worldtraveller73

Trip Introduction: Skiing Through Canada's British Columbia's Coastal and Interior Mountain Range, during a Pandemic.


Trip Background:

My local and regular ski hill at Whistler Blackcomb, was not easy to do business with these days. Since being taken over by Vail Resorts from the locally owned Intrawest, the Vail Resorts management had been a lot less kind and generous to visitors.

After I had used up my shorter five day ski pass during the 2020-2021 ski season, the discounts during a pandemic season were only 15% off the full price lift ticket at $167 CAD a day. This was an interesting value proposition considering their only guests able to visit were Canadians since the international borders remained closed and locked out to all international travellers. Seeing discounted $100 spring lift ticket days were not uncommon under the previous management. However, the deep discounts to attract the Vancouver visitors would never arrive and it seemed as though Vail Resorts had just given up on the 2020 - 2021 ski season. As a result, we opted to take our money elsewhere and get in some extra spring days at other local British Columbia ski areas. For this trip, it would involve a trip up to Big White, Kelowna and another stop at Sun Peaks Resort outside of Kamloops.

It turns out, Whistler Blackcomb would eventually be ordered closed by the provincial health authority for 3 weeks, and Vail Resorts under it's unfriendly customer applications would close out its pass holders and would elect not to re-open for the rest of the season thanks to a management decision that they didn't think it was worth re-opening for the last 4 weeks of the April ski season.

Trip Planning and Constructing the Trip:

For the first leg of our adventure, since the west coast Sea to Sky Highway is almost dry and snow free, we used our own car to get to and from Whistler from Vancouver.
.

Given the distances involved, for the portions of the trip involving the travel to the interior of British Columbia, we elected to rent a car through our local edition Hertz HLE. The highways in the region are famous for rock chips and given the mess that are Canadian roads in the winter, it was almost easier to return a dirty car to Hertz than spend my weekend time attempting to get my own car clean.

Given that Marriott was offering a "height of pandemic" promotion of Double Elite Nights and Double Points, we opted to stay at Marriott properties throughout this trip. We elected for the Delta Grand Okanagan in Kelowna, and for the less inspiring Fairfield Inn and Suites in Kamloops, British Columbia. While no one is ever excited to stay at Fairfield Inn, both properties met our needs and were reasonably comfortable for the 1,200 kilometer spin around British Columbia.

We had a great short and circular trip through the various regions of British Columbia, enjoying one of the more empty ski seasons British Columbia had to offer.

I hope you enjoy following along on another adventure through British Columbia's mountains.

For a more detailed version of this trip report, please see the trip at www.worldtraveller73.com

Links to my previous reports:

Kauai and the United Island Hopper via Alaska Airlines First Class & United Airlines, February 2020
Peggy’s Cove & Halifax & Canada’ National Remembrance Day via Air Canada Business, November 2019
Chasing Legends In Ireland, London and Portugal via Tap Portugal and British Airways Business Class, Sept 2019
Melbourne, The Gold Coast & Whitsundays Great Barrier Reef via Qantas First Class, Aug 2019
Whale Sharks, Tacos and Baja California via Alaska First Class, April 2019
Fried Chicken, CNN and Human Rights in Atlanta, Georgia, USA via United First, April 2019
Spring Break in Park City, Utah, USA via Alaska Airlines, March 2019
Christkindlesmarkt (Christmas Market) Villages in Germany via British Airways and Lufthansa First Class, Dec 2018
Iceland, Spain & Morocco via IcelandAir Business Class & British Airways First Class, Sept 2018
East Africa: Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada & Turkish Airlines Business Class June 2018
Spring Break with WT73jr at Vail Colorado, USA via Alaska Airlines. March 2018
A 3 Day Trip to Miami and the St Regis Bal Harbour via Alaska Airlines, Jan 2018
Polyensia Part II: Easter Island, Chile & Mexico City, Mexico via LATAM Business Class. Sept 2017
Summer is a state of mind; Kaanapali, Maui, via Alaska Airlines with my 13 yr old son, August 2017
Fiji, New Zealand and French Polynesia via Fiji Airways, Air New Zealand and Air Tahiti Nui Business Class, June 2017
Mileage Running to New York via Delta Airlines First Class for Alaska MVP Status, Dec 2016
Havana and Varadero Cuba via Westjet Holidays from Canada, Nov 2016
Malta (and the island of Gozo), Venice, Italy and Oktoberfest in Munich, via Air France Business Class, Sept 2016
South Africa, Namibia, Victoria Falls, Mauritius & the UAE via Emirates First, Qatar & South African Airways Business, April 2016
Pearl Harbor, The First Lady of Waikiki and Wailea, Hawaii via Alaska Airlines First Class, January 2016
Dodging Volcanic Ash: A family trip to Bali / Singapore with my 11 year old via Asiana, KLM and JAL Business, July 2015
RTW#3 (J): Vietnam, Maldives, and Tackling India’s Golden Triangle via Air Canada, Asiana Singapore, Air India and Turkish Airlines Business, May 2015
Experiencing flying as a "Non-Rev", Australia Wine and Beaches via Air Canada and Qantas Business, November 2014
Alaska Airlines First Class to Las Vegas, and a stay in the Aria Sky Suites “Penthouse” via Alaska Airlines First Class, August 2014
Family trip to Kenora Lake of the Woods Ontario via Air Canada Business Class. August 2014
Cathay Pacific First Class to New York, a sombre visit to the 9/11 Memorial Museum & 4 days of eating in NYC, May 2014
RTW #2 The Khors of Oman via Japan, Poland & the UAE via ANA, Thai, Lufthansa Business Class, April 2014
South Africa, Safari in Maasai Mara Kenya, & Mauritius via South African Airways, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class, Nov 2013
A family trip to Westin Playa Conchal, Liberia Costa Rica via United Airlines, Aug 2013
Buried Treasure: UAE Empty Quarter and Beyond to Huvadhoo Atoll, Maldives via United and Etihad Airlines, Nov 2012
RTW #1(F) The Time Share Presentation: Spain / China / Thailand via Asiana, Thai and Lufthansa First Class, May 2012
A visit to Macchu Picchu and Valle Nevado, Peru and Chile via Air Canada Business Class, Sept 2011
Travel after the Revolution of January 25, 2011. Egypt via Egypt Air, May 2011
A Step Back in Time: The Twilight of Burma, a visit to Myanmar via Silk Airways, Sept 2010

worldtraveller73

Planning a Visit to Whistler / Blackcomb:

The Whistler / Blackcomb response to the pandemic was about as safe as you could imagine. Firstly, the resort used a reservation system to limit the amount of visitors on the hill. While it was great to have a general capacity system, the weekends frequently booked out several weeks, if not months in advance making it difficult for any spontaneous skiing.

A Long and Lengthy Mountain Upload:

Regulars to the Whistler valley would recognize that the upload to the alpine is typically through shared multi cabin gondolas. Vail Resorts took a pandemic policy of only uploading one family bubble per cabin. This resulted in tremendous lines, which further appeared much longer through social distancing measures.


A Socially Distant Initial Upload Line: Blackcomb Gondola

The initial upload lines were typically 30 – 60 minutes on a weekend day, which really cut into your skiing times. A morning of stretching lines throughout the upper village in the Blackcomb Benchlands would be the usual routines of the day.


A Somewhat Slow Start to the Day


Yikes: Difficult Inspiration During Pandemic Ski Times



A Day Starts with Forty Five Minute Lines

Once you finally got into the gondola, the upload was marked with solid signs that encouraged advanced booking of restaurants. There was also signage that encouraged open air gondolas.



Making Lunch Reservations, on a Gondola, with a QR Code


Face Coverings and Windows Open

Needless to say, pandemic or not, the Blackcomb Mountain upload still had great winter views of the valley. The West Coast snow dumps were ever present on our visits. The snow lines stretched down one side of the mountain and up the other side of the valley.



Powdery Upload ViewsOn the hill, we were treated to great skiing conditions on some exceptionally empty slopes and hills.



Vast Empty Slopes with no other guests


Seventh Heaven Views Towards Whistler

The lack of crowds made the season all the more unique thanks to no one being around.

On Hill Eating at Glacier Creek Restaurant:

Since it’s a long way from the top of Whistler / Blackcomb Mountains to the valley floor, it’s typically much easier to eat directly on the hill. The Whistler Blackcomb restaurants were set up through reservations system administered using the Tock system. Fortunately, it wasn’t all to bad to get availability. We would be able to book and usually get a table within 60 – 90 minutes of requesting one. As a result, we often played it day by day and hour by hour. We typically ate late in the day.



Even the Skis Were Parked in a Socially Distant Manner

Once you arrived to the restaurant to claim your reservation, you were led to a table by a host. The tables were all socially spread out and distanced, with the usual plexi glass divider screens; certainly a strange look for a remote on hill ski lodge.



Your Claim Slip



Finding Table D604


Locating a Table Separated by Plexi Glass



Odd layouts in the usually packed five hundred seat restaurant



The cafeteria flows through the Glacier Creek lodge were also reformed into a one way path. It was the same general food, which has gotten a little less exciting over the years. It’s become a bit more cafeteria versus upscale casual.

Vail Resorts Makes an Effort at Apres Ski:

Merlin’s Restaurant Runs at Part Capacity and Part Hours

Vail Resorts has taken a very conservative use of it’s food and beverage outlets under the “new” management. Most of them have been closed in the evenings after apres ski; sometimes they haven’t even made an effort to keep any of them open.

We were able to get in some Apres Ski at the legendary Merlins Restaurant and Bar which has anchored the base of Blackcomb Mountain since 1987. Despite the pandemic making things a little gloomier than normal, it was still nice to sit on an open patio and enjoy a crisp Kokanee Gold draft beer.



The Merlin’s Bar Apres Ski Patio



A Kokanee Gold and a Growers Cider



Views up the Hill

Winter Snow Blasts through the Whistler Valley:

The snow at Whistler Blackcomb was deep at times. There were days that the valley got deep winter blasts of snow. This was a mixed blessing of providing additional snow base, but reservations some times precluded our access to the alpine.



Whistler Winter Snow Dumps


The Covered Olympic Rings at Medal Plaza



A Walk through a snow covered village

Experiencing Skiing at Whistler during a Pandemic:

Well – like many things in the pandemic, it wasn’t perfect. Long lines, reservations that weren’t always available and a ski hill that gave up hope almost immediately when times got tough. I’m fortunate that I didn’t have to a long way domestically or internationally for limited services and experiences. However, better days are ahead and it’s hopeful we’ll be beyond the worldwide pandemic real soon.

For more detailed version of this trip report, please see www.worldtraveller73.com

worldtraveller73

Activity: Gliding in Champagne at Big White, Canada’s Family Ski Resort, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, during a Pandemic.

Planning a Visit to Big White:

The Ski Resort of Big White is situated approximately one hour away from the central Okanagan city of Kelowna, British Columbia. The nearest airport is the Kelowna International Airport (Airport Code: YLW), which is serviced by Air Canada, Westjet and occasionally Alaska Airlines and Canadian Low Cost Carrier Flair Airlines.


On our trip, we opted to stay in Kelowna, British Columbia at the Delta Grand Resort Okangan by Marriott Hotels – Kelowna. On this particular visit, we received an Marriott Bonvoy Titanium upgrade to a large one bedroom condominium. We’ve reviewed the Delta Grand Okanagan before, so please see there if you are interested in the stay at that hotel property.

From the city of Kelowna, we had a one hour drive up to Big White. On our morning drive, we had a two lane rural farm road that had snow on it. Although the road was sanded and tracked in upward lane, it had snow overnight and was not tracked in the southbound lane. It wasn’t 4WD material and was comfortably driven in the front wheel drive Jetta. We had a mature growth forest views thick with trees.

On the day we were to ski at Big White Ski Resort, we booked a lift ticket on line. While there were capacity controls, we had pretty good availability and had no difficulty securing a preferred date. The prices were much more reasonable than Whistler Blackcomb at only $89 CAD per person (compared to $167 CAD).



Big White Ski Resort Trail Map

Arriving to Big White:

On arrival, we parked at the Happy Valley parking lot. It was a massive parking lot which was pandemic deserted on our visit. There was space for probably about one thousand cars but there was less than fifty in the lot on our visit.

We took the short gondola up and had a little difficulty locating the lift ticket counters. It was a bit of a confusing layout on how to get to around initially. Big White offers an intertwined ski in / ski out village it took a few guesses to identify the ticket windows in order to exchange our printed emails for a lift pass.

Skiing Big White:

We started off skiing on the east side of the mountain on the Black Forest Express. The Black Forest Express didn’t remind me of Bavaria Germany in any way. The hill was mostly deserted. We had some grey conditions in the morning, which made the visibility a little flat. The hills on Black Forest were gently rolling and weren’t too steeply pitched.


Traces of Powder on The Black Forest Express

MrsWT73 at the start of our day

Completely Empty Hills

The Black Forest Area also offered a real beginners area with lots of glades and terrain that is suitable for gladed skiing. Thanks to the fine snow, there were no concerns with tree wells here.

We headed over to the middle mountain area, which was completely untouched. The powder was super fine, dry and low in water content.


Empty Slopes & Empty Chairs

Stormy Skies lead to interesting contrasts of grey



We eventually made our way over to the far west of the mountain, Ridge Express. The Ridge Express offers the most advanced skiing that Big White has to offer. The slopes are substantially steeper pitched than the rest of Big White.


The Ridge Express




More Deserted and Isolated Slopes

Food and Beverage at West Ridge Warming Hut:

We eventually stopped for a late lunch at the West Ridge Warming Hut. After placing our name on the list, we had a 15 minute wait before we could get seated. It was pretty austere inside, and consistent with being a smaller ski area. We struck out on getting alcohol at this location; another casualty of the health pandemic.


The West Ridge Warming Hut


The Small West Ridge Warming HutIt was nearing the end of the day, so we hit up the slopes for a few more runs. It was much snowier on the Ridge Express side of the resort, as evidenced by the trees.



A Snowed Over part of the HillWe eventually made our way back towards the main resort area. We stopped to take in the view of the Big White Resort town.


The Big White Resort Panoramic


The Big White Resort VillageI went up for a few more runs. MrsWT73 was going woman down by the end of the day, thanks to all the runs we had done.



MrsWT73 taking a short “rest”

Finally, towards the end of the day, the grey weather broke and the blue started to show in the skies.



The Snow Ghost Express


Finally seeing some clear bluesI paused for a funny photograph next to a popular run sign entitled “Perfection”.



We had a fully day of skiing with the day starting at 8:45 and ending at 4:00 PM. While the skiing was enjoyable with terrific snow, I didn’t find the ski area to be all too challenging or advanced. It would be perfect for families or those learning how to ski.

Apres Ski:

Finishing the day at Snowshoe Sam’s

After the day’s skiing, it was time for an apres ski beer. At Big White, the place to be was at Snowshoe Sam’s. Snowshoe Sam’s was officially rated by Ski Canada magazine as the number one ski bar in North America. I had never heard of the place before our visit.

The Snowshoe Inn was located in the pedestrian oriented resort town of Big White. The blue skies were very short as the snow started to come down just at the end of the day.


Locating Snowshoe Sam’s

Snowshoe Sam’s Bar under the Snow


The Plaque to Prove it: #1 Apres Ski Bar in North America

The Snowshoe Inn ski bar was pretty standard fare for a ski bar; funky stuff on the wall and a great selection of Canadian draft beer.



Beer Taps Across the Ceiling


Snoeshow Sam’s BarIt was apres ski nachos and a crisp Kokannee for me. I certainly can’t complaint with a colorful plate like this.




After Snowshoe Sam’s, we popped on the skis and headed back to the car. We had a short ski through town, to get back to Happy Valley Parking Lot.



Skiing Out after an Apres


Passing the Local Luxury HousesWe were able to ski right to the car rental. This was a bonus for MrsWT73 as it meant no carrying of skis. This was always a bonus.



The End of a Ski Day

Summary: Our day at Big White Resort:

Our day at Big White Ski Resort was an enjoyable and deserted experience. The snow was excellent, although I didn’t personally find the skiing to be all to challenging. It was a more more economical version than Whistler Blackcomb. While some of the other features usually associated with skiing – such as beer and wine were cancelled. The visit to Snowshoe Sam’s was also a neat artifact and worthy of a visit if you happen to be at Big White.

For a more detailed version of this trip report, please see www.worldtraveller73.com

worldtraveller73

Home Block Restaurant, Cedar Creek Winery, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

Planning a Visit to Home Block:

The Okanagan Area is home to many excellent wineries. We’ve previously visited the area in detail, visiting the hot climates that the region has to offer. During our stay at the Delta Grand Okanagan by Marriott Kelowna, I ended up taking MrsWT73 to dinner at a restaurant that I usually visited on business trips; The Home Block at Cedar Creek.

I booked a table through Open Table Reservation systems. It was quick and easy and we were able to get our preferred dates without any issues or challenges. We ended up self driving to the restaurant, which was about twenty minutes drive from the Delta Grand Okanagan.

Arriving to Home Block:

The Home Block at Cedar Creek is the winery restaurant of Cedar Creek. It’s situated in a beautiful complex that overlooks Lake Okanagan.


The Home Block Restaurant and Patio

The Home Block Restaurant


Arriving to Home BlockWe were greeted promptly at the bar and were led to our seats. The setting in the restaurant is modern contemporary, which floor to ceiling windows that over look the sloping vineyard views towards the lake. There is a medium sized patio, which would be wonderful for summer time dinner dining.


Home Block Restaurant

Seating at Home Block Restaurant


Seating at Home Block: Overlooking the Tasting Room



Table Setting: Home Block Restaurant

The Meal: A Three Course Dinner

The meal at Home Block was a three course dinner, that offered several selections between the first, second and dessert courses. While I’ve previously visited where the menu was completely “a-la-carte”, the restaurant had switched to a set menu during the pandemic.



Three Course Menu



First Course: Appetizers



Second Course: Mains



Third Course: Desserts

For the starter, we both ended up enjoying the Coal Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad, with citrus, mint, whipped feta and pine nuts, paired with Cedar Creek 2019 Estate Riesling. It was a very fresh tasting salad, with organics that were locally provisioned.



Coal Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad

For the main course, I enjoyed the Wood Roasted Duck Breast with Celeraic Puree, Grilled Rapini and Green Peppercorn and Lemon Meyer Jus. This was paired with Cedar Creek 29019 Estate Merlot. It was perfectly cooked and a great winter dish.



Wood Roasted Duck Breast

MrsWT73 went with the vegetarian option and enjoyed the Rigatoni with Bolognese, Ricotta Salada and Oregano.



Rigatoni with Bolognese, Ricotta Salada and Oregano

The dessert was also well produced and constructed. I selected the Chocolate Semi Freddo, with walnut crumble, banana custard and cardamom doughnut. It was a very tasty and memorable dessert selection, with flavours that were memorable and worked well together.



Chocolate Semi Freddo

The cheque was a reasonable two hundred dollars, which isn’t bad for a Canadian Restaurant with two glasses of wine and three courses.



Cheque Please!

We checked out the kitchen as we left. The kitchen is open concept and allows diners to be able to see their meals being produced.



The Home Block Kitchen



The Outdoor Patio Area



A Look into the Tasting Room at Cedar Creek

Our Experience at Home Block at Cedar Creek:

The Home Block Restaurant at Cedar Creek was a great special occasion dinner. While we visited in the winter, it would be a great spot to visit in the heat of the summer on the patio. I enjoyed the food, with flavours that were well put together. A visit to Home Block is highly recommended if you are in the area

For a more detailed version of this trip report, please see www.worldtraveller73.com

offerendum

I love the duck Frankly I'm too untalented for skiing. When I tried it once I was even a danger at the idiots hill

nequine

Looks like you had a great trip there.

Even though the hills weren't as challenging, I think I'd have gone for the 2nd place so you got more skiing rather than having to wait ages to get up the hill.

worldtraveller73

Thanks offerendum. It's the usual activity in Canada thanks to all the hills and snow. It's great exercise as well.

Thanks nequine. Whistler Blackcomb is a skier's haven and a world wide attraction so it tends to get a lot of crowds. Fortunately, it has the amenties to match and is worth the waits.

worldtraveller73

Review: Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada.

While I wouldn’t normally consider the Fairfield Inn and Suites to be an aspirational travel brand, I figured since it was part of the trip, and a location that is consistent with travel through the intersecting city of Kamloops, I’d do a quick review on the property. It may be of use to motoring travellers, business travellers to Kamloops or perhaps even someone looking for an airport hotel (that’s not exactly near the airport) on their way to and from Sun Peaks Resort.

Booking the Fairfield Inn Kamloops:

Our accommodation for the next two nights was at the Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. While there is a choice of two Marriott properties in Kamloops, British Columbia, the older Delta Hotels Kamloops is a full refurbish of a much older property with smaller seventies era rooms, and requires paid parking in an older downtown district. We opted for the cleaner and newer Fairfield Inn and Suites, with easy highway access to and from where needed to be.

During our stay, I managed to find a rate of $151 CAD ($120 USD) per night, this was only a $15 CAD ($12 USD) upgrade from the regular room rate. Anticipating slim upgrade odds under the Marriott Bonvoy Program, even as a Marriott Titanium elite level, I just booked the suite outright since it was only a minimal extra cost. With not wanting to leave all the ski gear in the car overnight, I figured we’d need the extra space.

The property is currently a Marriott Bonvoy Category 3 property. Rooms are available for between 15,000 to 20,000 a night, with 17,500 points per night considered a standard rate. If you value Marriott Bonvoy points at 0.005 per night, you’d have to have a room rate under $87.5 CAD ($69 USD) per night to have a better value by paying cash. Despite this, we ended up paying cash as there was a generous Marriott Bonvoy double elite night and double points credit, which would help us easily re-qualify for Titanium status next year.

Arriving to the Fairfield Inn and Suites:

1475 Hugh Allen Drive, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada

The next day, true to vacation form, we had a sleep in. We departed the Delta Grand Okanagan by Marriott Kelowna and drove the two hours up to Kamloops. The hotel is located near the Coquihalla Highway Route 5, and accessible to all of Kamloops by car. It’s also located about four and a half hours drive from the Greater Vancouver Regional District, making the city of Kamloops a reasonable overnight stopover for those continuing eastward onto the Province of Alberta.



There was no one at the desk when arrived but we enjoyed the modern lobby, thanks to this being a fairly recent new build property.



The reception agent turned up very quickly. A friendly check in agent offered the usual 500 Marriott Bonvoy Titanium points as welcome gift, in addition to two free soft drinks from the hotel canteen store as a welcome amenity.



Like many other Fairfield Inn’s, most lobby areas have a fairly standard layout. There is often a large lobby space for working, meeting or relaxing. In this case, immediately opposite from the front desk was a small television along with workspace computers. Printers were also available for those needing to print items.

Lobby GreaConne

Lobby Spaces That Were Completely Empty thanks to the Pandemic

The Lobby also contained the breakfast area. The Fairfield Inn brand offers a complimentary breakfast to all guests, which is typically served in the lobby. While the breakfasts are pretty standard, it’s still nice to have the convenience of not having to chase breakfast, or otherwise kill time seated in a restaurant if you plan on getting on the road quickly. For what it is worth, there is also a Cora’s Breakfast Restaurant less than five minutes drive from the hotel if you prefer a proper breakfast restaurant.


T

The Room: A One Bedroom Suite

We led ourselves up to room #329, which was a one bedroom suite. The halls were decorated in the usual colorful hotel carpets.



Our One Bedroom Suite was a corner one bedroom room suite on the third floor. The suite was a proper suite, in that it featured two separate rooms. The suite offered a large space, although the building design didn’t offer too much in the way of extra light even though two outer facing building walls were available; the design of the room limited the windows to one side building wall.

Upon entering the room, there was a small reception area. We headed straight ahead in the U shaped room with bed on one side and living on the other.

The Bedroom: One King Size Bed

The Bedroom offered a king size bed with television. The Bed offered crisp bedding, along with space on each side of the bed for stands.








There was limited suitcase storage space in the bedroom itself. There was room for one suitcase stand immediately next to the television.




There was an ensuite attached to the bedroom that also doubled as the main bathroom for the room. The Ensuite offered jack and jill style entry off ensuite, and into foyer area.

The Ensuite Bathroom:

The bathroom in the suite offered everything that you’d expect from a hotel bathroom. It included a stand up shower with an embedded tub, with a single vanity sink. The toiletries were the standard Paul Mitchell brand, as is frequent with Fairfield Inn’s brand.

The Living Room:

Heading over to the other portion of the room, the living area offered functional space. The room was actually quite large, although I found that the couch was a little offset with the TV unit, making for an awkward viewing angle. The feng shui of the room was a little off, in the living space with a bit of an oddly configured space.







There was a small desk area along with a small television for additional viewing. The desk did not have many power ports, which was perhaps the only disadvantage to the room. It wasn’t ideally set up for working.



Only One Power Outlet on the Desk Wall: Hard to Charge all your Devices and Work at the Same Time




The living space contained a separate microwave, Keurig Coffee Maker and mini refrigerator, which was tucked into the corner with a tall combo wall unit, mini closet.

• 
• 

The view out of the room’s windows was not too exciting. It offered a standard Fairfield Inn view of city streets and office parks. What I appreciated most about this property is that it was new.

Room with a View: Room #323For those that are interested, there appears to be only one suite per floor. The upgrade opportunities likely aren’t to be too good staying here.
Floor Plan – Fairfield Inn and Suites Kamloops

The Included Fairfield Inn Breakfast:

As I had mentioned earlier, all guests at the Fairfield Inn’s are offered a complimentary breakfast. While I was expecting a mostly continental version, I was happy to report that it was a pretty full American Breakfast version. This visit was during the pandemic, so guests were encouraged to complete breakfast cards in advance, and the staff would then fill the others.



It took about 45 minutes to get through the breakfast line on Sunday morning. The staff were quite cheerful about completing dozens of custom made order items. Since it was during the pandemic on our visit, we ended up taking the breakfast up to our room on a tray, and enjoying the breakfast in our room.



A Fairfield Inn Breakfast: Eggs, Crispy Bacon, Salsa, Yoghurt, Cranberry Juice & Coffee

Around the Hotel:

Gym

The hotel offered a small gym with a few treadmills and small weight center. I never saw anyone using it the entire time that I was there.






A Small Free Weight Area that looks into the pool

An Indoor Pool:

There was also a small pool area. It was a small pool but would be a good distraction for those travelling with kids. The pool didn’t have too much room to sit and spectate, as the space was a little small.


The hotel stay was reasonable and we had some solid sleeps in the bed in a room that was reasonably quiet and free from noise.

My Thoughts on the Fairfield Inn Kamloops:

The Fairfield Inn and Kamloops was a reasonably priced and clean facility for a highway hotel. I was most happy about this place being a new build, as everything was clean, well put together and had minimal wear and tear. The minimal cost to increase to a suite was of terrific value, and we appreciated the extra space to stretch out.

For a more detailed version of this post, please see the review at www.worldtraveller73.com

worldtraveller73

Activity: Stretching the Last of the Spring Snow and Sun Peaks Mountain Resort, Sun Peaks, British Columbia, Canada, during a Pandemic.

Planning a Visit to Sun Peaks:

The Ski Resort of Sun Peaks Mountain Resort is located approximately forty five minutes drive way from the city of Kamloops, British Columbia. The nearest airport is the Kamloops International Airport (Airport Code: YKA), which is occasionally serviced by Air Canada, Westjet and Central Mountain Air. Having flown through a few times, I wouldn’t expect to many scheduled flights and you may be better off landing in Kelowna Airport and driving the two hours to Kamloops.

On our trip, we were staying at the Fairfield Inn and Suites Kamloops. We left this property and drove up by rental car to Sun Peaks Mountain Resort. It was a fairly winding road, and much more twisty than our drive up to Big White from Kamloops.



The Three Mountain Sun Peaks Mountain Resort

Like with our visit to regionally neighbouring Big White, Kelowna, we booked a lift ticket on line. The lift tickets were a reasonable $109 CAD ($86 USD), which was much more economical than our $167 CAD ($130 USD) for additional days at Whistler Blackcomb. After parking the car, we located the kiosks and easily redeemed for our tickets.

Skiing at Sun Peaks:

The mountain of Sun Peaks is much more of a skier’s mountain as compared to Big White. The pitches of the hill are much more steep and the runs are much more wide and expansive. I felt that the mountain was much easier to ski for a skiers like me that enjoys a good fast cruise.

The first order of business to climb the mountain was a trip up the Sunburst Express. The run views were great, and the slopes were completely empty. We’d happen to be visiting on their third day from the end of the ski season. As a result, we had some spring like conditions for the day, with softer forgiving snow.

It was another deserted ski experience with the hill mostly empty thanks to the health pandemic.







A View down the Valley from the top of Sunburst ExpressWe headed down to the ultra long Burfield Quad Chair. The chair marked the furthest west most point of the ski resort. The chair featured some pretty inspiring views as it climbed the spine of Tod mountain.



Groomed Corduroy. -Approaching Burfield Quad Chair

The Burfield Chair was the first and only chair I’ve ever written that has gone over a horse riding stable.



Unusual Views of Horse Riding Stables from the Burfield Chair






A Quick Selfie to show that we made it to Sun Peaks




Views of the Sun Peaks VillageFrom the Top of Burfield, the snow was pretty good. MrsWT73 was cutting up some turns on spring like snow.

Food and Beverage:

On Mountain Dining

In a different method than many other ski resorts, Sun Peaks doesn’t seem to have too many on hill restaurants. We could only locate this one, which didn’t seem to have a proper name, at the top of the Sunburst Chair.

Every ski area seems to do things a little differently in the pandemic. At Sun Peaks, reservations were not needed, although we had to add our name to the list for entry into the restaurant. This took about fifteen minutes to wait for a table.

Once inside, we had cafeteria styled dining with seats outside on the patio. They must have had some labour shortages as it took quite a while to get the food actually prepared in the restaurant.



Fortunately, Sun Peaks was offering alcohol for purchase unlike Big White which was completely dry. We enjoyed some crisp local British Columbian Okanagan Pear Cider with lunch today.



There were fire pits going on the deck, which made for a warmer experience while sitting outside.



After lunch, we explored the rest of the resort. We gradually worked our way to easier slopes towards Sundance Mountain. There were quite a few runs and there was enough there to keep us entertained. There was also a terrain park for kids. Like Big White, most the hill was completely deserted as a result of the pandemic.







Empty SlopesTowards the end of the day, we discovered a pop up bar at the base of Mount Morrisey. I left MrsWT73 at the base with an outdoor wine and a fire pit while I went off to bust off a few final cruising runs on Mount Morrisey.



An Outdoor Pop Up Bar With Socially Distant Tables



MrsWT73 happily stocked with wineI left her there and happily found my mid life crisis on the ski hill.




Tod Mountain Views from Mt Morrisey



I’m having a Mid Life Crisis

Apres Ski:

Bottom’s Bar and Grill

Not one to miss out on an Apres Ski Bar, after the end of the day, it was off to locate the best Apres Ski in Sun Peaks Village. We located the Bottom’s Bar and Grill. Given the pandemic, there wasn’t a lot of demand for tables and we were easily accommodated on the patio outside.



Bottom’s Bar and Grill



Traditional Ski Bar with the Local Regular at the Counter

A Local Beer for me and a Cider for MrsWT73 along with large smiles; happy to actually be doing something instead of sitting inside under a provincial or federal health lockdown.



Views up the Mountain from our Apres Ski Patio

We would eventually drive down to Kamloops and overnight at the Fairfield Inn and Suites Kamloops. We’ would end up returning home to Vancouver the next day. We got stuck on the Coquihalla highway in a snow storm for 1 hour, but would eventually make it back to Vancouver and returned our rental car with over 1,233 kilometers travelled over the 4 day trip.

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Stuck on the Highway Coming HomeI was relieved to get off the Coquihalla Highway road after that white knuckled adventure. I was relieved to have put 1233 kilometers on someone else's car.

Summary: Our day at Sun Peaks Resort:

Our day at Sun Peaks was a better day than at Big White. I was more impressed with the hill overall in that offered more challenge and complexity and generally a more varied skiing experience. Although we had some softer snow marking the end of the ski season, I’d be more favoured to return to Sun Peaks for a ski visit than Big White.

For a more detailed review of this resort, please see www.worldtraveller73.com

nequine

LOL at the name of that last ski run you went down! Given how far the tables were from one another/the fire pit, I am surprised MrsWT73 was able to feel any heat!

Thanks for another great TR from you

flying_blue_white_red

Great trip report. Looks like you enjoyed. Those 45 minutes wait can become unbearable if the weather is bad. Which resort is the largest?

worldtraveller73

Thanks nequine. There's nothing like extra precautions under the pandemic.

Thanks flying_blue_white_red. Traffic delays are the worst (especially in regions with no cell service).

Whistler Blackcomb is by far the largest of the three; I think it still ranks as largest ski resort in North America.