Castle Mountain Resort Resort Reviews
-
This content is only available to subscribers
-
This content is only available to subscribers
- Snow History
This content is only available to subscribers
Visitor reviews for Castle Mountain Resort Ski Resort
(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
-
January 21, 2012
Brian from Canada
The Castle rocks! Nice pow today. I wish it was the 80's with only a T-bar and no beginners. Great hill, great people. I used to pay 8 bucks for a 1/2 day, now I pay 250$ to get my 4 kids in, and I love it! I can't wait for my 5th kid to be ready (she's only 2). I hope my kids never ski at any other hill. The Castle is for skiers! If your want a fancy lounge to show off your new suit .. go elsewhere. Repeat: the Castle rocks, nice pow today!
-
Castle Mountain Resort Ratings
Based on 19 votes. Vote
Access: 3.4
(1) At least one overnight stop, (2) requires a whole day, (3) requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns (4) arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon, (5) there is a main airport within an hour of Castle Mountain Resort.
Public Transport: 2.4
(1) There are no buses or taxis to Castle Mountain Resort, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.
Scenery: 4.3
(1) An ugly resort in a bland setting, (3) average mountain views and resort, (5) a spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town.
Accommodation: 3.6
(1) No places to stay in/near Castle Mountain Resort, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.
Cheap Rooms: 4.0
(1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.
Luxury Hotels: 1.8
(1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Castle Mountain Resort.
Ski in/Ski out: 4.4
(1) The ski area is located far from any accommodation, (3) a free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip, (5) Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available.
Childcare: 3.2
(1) There are no child care facilities at Castle Mountain Resort, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.
Snowsure: 3.6
(1) Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing, (2) is often closed due to a lack of snow, (3) occasionally suffers from a lack of snow, (4) rarely suffers from a lack of snow, (5) Castle Mountain Resort is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.
Snowmaking: 1.1
(1) Castle Mountain Resort relies entirely on natural snow, (3) there are just a few snow cannons, (5) there are snowmaking facilities on all pistes.
Snow Grooming: 3.6
(1) There are no snow groomers at Castle Mountain Resort, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Castle Mountain Resort are groomed daily.
Shelter: 3.3
(1) there is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut, (3) there are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close, (5) Castle Mountain Resort is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.
Nearby options: 3.2
(1) If snow conditions are poor at Castle Mountain Resort, it will be poor everywhere nearby, (3) there are good alternatives within an hours drive, (5) other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions.
Regional rating: 4.1
(1) Castle Mountain Resort usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region, (3) has average conditions for the region, (5) usually has the best snow conditions in the region.
Lift Staff: 4.5
(1) The staff at Castle Mountain Resort are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Castle Mountain Resort are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.
Crowds/Queues: 3.7
(1) the resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues, (3) it is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays, (5) it is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare.
Ski Schools: 4.3
(1) No ski schools available, (2) one or two ski schools but local language only, (3) a few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors, (4) plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available, (5) excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors.
Hire and Repairs: 4.1
(1) Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex. (3) there are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance, (5) good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible.
Variety of pistes: 4.5
(1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Castle Mountain Resort has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.
Beginners: 3.4
(1) Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard, (3) a few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week, (3) Vast areas of gentle terrain.
Intermediates: 4.1
(1) No intermediate terrain at Castle Mountain Resort, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.
Advanced: 4.8
(1) Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders, (3) enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste, (5) Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week.
Snow Park: 3.2
(1) Not even a kicker at Castle Mountain Resort, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.
Off-piste: 4.2
(1) No off-piste worth mentioning, (2) off piste is out-of-bounds, (3) some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days, (5) a vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days.
Cross-country: 2.9
(1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Castle Mountain Resort, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.
Luge/Toboggan: 1.1
(1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Castle Mountain Resort has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.
Mountain Dining: 2.6
(1) Nowhere to buy food by the pistes, (3) some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive, (5) there is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets.
Eating: 2.6
(1) Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop. (5) A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants.
Apres-Ski: 2.9
(1) Nothing to do, not even a bar, (3) there are a few bars in the resort but nothing special, (5) clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere.
Other Sports: 1.4
(1) No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts, (3) resort has just a small public swimming pool, (5) resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool.
Entertainment: 2.0
(1) Besides the snow and walking there is nothing to do here, (3) the non-skier will find things to do for few days but may become bored after a week, (5) the resort area is a fascinating place to visit, regardless of winter sports.
Winter Walks: 2.4
(1) Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails, (3) a couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails, (5) extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities.
Ski Pass Value: 3.8
(1) A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available, (3) the ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts, (5) ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area.
Value (National): 3.9
(1) Overall, Castle Mountain Resort is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money, (3) overall represents average value for money, (5) overall offers the best value resort in the country.
Value (Global): 3.9
(1) Overall, Castle Mountain Resort is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world, (3) overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries, (5) internationally the resort offers excellent value for money.
Based on 19 votes. Vote
-
January 17, 2012
Rockjock from Canada
Gosh, gee, but I'm an "oil guy" from Calgary. I guess I was skiing Castle since the "old days" (early '70's) of Matt, and the cowboys and ranchers. But we were ripping the T Bar slopes, and not cramming ourselves in the old day lodge.
We still come down - preferably during the week, because lift capacity can get bogged down on weekends.
I won't go on 'cause I don't want to get anybody too excited.
-
January 12, 2012
matt from Canada
"We liked the old days of cowboys and ranchers on the slopes, and everyone crammed in a hot, humid day lodge."
-
December 31, 2011
mike from Canada
The more negative reviews the better as far as we're concerned.
Since Calgarians with their oil money "discovered it," its often too busy.We liked the old days of cowboys and ranchers on the slopes, and everyone crammed in a hot, humid day lodge.
-
December 30, 2011
tony from Canada
I will admit my conflict of interest-I ski Castle all the time.
Don't come here expecting Sunshine or Lake Louise and if you like Nakiska, Castle will be too much hill for you, and too few amenities. If you are coming to ride/ski not to shop/eat out, you will be satisfied.
It's a co-op owned by the skiers-so don't expect new/fast lifts anytime soon. The lifts are reliable, but red sometimes closes due to wind.
If you do come, find a snow host or someone who can show you the mountain. Vast, wide open, big mountain terrain with all the hazards that come with it. When the snow is good, it could be the best place in the eastern Rockies. If it's raining in Fernie, it's dumping pow at Castle, the base elevation is 300 meters higher.
It's about as big as Marmot in Jasper but many of the 'runs' are unmarked, and you have to know how to get to them safely.
Drifter is the equivalent of 3 runs at Louise, all fall line, ungroomable, and few can ski it top to bottom without a break. One run down it will make you a friend of Castle for life! Like any ski hill, it has it's challenges, but you should try it out-if you are up to it.
And then there is the Cat ski operation-great lines, and cheap.
I wouldn't spend too much time reading the 'bashing' reviews, they were clearly looking for something else: Sunshine, groomers, and somewhere to sip a latte. Try out Castle for yourself, see if you 'fit in', if not, there are many other places to go and be pampered. We don't care what you wear, how much makeup you have on, or how old your skis are but you can ride with us if you can keep up.
Gotta go, still snowing, 15 cm since 0500 hrs. Red chair is wind stopped, but I think I know where that wind has deposited a little powder stash...
-
November 26, 2011
ken from Canada
You might hit it lucky on a weekday in the spring when skiing enthusiasm slows and nobody hears about some fresh pow that day. Why take a chance with slow lifts or even a chair going down, when you could be getting lots of vertical at one of the larger resorts that offer high speed quads at relatively the same price. Castle lift lines can get pretty crowded these days. You also got to take a chance of you being in one of the windiest places in Canada, not nice stuck on a chairlift with 80 km> per hr wind gusts.
-
November 24, 2011
Sean from Canada
Castle Mountain is the best place I've shredded. Think about it, steepest fall line in Canada, powder every week that makes a lot of American resorts look like someone is dumping a box of fake snow out so someone looking out the window can pretend they're experiencing Christmas with SNOW.
Lifts are slow as molasses, but the benefit of that is having a nice break from your ride down to bring it on your next run. By the end of the day, you'll be glad the lifts give you that extra couple minutes to refresh. Yes, it's windy often, but without the wind, much of Castle would not have wind swept powder every night. The wind is why Castle, or at least the high bowls always have powder the next day, regardless of whether it actually snowed or not! This is huge! For me anyways.
Someone mentioned that you're better off going to Sunshine? Clearly you didn't spend much time taking the Continental lift up to the top! The coldest, most open lift I've ever experiences, despite not being as windy as Castle. Sunshine gets lots of powder, but without fail 20 minutes after the lifts start going, tracks are everywhere. It was so bad my last year there, that my buddy and I didn't even bother doing laps, just head for out of bounds and find a sweet line and/or build a booter and spend all day doing that. You know a ski hill has gotten boring when you do that every day. Why so boring for my buddy and I you might ask? Well, hardly any real steeps or challenging runs. Delerium Dive, Sunshine's sketchiest run some might say is comparable to a black diamond run at Kicking Horse Resort. Don't get me wrong, Sunshine is great, if you're a beginner and the thought of waiting in a lift line for 10 minutes in the middle of the week doesn't bother you.
Oh-yeah, should mention Castle falls short of Kicking Horse. You just can't beat a 15 minute gondola ride from bottom to the top of the mountain, relaxing and smoking a fatty while spotting the lines you're going to take on your 20 minute descent down the mountain. Just incredible to be able to ride down the mountain for a long enough duration that you actually have to stop half way down to have a drink from the camel because yr sweating from carving into the heavy fluffy stuff through crazy tree lines or steep fall lines that make many mountains look tame. Oh yeah, my bad, this is about Castle.
Aside from having a shorter fall line and lack of gondola ride up, Castle is top notch. --And I'm a snowboarder. Apparently skiers like it more... Not sure why, boarders like the steeps too, or at least some of us do.
-
November 18, 2011
matt from Canada
Castle is probably the best ski hill you can find if you hit it right. March 1 2011, youtube it... 80cms overnight and probably another 40cm throughout the day. And tons of steep slopes and gnar. It was Tuesday and empty, nipple deep pow top to bottom all day. For a 65$ ticket, it beats any day of heli-skiing for 650$.
But if there's no fresh snow it sucks, steep, choppy wind raped snow.
-
November 14, 2011
Jose the skier from Canada
Castle Mountain Resort is the worst place you could ever go to ski, the lift tickets cost almost as much as Sunshine, the lift lines are longer than Fernie on a powder day, and the runs are more confusing than Lake Louise.
Don't waste your time, go to Fernie or Sunshine! But don't go to Castle? You will regret it!
-
November 10, 2011
rick from Canada
Castle Mountain
1. slow chairs = quality over quantity. I find Castle is less likely to be skied out because the chairs take so long.
2. the wind acts as precipitation. It doesn't need to snow at Castle to have pow. The wind blows the dry Alberta snow from other areas onto Castle, almost as good as snowing.
3. per square foot or cubic meter, however, you wanna look at it Castle has to be the steepest per run I've ever rode.
4. last May the 75cm overnight blower pow was unreal. You can't even sled into shit like that and I got it right off the blue chair.
Castle doesn't have the bells and whistles that a larger resort would have but I think the true Castle supporters are real skiers and boarders that want an awesome day of shredding rather than goose liver in a chalet. I think everything people complain about at Castle acts in its advantage.
I bought my first season pass for Castle last year and I couldn't of been happier with the choice.
-
September 21, 2011
Ryder from Canada
Castle has its own unique settings, more of a local-small town feelings with basic services. Some people LOVE to go there and some don't and it's okay. Castle is NOT comparable to Banff or Whistler to the sense that they do not have a "touristy" services. If you are seeking that, Castle is not the place to be. Castle is more for hard-core skier and boarder with great slopes and has the longest continuous fall line (go to chutes) and when it dumps, you will have the best day of your life. Lift line might get busy when it dumps but that's the same as every resort, other resort might offer you a "fast speed chairs" but that means the hill gets teared up faster too. Castle has its wide range of great slopes that you can always find a untouched line all day long. I guess it's all about the mind set and atmosphere that the resort offers and what you are looking for. If you are looking to ski all day on the great hill, hit the "T-bar" pub at the end of the day to share stories with down to earth people, Castle is the way to go. But if you are looking for a shopping spree and couple's spa with fancy dining, Castle is not what you are looking for. Oh, by the way, cell phone does not work there so it's a great getaway from your everyday life. I am pretty sure they had Wifi at the lodge.
-
April 19, 2011
Chimo's from Canada
In response to another review: you do realize Castle (Castle Mountain Resort) is the home of the longest continuous fall line in Canada? This fact along makes me think your whole review is just wrong.
-
April 14, 2011
Chim from Sweden
I don't get how people like this place so much, it's really nothing special. I agree with another reviewer, if you are in the area you might as well make the extra hour west and hit up Fernie. You will be at the top of the hill in no time compared to Castle, with their horrible lifts/lineups, and short runs. The upper mountain that everyone says is so great is really just a long traverse, with a short fall line if you decide to drop in anywhere. I do at least twice the amount of skiing in a day if I'm anywhere else other than Castle.
-
April 11, 2011
jorge from Canada
If Castle suddenly has this many ppl posting reviews this year there must be something to talk about - no, it's not all good, but when it's good, it's as good as it gets, and it's real. If you don't like it, don't bother posting, and just stay away. Nobody will miss you.
And BTW, there's no quad b/c the wind on most days would make it impossible to operate. Many days at the top of Castle are 'extreme skiing' when you consider the snow/wind/temps and terrain. If you're worried about breaking a nail and you need a massage at the end of every day, sorry, Castle is not for you.
-
April 07, 2011
nick from United Kingdom
To another reviewer, you have no idea what you are talking about..in fact I'm glad you wrote this cuz then Castle won't be as busy and the powder hounds can tear it up....to say castle has the worst quality of snow is unbelievable...you must be skiing on the bunny hill! Please go to Fernie and enjoy the complete whiteouts and the traversing......if you hate it so much why have you gone 10 times???
for $50 what do you expect....
-
April 05, 2011
beloch from Canada
Castle mountain has a small-town feel to it. While there are probably a few of the usual apathetic Australians sleep-walking through their shifts, there are enough grinning locals to leave you with the impression that you're genuinely welcome. This is definitely one of the friendliest hills I've been to. It's also relatively cheap.
The mountain itself is not gigantic, but it is laid out rather smartly. The Tamarack chair spits you out on a traverse that runs across the entire breadth of the ski area, letting you drop into the very top of pretty much any run you want. The terrain is quite varied and has plenty to suit any ability level.
The chairs, as many have mentioned, are fixed-grip doubles and triples that aren't very fast. Fortunately, the average crowds are quite small. On most days lineups are not an issue. On a crowded day the lineups are painful! The Tamarack chair services practically all of the best terrain on the mountain, and it's only a two-seater!
Timing seems to be more critical to getting the most out of a trip to Castle than it is for other hills. You must avoid crowded days at all costs. Castle seems to get large dumps of snow. In 2011 there have been at least a few over 50cm, and a couple over 80cm. If you can time your trip to coincide with a dump and smaller crowds you will be able to make fresh tracks until the lifts close! Visibility can be low on powder days, but that's often for the best. Sunshine can turn that powder into sticky mush!
The biggest thing this hill needs is higher lift capacity. One high-speed quad going from the base to the top of Tamarack would greatly reduce the time spent on lifts on slow days and probably quadruple the runs you can get in on crowded days. Freshies would disappear a lot faster on crowded days, but that's a small price to pay. It's probably a big investment for a hill that sees relatively little traffic, but I hope they eventually manage to do it.
-
March 25, 2011
Caesar from Canada
I do agree that the lifts can be slow as hell, but to say that Castle has 'the worst runs out of any hill' you've ever been to is nonsense.
Fernie, this year, hasn't come close to the fresh powder that Castle has gotten, lol the quality of snow is horrible.
Your review is false.
-
March 21, 2011
Purlang Chingbow from Japan
Castle has insanely long lines, for slow, barely working lifts. And that is not even close to the worst thing about this place. I've been to Castle Mountain about ten times now and I can definitely say it has the worst runs out of any hill I have skied. The quality of the snow is horrible as well, it's just wet, heavy, crusty snow so it's actually worse when there's more. I highly recommend traveling a short distance from Castle to Fernie if you are in the area, it is a much better resort, you definitely get what you pay for, unlike Castle Mountain where I leave feeling ripped off every time.
-
March 19, 2011
The Real Snow Guy from Canada
The fat on Castle: does 40 years of the driest, best and deepest snow convince those who come for one run to stay and ski for one more day? Probably not! I have skied/rode every ski mountain that has a name to fame and have not as of today found another mountain that can compare to the kind of snow that happens here. For those of you who have a very short attention span in between the skin that protrudes from you "skinny s---l" I would suggest to just get here and enjoy. We do not need so called fast, quad or whatever you describe as getting up the hill. I have seen some of you and you can barely get down the steeps. Just try to keep up! By your response and comments I probably should not have replied to your small talk, keep up the negative and the positive will always win!
-
March 13, 2011
Bert from Canada
Be well, yes we just want to have fun. Today the red chair was broke down..again.....that was fun.
You say don't come back. We live here, where else can we go? -
March 12, 2011
Be well from Canada
The fact that you people take time to come online and write bad things about a place is interesting. Are we not just out there to have fun and enjoy ourselves? Just don't come back if it is that bad, honestly, why would you? The very first time I went to Castle I drove 3 hours. It sucked, the whole mountain was ice. We took one run than drove home. Two weeks later we went in April. They got hammered. It was chaos. The web site said over 100cm, true or not, who knows. The only thing I would say is the hostel could give better rates to people plus. What other ski resort do you get hugs before getting onto the lift?
-
March 11, 2011
Bert from Canada
I have also had those epic days at Castle, They do happen but.. the crappy days far outnumber them. I have had heli like snow on a Sunday and by the next weekend the place was closed by the chinook. Some seasons there that place was closed for lack of snow and somewhere we skied the same snowdrift for six weeks. Will, I use a probe to test base depth. Was skiing those south chutes long before they could be accessed by lift. It is so amusing to read the comments about the snow being so good. It is way above the norm this year for quantity but still gets slabbed up by the warm winds. Usually dirt and wood are the problem on most of that hill and you know it.
I will still say that when it is good it is real good, you just have to be lucky to hit that day or ski there a lot and you will get those days. I have a little over 2000 days on that hill and have had a few good ones. -
March 10, 2011
Fernie Skier from Canada
Castle Mountain is more of a hill than a mountain. COP has better powder days..
-
March 10, 2011
Dilbert from Canada
Castle mountains management sometimes seems like they know what they are doing. The snow they do get is very good if you know where to go. Doing laps down center you're not likely to find anything but hard packed crap. March 1st 2011 will probably be one of the more epic days of my life. I love cmr (Castle Mountain Resort) and will shred there till I can't walk.
-
March 08, 2011
Bert from Canada
Would have to agree the website and ski report can not be trusted. Simply amazing how they report snow when there is no new anywhere in the area. Really cracks me up when they are reporting all this fresh and I am kicking up the dust on the gravel road on the way out from town. Even funnier to listen to all the pissed off Calgary dudes in the "non existent" line ups complaining about the ski report.
The word is getting around. They have no credibility in telling anything close to the truth. The POA that makes the decisions as to how the hill is run have ruined the place since taking over from the Westcastle Development Authority.
One of them told me the other day they can handle 2000 people with out a lineup. There was a few 100 people there that day and line ups. Lift lines were not bad of course as everyone was in line to buy a ticket or in line to buy food in the lodge since they don't open the T-bar until the hill is closed and the ticket office staff are confused when they have more than two customers at a time.
There have been days this year with hour and a half lift line ups.
Place is a total joke when it comes to providing service. -
March 08, 2011
Will from Canada
I was at Castle Mountain Resort 3 days last week and the powder was indeed deep enough that you needed a snorkel. And where exactly do you get a 60cm base from? Did you dig a hole and measure the base depth with a meter stick? Cause if you are estimating, try again. How do you explain a 60cm base when they've had over 500cm of snow mid-mountain year to date? That doesn't quite add up. Castle mountain is acclaimed in many regional editorials and many ski destination websites as being a very unknown 'gem' in the Alberta Rockies. In every article I have read, they have nothing but good things to say and rave that everyone should try out the resort, at least once. If Castle Mountain was such a terrible hill with no base, ancient scary lifts, relentless wind and bad snow no one would go there, no one would give it any praise and they would have closed the hill years ago. Obviously, there has to be something good about the place or no one would live up there and nobody would be raving about how good it is. So if you don't like Castle Mountain, stay away and keep your uneducated, misleading comments to yourself. For those of us who love Castle, know why we do and we won't stop going there.
-
March 07, 2011
Mr W from Canada
Castle sometimes has good conditions, but don't bother going on the weekend. On the weekends they have snow the most epic thing about the hill are the lineups! They seriously need to upgrade the lifts...
-
March 05, 2011
FernieRider from Canada
@ Caeser.. It seems like it's a pretty legit review to me. I've been there a few times and it's pretty much exactly what he said.
-
March 05, 2011
Bert from Canada
Guess you didn't understand. Castle reports a 155cm base but in reality it is about 60cm. That is less than half of 200cm.
Yesterday they reported epic powder and wind sift. It was hard wind slab and crust and prime to eat up knees. Busy day with injuries and I assisted getting a guy off; desperado after he ripped his leg up in the crust. Epic day indeed and some of the worst snow I have seen in sometime but....Castle snow report is snorkel deep. What a joke!
Nothing changes at this place, such a bush league excuse for a "Resort" as they call it. The new locals there wouldn't know good skiing if they ever had it, they are just happy they are not bouncing off the dirt like usual. -
March 01, 2011
Caesar from Canada
People please disregard the post put up by Earnie Scarr, he obviously has no clue what he is talking about.





