It’s Unbelievable Revelstoke Is a Real Ski Resort (Full Review)
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- Опубліковано 28 тра 2024
- An in-depth video review of Revelstoke Mountain Resort, a remote ski area located in Canada's Interior British Columbia. Filmed in February 2022.
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0:00 Intro
0:48 Expert Experience
1:23 Vertical Drop and Terrain Diversity
2:11 Hike-To Terrain
2:29 Backcountry Terrain Access
3:08 Mountain Aesthetic
4:00 Low Visibility Conditions
4:29 Snow Quality Across Resort Elevations
5:05 Lift Logistics
5:35 Crowd Flow
6:04 Revelation Gondola Setup
6:42 Ease of Navigation
7:18 Beginner and Intermediate Experience
8:19 On-Mountain Facilities
8:46 Getting There
9:25 Lodging
9:45 Aprés-Ski
10:07 Verdict
10:24 Pricing and Pass Affiliations
10:48 Score Breakdown and Rank
Overall Mountain Score: 73/100 - #4 in Western Canada
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Snow: 9/10
Resiliency: 7/10
Size: 8/10
Terrain Diversity: 8/10
Challenge: 10/10
Lifts: 7/10
Crowd Flow: 6/10
Facilities: 4/10
Navigation: 5/10
Mountain Aesthetic: 9/10
See our full resort breakdown and written review for Revelstoke here: www.peakrankings.com/content/...
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CORRECTION: We made a careless mistake at 0:02 🤦🏻♂️ Revelstoke is not in the Canadian Rockies, it’s in the Selkirks, which are west of that range.
Thank you to Chris Bradley for pointing this out!
You should do Maine Ski areas ranked. Even though the more larger mountains are small, they have a nice feel to them
The think with Revelstoke is that it's base is only 3 or 4 thousand feet, so you can think it's pouring rain, but actually at the top it's snowed 3 feet. When I went to BC and skied the Powder Highway, we though the skiing was going to be awful because it was raining, but in reality, at both Revelstoke and Kicking Horse the conditions were incredible. I'll never forget that trip
It's a fair bit lower than that- it's about 1700' base elevation. Not great.
Kicking horse could've added another 1000-1500 vert if they went lower toward town- but like it is at Revelstoke, the bottom of the mountain would be pretty awful for snow.
The same is true for Whistler. Can be snowing at the top, but raining at the base.
The airport (just below the resort) is 1457' ASL. Super low! But it's in a rain forest by classification... So the accumulation makes up for it mostly.
The even crazier part is revvy will get 60+ cm of snow in town🤣
Kicking horse is insane
Revy was a 10/10 for me. My crew skied lake Louise and sunshine before going to revy for our last day. We reeallllly regretted not just skiing revy everyday. The powder. The mountain.
There were times where we thought we were potentially out of bounds, only to hit a catwalk after what felt like 30 minutes of skiing untouched powder with no tracks in front of us. Incredible is an understatement. This has to be as close to heli skiing as you can get off of a lift.
As someone who goes to Revelstoke a lot, you just got lucky. It's not usually like that
When Revy is good, it's the best I've ever had. But usually if it's that good I can go to Kicking horse instead, saving on gas, seeing 1/3 the people and still getting insane terrain + snow. Revy isn't built up enough yet for the skiers it's seeing in my opinion.
I loooooveee Revy but after skiing 50 resorts in North America, I've got to say that Lake Louise has some really varied terrain, a small resort feeling with something for everyone. I am going back to Revy for sure but I have never got to enjoy the bottom 3000 ft conditions wise. I love the top. I love that you can't pack a whole lot of people into the place but it is a must see (beautiful panaromas) and a must ski.
Pretty accurate review. I skied revy in March a few years ago on a clear day and the views across the valley are great. Peak rankings should really have a category for beginners. If it did, revy would get a zero. I would never bring a beginner there. Even an older expert skier like myself found the place to be exhausting as most runs have a consistently steep pitch and go straight down the mountain. It really is a one dimensional resort which is why the owner/builders have never been able to fully realize their vision. It just doesn’t get enough visitation. But if you’re an expert skier it should be on your short list.
Thank you for producing these reviews! They are indispensable!
Haven't been here in over 10 years and im going next week. Im very stoked hehe. Great timing on the vid
Sick, hope you have a great time!
Favourite mountain in Canada! Skip the weekend, and you won’t ever wait much at the gondola… which you honestly take once in the day.
Suggestions that I have:
1: Reviews for Europe and Japan
2: New reviews for Alta and Snowbird
3: Stratton VT review
Europe and Stratton are on the way!
When you hit Stratton there’s some decent indies nearby also, bromley,suskahanna six and magic mt,as well as mt snow
@@bobl6139 They've already reviewed Mt. Snow.
There's over 1,100 ski resorts (stations lol) in Europe. I'm sure PR is quite happy to review them all.
@@PeakRankingsI was just looking for a Stratton vid from you guys! Glad that one’s on the way.
Overall a fair review. I lived there for the 2019 season and skied ~60 days. Even after all those days, many of them with an instructor/guide, it is still pretty easy to find yourself in over your head. And I 100% agree: Get a guide if you go to Revy and want to ski anything that's not a marked/on-piste trail. Even just the traverses into the North Bowl and Greely Bowl can get especially ass-puckering -- at times I was more intimidated by the traverses than by the extreme terrain they access. Seriously, once they get carved out, skied off, and 'loopy' they can make the Alta High-T look like a bunny hill.
50+ person here, traverses always more tension generating than the actual terrain in general as often what’s below is terrifying !
Incredible overview. I went to Revelstoke last year and I think you nailed all the drawbacks that I don't see mentioned anywhere else. It was a great deal of fun to ski the newest major ski resort in North America but the infrastructure is lagging a little behind. I stayed at the cheapest hotel for the better part of a week and it ended up being close to $150 a day. While no Aspen, it's certainly pricier than many interior BC resorts. That said, access to the mountain was extremely easy and there was plenty of free parking. We'll see if that will continue to be the case as they develop condos/hotels at the base area. As you mentioned, the gondola often gets very backed up but the line moves relatively quickly (provided it's running). I enjoyed taking The Last Spike from top to bottom and taking in the scenery (during the few hours of clear visibility).
I didn't care at all for how unbelievably low the visibility was nearly the entire time I was there. The top of the mountain was shrouded in fog to the point that it was very dangerous. I could barely see my own skis looking down and the lack of visual stimulus meant I was constantly seeing stars. I went down a heavily treed double black in the North Bowl at the urging of some friends I happened to run into and the lack of visibility meant I didn't see I was about to drop about 6 feet onto a hard packed cat track, resulting in my only ski injury in 6 years.
The town itself was a blast. I loved all the energetic pubs and conversation with locals as well as skiers from around North America. The vibe of having everyone enjoying a bucket list trip together was terrific. I'd also recommend going to a Revelstoke Grizzlies hockey game (KIJHL). There's nothing like a "pure" ski town where locals can still afford to live and work - something that's quickly fading where I live in Colorado. I recognize that comment might not age well as development continues but I'm hopeful its level of isolation will help.
I just skied there during the latest dump in the first week of 2024. Best terrain I’ve experienced but we were covered in cloud cover. I’ve been waiting for your video to see the mountain on a clear day
Just did a few days at Revy last week, was absolutely incredible at the top despite rain at the base. I go with a group of 15-20 every February and it’s epic riding.
Definitely looks like a resort that is not for the faint of heart! Great video!
You create quality content for our community. I love it.
'
RMR resort (Revelstoke) is not in the Rockies, as described in this video. It is part of the Selkirk mountain range, which is west of the Rocky Mountains. The Selkirks, being closer to the Pacific ocean, receive considerably more precipitation than the Rockies, which is why RMR has such a great reputation for deep powder.
Oof- yeah that should have been obvious. We pinned a comment with a correction.
i watched this video right before going on a trip to revelstoke, and I have to say that it helped out tremendously. even with the advice to be extra cautious here, we found ourselves in a couple of tight spots over cliffs or through rocky trees. overall this was pretty helpful and while you definitely missed a couple of aspects of revelstoke i think you hit most of the main points.
great vid very on point 👍
2019 before the coof I went to revy for 9 days, rode everyday! was epic and they had the most snow I had ever seen lol!
Well presented video. Bravo. A lot of truth about its pluses and minuses. Bravo
Had an amazing time skiing there right before COVID. I would like to go back someday, so I can do all the expert lines I didn’t do last time. Like, I had never done an extreme trail before coming here, and staying at the base hotel made a great time.
Proud to be a few hours from the best resports on your lists!!
i watched this video right before going on a trip to revelstoke, and I have to say that it helped out tremendously. even with the advice to be extra cautious here, we found ourselves in a couple of tight spots over cliffs or through rocky trees. overall this was pretty helpful and while you definitely missed a couple of aspects of revelstoke i think you hit most of the main points.
great vid very on point
The reason for the two seperate gondolas is because sometimes there is no snow at the bottom so downloading is possible from the top of the lower gondola.
Whistler does the same.
The Blackcomb gondy, Whistler village gondy, & Excalibur all have mids without having to get out & get back in. They can run top or bottom independently or contiguously offering upload from bottom & mid, or download from top & mid.
@@misterfunnybones Have not been there since the 90's. Wonder if those gondolas were available when Revy built
@@morninboyrevy used to run them straight through when u could only download to get back to the bottom. They have since removed the cable system that gives the mid station that ability and it is basically 2 separate gondolas now
The glades in Revelstoke are phenomenal to snowboard through. Almost always find some powder there.
I ❤ peakrankings
Yes! Another PeakRankings video!
revy is one of my favorite ski resorts been a few times
Revelstoke has some crazy lines & runs
It’s been like this since It first opened. It’s my favorite resort in canada 🇨🇦 best pow.
I have been twice in 2019 and 2020. I love the long, twisty, runs off the stoke chair. I enjoyed the great views and the cool downtown. Good place to take day helicopter and cat skiing trips. They need another lift on the upper mountain. The Ripper chair is nothing special. The stoke chair is great.
You should review Sun Peaks
It's on the list, but it's hard to leave the valley. We're so blessed.
Revelstoke has been on the absolute top of my bucket list ever since I first strapped a board to my feet. Although when the time comes to finally head north and go plundering that beautiful mountain bounty I feel deciding between Revelstoke and Kicking Horse will still be a challenge
go to both theyre 1.5hr from eachother
I'm 48, great up in CO can rip any black still and semi-rip any double diamond but can't do "no fall zones" anymore. Revelstoke still good to go?
You gotta come to Marmot some time!
I skied revelstoke, lake louise and sunshine last year at the beginning of january. Lack of snow on the east side of the rockies definitely made revy my favourite out of all three, with sunshine being a lot better for beginniners but I found the terrain to be very plain and boring. If I could point one major issue for revelstoke is that the resort is not very built out yet, and the lack of lifts make it so that you have to plan your runs through whether you want to prioritize the convenience and distance from a lift.
My review: Its not kicking horse but its still really good
The reason for the 2 stage gondola is for the bike park in the summer
Been to Revy twice now. We went to Canada for two weeks last month, during that time we spent a week in revy and the other week in whistler. Whistler was complete childs play compare to revy. We wish the Ikon pass had more days than just the 5. Every day was fresh pow and the tree runs were perfect. Bold statement but I'd put this mountain higher than Jackson hole.
Skied it and it’s weird tall resort but difficult to ski and get too. I was there when it first opened so not sure how much has changed. Snow was okay when I was there but not great at the time. Would go back for another try…
Do Big White Sky next!
Is there a trail map?
I respectfully disagree with lots in this review. I was just there snowboarding from Jan 7th to 12th, 2024. For me it was 10/10. If you want lots of snow and powder, biggest vertical drop, longest runs, and all the terrain that you can handle, surrounded by nice people and vibe..... without being crowded..... then make the journey because this is the place for you. Otherwise, yes please keep going to all the other easily accessible "top ranked" resorts, so that I can selfishly keep carving up Critical Path from edge to edge, with a foot of fresh pow under my board, without a person in sight for kms... all day long until my legs get cooked.
Hostel in town was really nice! and cheap! and make friends!
I'll be there for a week in 2 weeks. I can't wait!
What should I hit first?
How was it? I got a squad of 10 and we like deep powder and tree runs. Also good terrain park.
I flew to revvy from Toronto for opening weekend last season as a solo trip and it was killer but holy shit was it ever a learning experience
For some of the best pizza around checked out The Village Idiot in downtown Revy.
Revy is owned by Northland: Grouse, Sandman Inn, Sutton Place Hotels, Dallas Stars, Denny's Canada, etc. The best thing about revy is the pow & instant access to Heli with Selkirk Tangiers owned by guess who? The Northland Property Group (Gaglardi Family).
Please do Lee Canyon ski resort in Las Vegas. Roast it or love it lol
We need Chris Tomer merch
Can you guys do reviews for AZ resorts? particularly Snowbowl (Flagstaff, AZ) and Sunrise (Pinetop, AZ). As a native Arizonan, I'd love to see them!
We’re trying to at least do Snowbowl this year!
I was just at Sunrise last weekend. Very mid experience despite having great snow from recent storms. A large portion of their mountain is closed (Cyclone is not running). Snowbowl is generally more put together but suffers from crazy high pricing due to their demand pricing (sometimes tickets can be higher than Park City) and large weekend crowds from PHX. Parking sucks at Snowbowl too.
Revy has a flawed lift system because they never properly accounted for the extremely low base elevation of 1680 ft asl. Reliable skiing in B.C. starts at about 4,000ft asl. The upper mountain Stoke Chair goes from 5,300ft asl to 7,300 ft asl so what is needed is a chair whose base is around 4,000ft asl that off loads to feed the Stoke Chair.
Great video, one comment about the rankings is I'm not sure how Revelstoke has a higher lift score than big white. One of big whites greatest strengths is the number of lifts and crowd flow
Thank you! Our rationale: Big White has some slow lifts across its footprint you can’t avoid, whereas with Revy, you can stick to high-speed lifts for pretty much your entire day.
okie dokie! 🗣🗣🗣🗣🗣
Revy is not in the Rockies, but in the Selkirk. The Rockies are east of golden. FYI..kicking horse is not in the Rockies either.
Revelstoke is a great mountain. It’s not a great ski resort. It has 3 lifts. 1 hotel. 1 restaurant. It’s hard to get to and the mountain is hard to navigate. People looking for a classic ski vacation should go somewhere else. If you’re an experienced skier who is looking for something different than check it out. It has become much more crowded in the past 5 years. Prices have gone up exponentially making it much less attractive in peak season. Finally, the addition of helicopters taking off from the base will add noise and traffic that will further diminish the remaining charm of what was once a hidden gem.
We were very underwhelmed by Revelstoke. It was easily an hour wait in the gondola lift line. On a powder day Revelstoke gets skied out in about one hour. It's a very narrow resort so it doesn't take long.
I find this very very far from my experience
If you think a mountain can be skied out in an hour, then I’d say you just don’t know where to go
it almost sounds like you’re talking about a different mountain
Showed up in mid-late January last year on a weekend. There was absolutely no one there. Never had to wait.
exactly. If you are a local, you probably know the secret stashes and do not mind the climb and the brutal ski out. For tourists on vacation and newbies, the statement is not far from the truth. With only one lift to service the top of the mountain and most people following the crowd, the main runs off the chair do get skied out quickly. @@ataft85
Not in the Canadian Rockies. Revi is in the Northern Selkirks.
Favourite resort in Canada. Remember to add winter tires to your rental car.
Revy's problem is the lifts stop short of the top and the locals are rude and want to run up the hike. Top is nice, but not extreme and the bottom is usually garbage snow. Go to Kicking Horse, that place rules for steeps!
Revy is still in its infancy, but I believe if the owners carry out their plans, it will be an absolutely incredible resort. Remoteness definitely hurts it, but I think that will slowly change over the years to come. I'm excited to see RMR grow over the decades to come. Loved my week there back in March 2023.
they have been talking about adding a lift for the past 1o years with no concrete work being done. Talk is cheap. Ownership is enjoying their profits without reinvesting in the mountain.
@@jaytabac6525I disagree. You cannot add tons of lifts all at once. They are also in need of more hotels, which is why they’re focusing on that for the moment. They know their shortcomings and they need to expand terrain plus lifts. These things take time.
@@bitchezo i am not talking about adding 'tons of lifts' all at once. just one more lift to disperse the crowds. maybe another one in 3-5 years. there are huge lift lines at the bottom of the hill and at the stoke chair. it had been 15 years since they opened the expanded hill and they have done nothing to increase lift capacity. the resort is not in ints infancy anymore.
@@jaytabac6525again, disagree. It’s one of the newest resorts in North America. I believe they will focus on more lifts once they complete construction on their new hotel. Like it or not, remote resorts like these are especially still recovering from COVID delays and downturn.
I have a very positive outlook on the resort. If they don’t choose to expand in the next five years, my opinion will surely be different.
Revelstoke sounds awesome at first glance, but there are too many drawbacks. The low visibility, the bare bones lift set up, and the low elevation are three major problems from my perspective...
Red Mountain This season?
We’ve been - we just need some clearer footage!
Went around Christmas time the inversion was deadly, crazy views and the ride from the top to the bottom is 6-7 km when it’s not a shit snow year and can ride the bottom half. Don’t feed the birds lol they will take food out of your mouth.
Skiing in Colorado is amazing . It doesn’t get very cold and you can always rely on the powder.
I really love the mountain, but it's lousy for anyone who isn't an expert in good shape. Snow is also really inconsistent with the low elevation at the base and south facing side.
If you catch it on the right day though, there is nowhere I would rather ski.
If your in your early twenties and are a ski freak go and spend a few seasons here. Get a job and ski your ass off. You will never regret it when you get old.
Pre-Covid, my Ski Buds and I looked at doing a Revelstoke trip from Chicago and came to the conclusion that it's just too time consuming/difficult and expensive to get to relative to many of its competitors.
I think the only way to do revelstoke is to combine it with the other powder highway resorts and make a week of it. I did that a few years ago and it was a great road trip. The road through Rogers pass is beautiful
@@dhowe5180Would you not want to spend a week just there?
@@sam_s_ I wouldn’t. But I get bored easily and need to move on. When I did the powder highway I skied six resorts in six days
kicking horse and whistler/ blackcomb are much better less traversing
God created the mountain. Ownership and operations created the most under serviced and least updated mountain in BC. Be ready for moderate to long climbs to access the best terrain followed by a death defying ski out. Little to nowhere to warm up or eat at the top of mid-mountain. Last but not least, be prepared for massive lift lines when there are powder days as there is only one lift that accesses the top of the mountain. If you are young and do not mind climbing and loooong laps and are an advanced skier, this mountain is for you.
I think you mentioned this in other Canadian Rocky resort reviews but it can get dangerously cold, -20+ farenheit today, 1/11/24!
Yeah, I'm currently at the mountain I work at in NW Montana, current temp is -15°F, with the wind chill at -52°F, we are expecting to get down to -35° tomorrow night as well, but luckily the winds will have died down by then so the windchill will be *just* -50ish again. All of that is just at the base, not the summit, which is gonna hit -70°+ windchill the next few nights.
Figured I should mention the daytime high too, -27° with -70° windchill at the summit tomorrow, and -20 with -58° windchills in the base area. Utterly insane.
Too cold to be fun.
The two dams screwed up the weather. They dong get the snow they use too. Nit even close
Kelowna airport. Hmm, that suffers from more than its fair share of bad weather and can be shut for days on end. Just saying.
That would be Castlegar.
It’s really a shame that beginners and even intermediate skiers/boarders may not have a good time. Oh my whatever will we do, there’s not even a Starbucks at the bottom of every lift?! Such a shame.
Would love to see you cover and rank mountains that offer heli skiing/riding. Put Baldface on the list!
I am baffled at your repeated misuse of the word ‘tenured.’
I really get tired of videos of skiers/snowboarders going through the trees in all your videos. The powder is really chopped up and frankly ugly. People should opt for heli skiing; it's far better. I have experienced the Selkirks via heli and that range is awesome. I believe that in Canada there are open areas, "restricted" areas, and fully closed areas. You have to go under roping to ske the restricted areas but you won't be bothered by ski patrol.
Classic north american lift setup. NA resorts are never worth the price. Thats why every decent skier in NA backcountry skis...
Two questions:
1 - were you Stoked?
2 - How was the Snow Bunny action?
Revelstoke's location is not "remote", it's on the Trans-Canada highway ffs.
Then again, anyone that ranks Sun Peaks above Red Mountain or Fernie hasn't a clue what they're talking about.
You kind of blew it in the first 3 seconds. Revelstoke is NOT in the Rockies.
is this channel in existence just to blow up and ruin ski resorts?
You are also wrong on the gondola, you don’t need to get out of the first stage to get into the second stage.
Yes you do, they run each half separately
"vaccination required" how to tell me to never go...
That was only in 2021 when it was a province wide mandate. Still insane though that people complied with that shit, but it’s not needed anymore
"Vaccination Check: Proof of Vaccination Required for all guests aged 12 and up"
Wow, how ridiculous.
Ya, it was crazy trying to protect our most vulnerable
Yes it’s truly BS
I love the giant banner the reminds us how insanely trusting we were that vaccines were either safe or effective, so much so that we were willing to blindly accept it to be able to be check in lines by private businesses prior to enjoying the mountain.
Well, they were both sooooooooo. We've only been vaccinating people for almost 230 years, one day you luddites will catch up.
3:18 That vaccination check point makes me cringe. Your papers please.