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CNN Live Saturday

CNN Weekend Gateways: Ski Canada and Save

Aired February 07, 2004 - 12:39   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, let's take a breather and think vacations. With winter in full swing, you might be thinking of a ski vacation, perhaps. Well, swishing down the slopes for a week can be expensive, after all, and if that's a problem for you, you may want to consider planning a trip above the 49th Parallel. With the favorable exchange rate, American skiers can save quite a bit of money by carving their turns on the Canadian slopes.
Greg Ditrinco is the executive editor of Ski magazine. He is in Denver to talk about the great times in the Great White North.

All right, Greg. Well, I love the skiing out west, and most folks say that, you know, the Rockies, there's nothing like it. But once you go up north a little bit, you'll find that it really is some great, challenging skiing.

What do you have on tap for us?

GREG DITRINCO, SKI MAGAZINE: Well, there's a couple of reasons that you go north to ski this winter.

Real briefly, one is the exchange rate, which you mentioned. You get about a 25 to 30 percent discount because the Canadian dollar is a little bit weak.

Number two, what's nice about Canadian skiing is it's kind of purist skiing. It's what skiing used to be like in the U.S. You don't get the glitz blitz that's really affected a lot of the elite resorts in the U.S. these days.

And number three, it sounds obvious, but -- different country, different buzz. Canada is not the U.S. and, in the post-9/11 travel industry, a lot of people like the convenience and the comfort of a foreign experience without going overseas.

OK. If you're talking Canadian resorts, top of the list without a doubt is Whistler Blacombe (ph), British Columbia. In our annual Ski magazine survey, they've won the award of best resort in North America several times. Why?

WHITFIELD: I mean, for years.

DITRINCO: For several -- yes. For several years. Good reason. Why? Huge. The place is mammoth -- 7,000 acres, 5,000 vertical feet. That's from the top to the bottom. In comparison, most elite resorts -- maybe 3,000 acres, 3,000 vertical. Big mountain.

In fact, it's so big it has microclimates there. You can get powder snow at the top. You can get firm snow in the middle and you get a soft snow -- what we call a corn snow at the bottom.

WHITFIELD: Hmm. And if that seems a little too challenging at Whistler, then you can go right next door to kind of the sister mountain of Blacombe, where they have a few more slopes for beginners and intermediate skiers.

DITRINCO: Exactly. But what's really nice about Whistler -- what separates us from the pack is its base village. Very cosmopolitan, very urbane. Canadians like to party. It's the village that never sleeps. You can go to an (UNINTELLIGIBLE) ski bar and hear three or four or five language -- fine dining, sushi -- it's wonderful. And? Guess what? Winter Olympics are going to Whistler in 2010.

WHITFIELD: Wow. So get there now.

DITRINCO: Right.

WHITFIELD: Before things start to change.

DITRINCO: Smart skiers go to -- go to resorts before the Winter Olympics hits, because what happens? A lot of infrastructure, a lot of money going in. They spruce it and you hit it before the Olympic crowds.

WHITFIELD: Yes. You know, I've been to Whistler. It turns out to be one of my favorite places, and mostly because the people there are so nice and it's one of those places where you can ski a trail and you almost feel like you're alone. You're not dealing with the congestion that you have on a lot of other trails.

DITRINCO: Very friendly. The Canadians -- they know about service. Very friendly, very casual. It's so big. You can really hide from the crowds if you want to, and then you got that base village that just never sleeps. Great vacation.

WHITFIELD: All right. And then the No. 1 place on the east in terms of Canadian east, the Tremblant in Quebec.

DITRINCO: Right.

WHITIFIELD: Why is that such a great place?

(CROSSTALK)

DITRINCO: Tremblant has been No. 1 in our survey several years running.

OK. Different buzz than Whistler. Very much more a family place. It's probably the quaintest, most beautiful base village this side of the Atlantic. Narrow streets, small buildings, pastels, tin roofs. If you're in the base village at Tremblant, you squint and look into the sun, you could be skiing the French Alps. It's really a different buzz -- very French. Old school charm, new school service.

Also, a family resort. They have an indoor water complex, indoor pool. They have street performers in the base village. They've learned that if you keep the parents happy, the kids are happy and everyone comes back. Very nice.

WHITFIELD: Oh, yes. And I forgot -- a little French comes in handy. We are talking about Quebec.

All right. So Lake Louise, Alberta, is No. 3 on your list -- or at least, on our list that we're...

(CROSSTALK)

DITRINCO: Lake Louise. What gets you there -- drop dead scenery. Beautiful, stunning. You're up high. Pristine wilderness. Not a lot there. Very romantic. A lot of couples.

One place in particular that embodies Lake Louise -- that's the Chateau Lake Louise. Old-school hotel, big grandstone hotel. Old- school elegance. You don't get the real buzz you get at Whistler that never sleeps. Much more kind of a rejuvenating experience. Old-school and relaxing. Very stately, very European. Very kick back. And it's a real romantic spot. Nice place to go with -- for couples.

WHITFIELD: OK, but you ranked that one No. 20. And what you rank as 24, Sunshine Village in British Columbia.

DITRINCO: Sunshine Village is interesting. Two things.

Number one, it's the oldest resort in the Canadian Rockies. Been around about 75 years. However, it's getting a major redo. About 30, $40 million have been poured into it in the last couple days. Where they have made their new reputation, the rebirth of Sunshine, is with extreme skiing.

One particular run, Delirium Dive. How's that for a name?

WHITFIELD: Wow. Scary, actually.

DITRINCO: You start on the cliff band and you jump in. You put your helmet on. You jump in. Of course, this being 2004, what have they done? They've built steps. If you want to wimp out, you can go around to get into it.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my God.

DITRINCO: New resort, young resort, young buzz. A lot of extreme skiers. A lot of young skiers. It's really working itself back into the national ski scene or the North American ski scene.

WHITFIELD: Well, I guess you can't be a skier and not be adventurous anyway. So you got to spice it up a little bit.

DITRINCO: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: Greg Ditrinco of Ski magazine, thanks very much. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired February 7, 2004 - 12:39   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, let's take a breather and think vacations. With winter in full swing, you might be thinking of a ski vacation, perhaps. Well, swishing down the slopes for a week can be expensive, after all, and if that's a problem for you, you may want to consider planning a trip above the 49th Parallel. With the favorable exchange rate, American skiers can save quite a bit of money by carving their turns on the Canadian slopes.
Greg Ditrinco is the executive editor of Ski magazine. He is in Denver to talk about the great times in the Great White North.

All right, Greg. Well, I love the skiing out west, and most folks say that, you know, the Rockies, there's nothing like it. But once you go up north a little bit, you'll find that it really is some great, challenging skiing.

What do you have on tap for us?

GREG DITRINCO, SKI MAGAZINE: Well, there's a couple of reasons that you go north to ski this winter.

Real briefly, one is the exchange rate, which you mentioned. You get about a 25 to 30 percent discount because the Canadian dollar is a little bit weak.

Number two, what's nice about Canadian skiing is it's kind of purist skiing. It's what skiing used to be like in the U.S. You don't get the glitz blitz that's really affected a lot of the elite resorts in the U.S. these days.

And number three, it sounds obvious, but -- different country, different buzz. Canada is not the U.S. and, in the post-9/11 travel industry, a lot of people like the convenience and the comfort of a foreign experience without going overseas.

OK. If you're talking Canadian resorts, top of the list without a doubt is Whistler Blacombe (ph), British Columbia. In our annual Ski magazine survey, they've won the award of best resort in North America several times. Why?

WHITFIELD: I mean, for years.

DITRINCO: For several -- yes. For several years. Good reason. Why? Huge. The place is mammoth -- 7,000 acres, 5,000 vertical feet. That's from the top to the bottom. In comparison, most elite resorts -- maybe 3,000 acres, 3,000 vertical. Big mountain.

In fact, it's so big it has microclimates there. You can get powder snow at the top. You can get firm snow in the middle and you get a soft snow -- what we call a corn snow at the bottom.

WHITFIELD: Hmm. And if that seems a little too challenging at Whistler, then you can go right next door to kind of the sister mountain of Blacombe, where they have a few more slopes for beginners and intermediate skiers.

DITRINCO: Exactly. But what's really nice about Whistler -- what separates us from the pack is its base village. Very cosmopolitan, very urbane. Canadians like to party. It's the village that never sleeps. You can go to an (UNINTELLIGIBLE) ski bar and hear three or four or five language -- fine dining, sushi -- it's wonderful. And? Guess what? Winter Olympics are going to Whistler in 2010.

WHITFIELD: Wow. So get there now.

DITRINCO: Right.

WHITFIELD: Before things start to change.

DITRINCO: Smart skiers go to -- go to resorts before the Winter Olympics hits, because what happens? A lot of infrastructure, a lot of money going in. They spruce it and you hit it before the Olympic crowds.

WHITFIELD: Yes. You know, I've been to Whistler. It turns out to be one of my favorite places, and mostly because the people there are so nice and it's one of those places where you can ski a trail and you almost feel like you're alone. You're not dealing with the congestion that you have on a lot of other trails.

DITRINCO: Very friendly. The Canadians -- they know about service. Very friendly, very casual. It's so big. You can really hide from the crowds if you want to, and then you got that base village that just never sleeps. Great vacation.

WHITFIELD: All right. And then the No. 1 place on the east in terms of Canadian east, the Tremblant in Quebec.

DITRINCO: Right.

WHITIFIELD: Why is that such a great place?

(CROSSTALK)

DITRINCO: Tremblant has been No. 1 in our survey several years running.

OK. Different buzz than Whistler. Very much more a family place. It's probably the quaintest, most beautiful base village this side of the Atlantic. Narrow streets, small buildings, pastels, tin roofs. If you're in the base village at Tremblant, you squint and look into the sun, you could be skiing the French Alps. It's really a different buzz -- very French. Old school charm, new school service.

Also, a family resort. They have an indoor water complex, indoor pool. They have street performers in the base village. They've learned that if you keep the parents happy, the kids are happy and everyone comes back. Very nice.

WHITFIELD: Oh, yes. And I forgot -- a little French comes in handy. We are talking about Quebec.

All right. So Lake Louise, Alberta, is No. 3 on your list -- or at least, on our list that we're...

(CROSSTALK)

DITRINCO: Lake Louise. What gets you there -- drop dead scenery. Beautiful, stunning. You're up high. Pristine wilderness. Not a lot there. Very romantic. A lot of couples.

One place in particular that embodies Lake Louise -- that's the Chateau Lake Louise. Old-school hotel, big grandstone hotel. Old- school elegance. You don't get the real buzz you get at Whistler that never sleeps. Much more kind of a rejuvenating experience. Old-school and relaxing. Very stately, very European. Very kick back. And it's a real romantic spot. Nice place to go with -- for couples.

WHITFIELD: OK, but you ranked that one No. 20. And what you rank as 24, Sunshine Village in British Columbia.

DITRINCO: Sunshine Village is interesting. Two things.

Number one, it's the oldest resort in the Canadian Rockies. Been around about 75 years. However, it's getting a major redo. About 30, $40 million have been poured into it in the last couple days. Where they have made their new reputation, the rebirth of Sunshine, is with extreme skiing.

One particular run, Delirium Dive. How's that for a name?

WHITFIELD: Wow. Scary, actually.

DITRINCO: You start on the cliff band and you jump in. You put your helmet on. You jump in. Of course, this being 2004, what have they done? They've built steps. If you want to wimp out, you can go around to get into it.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my God.

DITRINCO: New resort, young resort, young buzz. A lot of extreme skiers. A lot of young skiers. It's really working itself back into the national ski scene or the North American ski scene.

WHITFIELD: Well, I guess you can't be a skier and not be adventurous anyway. So you got to spice it up a little bit.

DITRINCO: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: Greg Ditrinco of Ski magazine, thanks very much. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com