Springtime Family Fun at Sunshine Village

When many vacationers book spring break escapes to beach resorts, those of us who feel as if we have missed out on winter are hankering to hit the slopes. With nary a snowflake to be found near New York City, mountain resorts out west still have plenty of snow come mid-April. Last April, my family visited the Canadian Rockies to enjoy the late-season slopes.

Sunshine Village in the Canadian Rockies 
The bonuses of spring skiing in the Canadian Rockies are plentiful. Beyond the cheap airfare and hotel rates, there is ample slope-side lodging and no crowds. Hop an early flight to Calgary, and you can be stepping into your bindings that afternoon at Sunshine Village resort, just a 20-minute drive from downtown Banff.  

In April, we could stretch out and not fight the crowds.

Nestled high in the mountains along the British Columbia border, Sunshine Village offers great late-season adventures. The parking lot is a gondola ride away from the slopes, and skiers can either ski out or ride the gondola back to their cars. 

Sunshine Village is really three mountains in one. The Goat's Eye peak lift serves some gnarly double-black-diamond chutes and crags that are a short hike from the lift. It's unlikely these will be open in late spring. Meanwhile, the upper face looks like a bulbous racecourse, so still lots of fun for those who enjoy a steep groomer. Down below are gentler blue and green slopes that lead down to the gondola mid-station.

Sunshine's Lookout Mountain has the famed Delirium Dive zone, which is a short hike from the top of the Great Divide Express Quad. Again, this area will most likely be closed in spring conditions. But there are also plenty of steep, bumpy runs down from the peak, which tops out at 8,954 feet. On the other side of Lookout Mountain, the runs under the Tee Pee bubble quad are great in spring conditions because they are protected from the fierce wind that can blow at the top, so the springtime snow stays a bit softer among the tree. 


 
Still, we found some bare spots, but that's to be expected.












Across the valley, the lower Mount Standish has great intermediate and beginner slopes intermingled with steep faces, so families can head down together, split up midway down the mountain, and meet up again at the bottom of the Standish Express Quad. And the WaWa Quad has nicely groomed blue runs, some fun glades and access to lower out-of-bounds steeps.

Ski and Stay
 Staying at Sunshine Village is a lot of fun. Visitors park at the bottom of a long gondola and ride up to the lift-side hotel. Check in and hit the slopes right away! Porters bring up the luggage on the gondola, so everything is waiting for you in your room at the end of the day.  

Ski in/ski out doesn't get any closer than this.

Our room was literally steps away from the lifts. We kept our skis on the patio although ski storage was just one flight below us. It was so easy to  pop in to use the bathroom or switch out wet mittens without delay.  

Since there isn't a town at the bottom of the lifts, hotel staff run evening activities such as tobogganing and scavenger hunts. The kids were a little young for the hot tub, and there isn't a pool, but we found a pool table in the basement.

  

Snow School
Lessons at Sunshine Village at this time of year were easy to book at the last minute. Our kids had either one other student with them, or they got a private lesson for the price of a group. Always a plus! The only downside to the ski school was that Ellery was only 5 years old, so she had to go to the day care center for her lesson. She was not happy about this, and the center is a concrete block of a building down past all of the lifts. It was quite a hike back up the hill, especially for a little kid with tired legs. She did enjoy her private "group" lessons, however. Cyane, who was 7 years old, had one other student in her snowboarding class, and we didn't have to hike to the meeting place. 

Upcoming Events
Check out the upcoming April events, including ski church and Easter service, girls free ride day, Toyota free ride day, bonfires and Coors Light concerts, the Holy Bowly and much more.  ShredAbility in Aid of Rocky Mountain Adaptive is scheduled for April 8th. Sign up for a treasure hunt with your friends and support the cause.