Whitefish Mountain Resort | Plan your winter visit
Visiting Whitefish Mountain Resort | Everything you need to know before you go
If you are looking for a place to escape to in the winter, to experience all the things the season has to offer; fun in the snow, white-capped mountains, winter activities to fill your day, then look no further than Whitefish Mountain Resort in Whitefish, Montana.
Whitefish, Montana is a snow-lovers paradise thanks to Whitefish Mountain Resort, where skiers and snowboarders of all levels are welcome, where the slopes are packed with snow and the views are jaw-dropping.
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In my blog post about exploring Whitefish in the Winter, you will find all the details about the town of Whitefish, but here we will focus on the resort itself.
As always, all the links in my blog are non-afflicatied and my suggestions and opinions come from personal experience and are paid for on our own.
My goal is to inspire you to travel to new places and support small businesses along the way.
Whitefish Mountain Resort is open for skiing and snowboarding from early December to early April, 8:30am to 5pm daily, spans over 3000 acres of mountain terrain and is home to 111 marked runs that offer both bowl and tree skiing. The resort also offers six freestyle terrain parks for snowboarders & skiers.
The resort is the perfect place for beginners and experienced skiers and snowboarders alike.
Not only do they offer a variety of lessons and camps for kids but they have areas where you can practice before you venture out on the bigger slopes.
If you are like us and need to get your bearings after years off skis, take a magic carpet ride to the bunny slope aka Big Easy or start on Chair 9 to Easy Rider.
In addition to the beginner slopes, Whitefish Mountain Resort offers 10 chair lifts to a large array of runs as well as two T-bar lifts.
Here is the the map of lifts and runs, which includes maps of both sides of the mountain and the Hellroaring Basin.
One thing I loved about Whitefish Mountain Resort was the amount of accessible staff on the slopes. As a beginner skier myself and two kids that are novice at best, I always felt that someone was around to help if needed. Whitefish Mountain Resort has Mountain Ambassadors skiing around all day. They are in bright yellow marked jackets and will offer assistance with any questions. They are friendly and eager to help you have a great experience and even offer free tours two times a day (10:30am and 1:30pm) to share what all you need to know about skiing at Whitefish Mountain Resort.
Though we should have, we did not take any lessons to refresh our ski skills but we witnessed a lot of lessons and all the instructors were encouraging, helpful and knowledgeable. If you haven’t been on skis in years or ever, I highly recommend taking a lesson. You’ll have a much better all-around experience and reduce your chance of injury.
Speaking of injury…be sure to grab a trail map or take a picture of the emergency number before you set off for the day. You never know when you will need it but trust me, if you do need it, you’ll be thankful you have it.
Ask me how I know that…or better yet, check out this Instagram post I shared of our experience with the Whitefish Mountain Resort rescue team.
Grateful for the help of the Whitefish Mountain Resort Rescue Team
Ok, enough safety mom talk…let’s just finish this by saying Whitefish Mountain Resort is clearly everyone’s favorite place to visit during winters in Whitefish and it’s perfect for families of all ages, a great place to head with friends and no matter what level skier you are, you will have a blast skiing in Whitefish.
One of the most inspiring sights at Whitefish that I witnessed was how accessible the resort was. We skied alongside blind skiers, wheelchair skiers and others. There were guides and instructors offering lessons to those who were learning to ski with an impairment. I was so inspired by this—both the person learning to ski and the opportunities created by the resort to ensure inclusivity to all.
Love night skiing? Whitefish offers that too! Each Friday and Saturday night as well as holidays, you can ski from 4 to 8:30pm under the lights.
We loved Whitefish because it never felt overly crowded, we did not experience wait times at the lifts, were never overrun by other skiers and every staff member we encountered was friendly and helpful.
Snow was coming in as we rode the lifts at Whitefish Mountain Resort
Buying Ski Lift Tickets at Whitefish Mountain Resort
Check out the Whitefish Mountain Resort website for more information on ticket packages and pricing.
To save up to 25%, you can buy them online up to 48 hours in advance online.
You can also buy them when you arrive at the resort at any of the windows at Base Camp. There you can also rent gear and will find locker rentals for your personal belongings.
We heard rumors that you can buy them at local retailers and wholesale stores like Costco but based on my research I could not find that the Kalispell Costco offers discounted lift tickets. Here is the info in case you want to check it out for yourself. Kalispell Costco.
Renting Ski Gear
As for renting gear (skis, helmets, poles, boots or snowboards), you have a few options depending on where you are staying.
You can rent at the Resort. Walk right up, pay for your lift ticket and get sized for gear all in one spot. You may pay a little extra for convenience but it may be worth it, especially if you are staying at the lodge or in a ski-in, ski-out rental.
You can rent locally like we did. We stopped at Taramack Ski Shop on our way up to the mountain. There was no line and the helpful staff quickly got us fitted in gear, including helmets, skis and poles. They were open early and were so knowledgeable about the gear we needed. Everything was in great condition and fit well—no issues whatsoever.
We stopped here as opposed to renting at the resort because I needed snow pants. We rented all our winter gear (pants, jackets, googles, boots and gloves) through Kit Lender so we didn’t have to buy and pack it but there was an issue with my pants so I had to buy a pair in town. A very unexpected and costly expense.
If you are curious about renting from Kit Lender, check out my full review here.
Tamarack’s staff was very laid back. Our last day of skiing was Wednesday and as long as we returned the gear by 11am on Thursday there would be no extra charges. Bonus to returning your gear to Tamarack, they are connected to The Montana Tap House, so you can drop off your gear and grab a local beer or a bite before you move on to your next activity.
Teens skiing at Whitefish Mountain Resort, Whitefish, MT
Skiing makes you hungry, Whitefish Mountain Resort offers lots of dining options.
Since we brought up food and beer, there are a lot of options for food on the slopes.
At the base, you will find the Base Lodge Cafe & Bar and Base Lodge Coffee Bar. They offer indoor and outdoor dining tables as well as all your family-friendly food—chicken strips, burgers, fries and more. You can even warm up by the outside fire pit.
We also ate at Ed & Mully’s, this restaurant is located in the Village and will involve a bit of skiing to get to but there is plenty of room, many menu items and cold beers to choose from.
Our favorite place that we ate on the mountain was Hellroaring Saloon and Eatery. It was by far the most packed location and while kids are allowed this seemed to be more popular with the adults-only groups. It had a lively vibe, beers were flowing and plates of their famous nachos were everywhere. It too takes a bit of a journey to get there but it’s totally worth it. If you hit it at peak times, you may have to wait a bit for a table and they will only seat you if your entire party is present.
Here is a complete list of restaurants & shopping at Whitefish Mountain Resort. If you are like me and need a last minute clothing article or want a souvenir items, you can find those at the resort. After spending way too much money on ski pants, I couldn’t bring myself to see how much they cost on site but they do sell them in case you need to know!
Pretty, snow covered bridges on the trails at Whitefish Mountain Resort
Snow conditions at Whitefish Mountain Resort
Obviously conditions of the runs will depend on weather and while Whitefish gets an average of 300 inches per year of snow there is no guarantee when fresh snow will fall. We all know the weather is getting more difficult to predict. When we arrived, the resort had not had fresh snow in about 10 days, so the skies were blue but slopes were icy but on our third and final day, it was snowed at night and all day and we were skiing in fresh powder. Since we left, it’s been snowing on a very regular basis. Ideal snow conditions are likely with so much snow expected annually but as always, with travel and weather, a bit of luck plays a role as well.
Adorable cottages are available for rent at Whitefish Mountain Resort
Lodging suggestions in and around Whitefish Mountain Resort
We opted to stay in downtown Whitefish considering it’s proximity to the resort and because we were traveling with another family, we thought it might be the best location for us to connect at night and dine together.
We stayed at Heaven’s Peak Penthouse in Downtown and it was walking distance to everything. The condo was the perfect spot for us this trip. Convenient, clean, accessible, wonderful amenities and amazing views of the resort itself. The condo was walking distance to everything we needed in Whitefish and we would highly recommend it.
If you want to know more about our time exploring the town of Whitefish and all our favorite finds, head to that blog post for all the details.
We rented directly through Glacier Getaways. Jamie, the manager, was responsive, helpful and had the unit ready for our arrival. There was a small glitch to where the code wasn’t working but she answered our text quickly and gave us the updated code within minutes. We loved this unit for it’s modern flair and also because it came with a heated garage, so our car was snow-free and warm each time we got into it.
We did say that if we returned to Whitefish in the winter, we would opt for a ski-in, ski-out rental in the resort. We were admiring the homes as we rode the lifts and skied the trails.
Here are a few links to help you start your lodging search.
Glacier Getaways offers many on-slope options or you can stay at the Resort enjoying the many amenities it has to offer.
For home and condo rentals, you can use this link to search your options directly through the resort or of course you can always search VRBO and AirBnB.
We have only been skiing one other time in Deer Valley, UT and we loved it there but Whitefish has quickly become our new favorite spot. The resort offered everything we needed and we felt it was a great place for novice skiers like us and it was evident that more experienced skiers were having a great time too.
If you are curious about renting from Kit Lender and saving yourself time, money and space in your luggage, you can read my full review here.
Questions? Thoughts? Suggestions? Never hesitate to drop them below, I love hearing from you!
Celebrate fun in the snow, Explore Whitefish Mountain Resort!
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