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Fernie Resort Reviews

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Visitor reviews for Fernie Ski Resort

Fernie Ratings

Overall: 3.6. Based on 43 votes and 57 reviews. Vote

Snowsure: 4.0

(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) Fernie is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.

Variety of pistes: 4.4

(1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Fernie has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.

Off-piste: 4.1

(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.

Scenery: 4.5

(1) An ugly resort in a bland setting, (3) average mountain views and resort, (5) a spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town.

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 Fernie.

Public Transport: 3.3

(1) There are no buses or taxis to Fernie, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.

Accommodation: 4.4

(1) No places to stay in/near Fernie, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.

Cheap Rooms: 3.6

(1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.

Luxury Hotels: 4.2

(1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Fernie.

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: 3.7

(1) There are no child care facilities at Fernie, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.

Snowmaking: 2.9

(1) Fernie relies entirely on natural snow, (3) there are just a few snow cannons, (5) there are snowmaking facilities on all pistes.

Snow Grooming: 3.7

(1) There are no snow groomers at Fernie, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Fernie are groomed daily.

Shelter: 3.7

(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) Fernie is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.

Nearby options: 2.8

(1) If snow conditions are poor at Fernie, 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: 4.4

(1) Fernie 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: 4.1

(1) The staff at Fernie are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Fernie are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.

Crowds/Queues: 3.9

(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: 3.6

(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.

Beginners: 3.8

(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 Fernie, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.

Advanced: 4.5

(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: 2.6

(1) Not even a kicker at Fernie, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.

Cross-country: 3.8

(1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Fernie, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.

Luge/Toboggan: 1.6

(1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Fernie has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.

Mountain Dining: 3.4

(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: 3.5

(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: 3.7

(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: 2.8

(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: 3.2

(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: 3.4

(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: 3.1

(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): 3.2

(1) Overall, Fernie 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): 3.4

(1) Overall, Fernie 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.

Show all 35 ratings

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April 15, 2005
Marty Cart from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Really bad year for snow, but staff still made the best of it. If you need a great ski lesson. Get one with Mark H, as he knows the great places to find the powder.
March 17, 2005
Dean Clark from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Loved it so much, i have just bought a place out there! Awesome mountain and great powder, great slopes and absolutely no queues! Only downside is the long journey but it is well worth the effort. Oh yeah forgot to mention that the locals are really friendly and the Kokanee Gold is a fantastic beer!
February 15, 2005
mark stevens from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Arrived the weekend of a large dump of snow, 5th Feb 2005 - best skiing I've ever done and all of our party, some who have skied all over the world, rated as one of the best ever. There are five bowls, each seemed to over something different, so many routes and so much off piste, endless fun. Would recommend a guide early in the week as we were still exploring the mountain on the sixth day. The town had more going on that we thought it would have - some good bar/clubs, and the restaurants excellent food and good value. On the minus side, it is a long way but the quality of the skiing, absolutley no crowds (even on the Sunday)and the friendly locals more than make up for that. But let's keep it a secret!
January 20, 2005
Louise Plant from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Fernie is a great place for friends and family. It has a small town feel, where you can join the locals in the bar for a beer. It is not a tinsel town for tourists, it's a real place with real snow. The choice of food is great both on the hill and in the town. Again the resort and town benefit from a number individually run restaurants which deliver good quality real food. There is plenty of BC wine to spoil yourself with too. Thumbs up for Fernie. Keep Fernie a secret for those that care.
January 11, 2005
Malcolm Lockhart from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Fernie Alpine resort has a bit more of a European feel to it with decent mountain side accomodation and bars. Fernie town (5kms from the alpine resort) is like something out of an old Western movie but has a few good restaurants and bars. Definitely a young persons resort. Good for all abilities, especially those who like their powder with 3 excellent bowls. However... I can't remember a single lift journey that didn't need to be slowed down or stopped. Take your hand warmers and plenty of patience!
November 02, 2004
Mick Murray from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Fernie is great for boarders who have got a few weeks under their belts , and want a save off piste powder experience .The Bowls are great as are the trees . I wouldn't reccomend it for begginners with limited greens and they can't get to the top of the mountain . Stick to Whistler as the tuition there is second to none and yo can get up to mid station in the gondela to see the montains . Restuarnats are well spread out with limited food by the lifts and a bus to take you into town , if I went again I would hire a car ! That said we had some lovely food in town especially in the Old Elevator where the Ribs and the Chardonay Reserve are superb . All in All great off piste boarding , good food but limmited entertainment , Even though we did get Piste in a club a couple of nites ! I took a 3 day course with an instructor called JC and he showed my some wicked off piste !
October 23, 2003
mark van adrichem from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
The best place we have ever board'd and ski'd. We have spent many years in the alps and BC can not be beaten. Fernie is a real backcountry heaven, the biggest points of interest? 29ft a year of snow and no crowds!! It really has what ever you want. Hope this review helps someone out!

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