twinkling lights of Whistler. For those who don’t want to ride a snowmobile (or want to drink a bit of alcohol with dinner), the other option is to take a snowcat tour up to the Crystal Hut instead. The Whistler fondue tour is a pretty unique experience. 

Zip Trek Eco Tours is a great tour if you’re feeling like an afternoon off the slopes and want to partake in an activity that’s not too sedate. 

Other adventure activities include ice climbing, bungee jumping and ice hockey, or you can visit the Great Wall Climbing and Guiding Centre.

Whistler Spas

If you feel like a well earned rest from the slopes, or just in the mood to spoil yourself, then there are a number of Whistler day spas whose services you can avail of. Treatments include a simple one hour massage to a full day all encompassing body and mind adjustment.

Other Whistler Activities

There are also art galleries to stroll through, and of course there’s the famous Whistler shopping.