Visitor reviews for Grouse Mountain Ski Resort

Grouse Mountain Ratings

Overall: 3.6. Based on 52 votes and 45 reviews. Vote

Snowsure: 3.5

(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) Grouse Mountain is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.

Variety of pistes: 3.5

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

Off-piste: 3.0

(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: 4.6

(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: 4.6

(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 Grouse Mountain.

Public Transport: 4.8

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

Accommodation: 3.4

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

Cheap Rooms: 3.0

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

Luxury Hotels: 3.2

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

Ski in/Ski out: 2.7

(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: 2.9

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

Snowmaking: 4.1

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

Snow Grooming: 4.1

(1) There are no snow groomers at Grouse Mountain, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Grouse Mountain 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) Grouse Mountain is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.

Nearby options: 3.0

(1) If snow conditions are poor at Grouse Mountain, 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: 3.4

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

Crowds/Queues: 2.9

(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: 4.2

(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: 3.9

(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: 4.0

(1) No intermediate terrain at Grouse Mountain, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.

Advanced: 3.5

(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: 4.2

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

Cross-country: 1.9

(1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Grouse Mountain, (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) Grouse Mountain has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.

Mountain Dining: 3.9

(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: 3.8

(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: 3.5

(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: 3.6

(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: 4.1

(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: 3.7

(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): 3.5

(1) Overall, Grouse Mountain 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): 3.7

(1) Overall, Grouse Mountain 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

March 03, 2011
nhtebgrwn from Ski Canada Canada
The guy who said little snow, that may be the biggest joke. They have over 500 cm base.
March 03, 2011
? from Ski Canada Canada
Grouse has to be the best of the local mountains. It has sick parks and challenging black diamonds. There are way to many tourists though.
February 28, 2011
Bozorgzadegan Amir from Ski Iran Iran
Unfortunately I was in Grouse mountain during off-season in Oct.2010. I felt, it is more or less similar to Tochal G-7 in north of Tehran. I mean both are very close to the city and will reach the peak by a gondola from north of the town. Of course, G-7 is the 5th highest ski slope in the world regarding altitude. Its elevation is more than 3750 meter from sea level. From there you can see the Damavand peak 5671 m. (the roof of Iran) toward the east, and the Hoz-soltan salt lake 80 km in south view during sunny and windy days. By the way, disappointedly I returned back down to north Vancouver, hoping to repeat the schedule some days in future, during ski seasons to compensate!
January 18, 2011
Offense taken from Ski Canada Canada
I take offense to the review posted, January 03 2011, with the name "Chinks croud the mountain"... This is racist and unacceptable! [note from the editor: this text has been removed]
January 16, 2011
Vancouver Tanya from Ski Canada Canada
Recently rediscovered Grouse (Grouse Mountain) after a 25 year hiatus of not skiing. Grouse is the hill I learned on and the first one I wanted to visit again. I was impressed how much it's changed over the years. New runs and lifts and a good system for handling the crowds. The Flying Eagle chair at the bottom of The Cut does get really busy, given it is the dominant green run. However, it really slows down at night. Views are amazing at night as well. Gondola runs every four minutes and holds around 100 people so lines move quickly. If you're planning on skiing during the weekend...get there when the mountain first opens and you'll find parking and get on the gondola no problem.
January 12, 2011
mike from Ski Canada Canada
Crappy conditions at Grouse Mountain + non transferable ticket = one customer lost. Sorry Grouse Mountain, your competitors would have honoured my ticket for another day and I would have come back, thank you for making me feel unwelcome, don't think I'll be seeing you again.
January 03, 2011
Crowds on the mountain from Ski Canada Canada
WOW! I totally agree with another reviewer regarding what is said about the tourism. A skating rink, a wind turbine, snow shoeing, etc, etc, etc, completely ruins the enjoyment of snowboarding or skiing up there. The majority of people on the mountain are either there for tourism and most of skiers and boarders can't ski. Some pack the lines for the lifts and crowd the runs, fill up the restaurants and apres and cut you off and annoy you the whole time you are skiing. The mountain itself is so-so, not much terrain, ok terrain parks and very little snow (there are unmarked obstacles all over etc, etc).
January 03, 2011
CFW from Ski Canada Canada
I've skied Grouse for the last 3 seasons on extremely economical seasons passes because my kids are in the Tyee Ski Club. To the critic who objects to the tourist attraction of the place -- wow, dude. The ski hill is 20 minutes from downtown and has a fantastic view of the city. It's unique. Yes, it can get busy. One of the lifts you complain about is a bunny hill lift that replaced a rope tow. The other one is a shortcut to the top. Most people skiing the peak will use the Olympic chair. As for the "a bit of a joke, really, among skiers" comment. Not really. While the runs are not Whistler-length, the mountain has an excellent variety of terrain. Its variable conditions have been an excellent learning ground for my kids, who can ski everything from slush to oatmeal to powder and ice. It's a great mountain to hone technique. Finally, having skied there in great seasons (2008-09) and poor seasons (2009-10), I have to say that the people who manage and run Grouse Mountain deserve a lot of credit. They do an outstanding job. The skiing experience is excellent.
December 23, 2010
John from Ski Canada Canada
Great place! I seem to enjoy it a lot myself! This is my 2nd year going to Grouse Mountain and I love the resort! Keep up the good work!
November 25, 2010
J Thomasj from Ski Canada Canada
Grouse Mountain has become an over-priced amusement park. The addition of two insanely slow and useless chairs to take tourists to the phony "wind turbine" and a zipline have made the skiing experience much worse as people jam the gondola - and the restaurants at the top - to go up for tourist things. Snowboards had already ruined the once good mogul terrain there. Despite all this, they just keep charging the sheeple more and more $$$. A bit of a joke, really, among skiers.