Mountain Review: Banff Sunshine Village (2019-2022)
MOUNTAIN SCORE
NOTE: This page only covers Sunshine Village, one of three resorts in the Banff SkiBig3 complex. Also see our Lake Louise and Mount Norquay reviews.
CATEGORY BREAKDOWN
See our criteria
9
Snow:
9
Resiliency:
7
Size:
9
Terrain Diversity:
8
Challenge:
7
Lifts:
6
Crowd Flow:
8
Facilities:
6
Navigation:
10
Mountain Aesthetic:
GOOD TO KNOW
1-Day Ticket: $77-$106 USD ($99-$136 CAD)
Pass Affiliation: Ikon, Mountain Collective
On-site Lodging: Limited
Aprés-ski: Extensive
Nearest Cities: Calgary (1.5 hrs)
Recommended Ability Level:
+ Pros
Snow preservation
Top-tier views
Diverse terrain for all abilities
Extraordinarily long season
One-of-a-kind upper-mountain village
Value
– Cons
Occasional extreme cold spells
Long morning lines at base gondola
Terribly designed trail map
MOUNTAIN STATS
Lifts: 12
Trails: 137
Beginner: 20%
Intermediate: 55%
Advanced/Expert: 25%
Mountain Review
Located directly on the North American Continental Divide, Banff Sunshine Village is one of three ski areas in Banff National Park—and one of the largest resorts in the Canadian Rockies. It may not be as well-known or traveled as some of its U.S. competitors, but its incredibly well-rounded slopes should put it on the map for a wide variety of individuals.
Sunshine Village enjoys one of the longest, if not the longest, consistently good ski seasons in North America. The resort typically opens in November—with the overwhelming majority of the resort open by the end of month—and continues operating through late May. Even in the spring, upper resort elevations regularly enjoy fresh snowstorms and light, dry powder. Sunshine’s raw accumulation quantity isn’t the highest in North America, but the resort’s strategic continental divide location furnishes it with the most snowfall of the Banff SkiBig3 mountains. Sunshine’s lowest elevation areas experience more variable snow conditions than primary terrain zones, but most guests only ski down there once a day.
Arguably, the biggest deterrent to a good day at Sunshine Village is a cold spell. For a few weeks each season, the resort experiences truly frigid conditions, with temperatures dropping as low as -30°F—and wind chill getting even lower. Occasionally, the mountain gets so cold that Sunshine has to delay its opening or shut down operations entirely. These temperature fronts last for a week or longer in certain cases, so guests may run the risk of uncomfortable frigidity across their entire trip.
But those who don’t bust on temperature conditions will almost certainly come away impressed by Sunshine. This resort boasts one of the most profound aesthetics in the world, with distinctive in-bounds terrain and incredible views of the Canadian Rockies that will make you want to stop at every turn. The area is extremely remote—the only access to the resort is through a striking canyon that takes a 45 degree turn about a quarter of the way up, making it impossible to see down to the base. Besides the lifts, facilities, and mid-mountain village itself, there’s absolutely no sign of civilization at Sunshine. Upper-mountain areas boast a 360-degree skiable footprint, affording guests near-complete bird’s eye views of neighboring mountain pods.
For a mountain of its size, Sunshine maintains a relatively unorthodox layout. The resort has a 3,500-foot vertical drop, but about half of it runs through a near-straight valley comprising mellow terrain, with remaining mountain zones mostly branching out along the sides of this valley. This results in Sunshine having a diagonalish horizontal-feeling design rather than a straightforward bottom-to-top one. As a result, those expecting truly long runs may want to look elsewhere.
Another very unorthodox element to Sunshine is the location of its village. Unlike most resorts, which host their villages at the base of the resort, Sunshine’s is nestled high up in the mountains at the top station of the gondola. This makes for an extensive complex of facilities in a key mountain area, with multiple lodges, dining options, and even a first aid building. As a result, guests will never need to go far to stop in for a break. The mid-mountain Goat’s Eye base also hosts a smaller lodge, but it’s more than sufficient enough to accommodate demand. While it won’t be useful for most guests during the ski day, there’s a sizable base lodge next to the parking lot too.
Sunshine Village is a massive mountain, and it’s one of only a few that’s both great for inexperienced guests and tenured experts. A wide variety of terrain, from below-treeline trails to high-alpine bowls, can be found for all levels.
Beginners will want to start at the upper-mountain Strawberry pod; this area hosts multiple green runs and doesn’t service any blacks, leading to isolation from more aggressive skier and snowboarder traffic. The nearby Standish, Wawa, and Angel pods each service green terrain as well, although beginners may find the conditions off the latter too harsh depending on the conditions and temperature. True first-timers can learn to ski or ride on a magic carpet adjacent to the mid-mountain village. Mid- and lower-mountain areas also host beginner terrain; guests can take the green Banff Avenue trail back down to the base, but those looking to avoid this long, somewhat flat run can download the gondola instead.
Sunshine guests will find intermediate terrain off every lift, including tree-defined runs at Wolverine and Wawa, wide-open bowls on Lookout Mountain, and a range of both on Mount Standish and Goat’s Eye Mountain. Most blue runs are consistently groomed, although some have sections that are ungroomed, making them good for learning moguls. The blues off Goat’s Eye and Lookout host some of the resort’s best panoramic views.
Sunshine’s terrain starts to get a bit more interesting once guests reach advanced proficiency. In addition to traditional ungroomed mogul runs and bowls, the resort specializes in demanding glade terrain. Obstacles such as rocks and cliffs exist within these trees, and a few black-diamond glade runs are technical enough to require short sections of straightlining. On the other hand, some blacks—especially in lower mountain areas, are on the easier side.
Sunshine hosts a handful of double-black trails with no access restrictions on Goat’s Eye; these runs either require navigating incredibly steep trees or dropping into tenuous cornices. Although unlisted as trails, a few truly insane cliff jumps become skiable when conditions allow.
Sunshine Village is one of only a few destination resorts with terrain so tenuous that guests are required to find a partner and carry an avalanche beacon and shovel to enter. In fact, there are two resort “free ride” zones featuring such extreme terrain: Delirium Dive and the Wild West. Both zones comprise incredibly technical terrain with little or no room for error, depending on the line.
Delirium Dive requires a short hike to reach, is entirely above treeline, and mandates an extremely dicey 50-degree cornice entry to most lines. On the other hand, Wild West starts out at a deceivingly mellow pitch before filtering into menacing couloirs and chutes, with a few trees thrown in across the zone. Hazard markings in these free ride areas are essentially non-existent, and it’s not all that difficult to end up cliffed out. If you haven’t been in one of these zones before, be sure to consult a local on your first endeavor.
Sunshine Village also boasts a wide variety of terrain parks across various mountain areas. Boxes, rails, and jumps are rated from small to extra-large and designed with progression in mind. That said, feature ratings are on the easier side, and extra-large features at Sunshine are not equivalent to the monstrous obstacles found at other resorts.
In order to get to all of Sunshine’s terrain, guests will have to first travel through the resort’s lone base area—which is home to one of the most overworked lifts in Canada. Access comes only from a singular gondola, and the lift is a considerable chokepoint in the morning. Luckily, the gondola line moves briskly enough, and significant waits past this initial lift ride are rare—but Sunshine is not the mountain for people who might need to go back to their car in the middle of the day. Crowds on runs are typically higher than at the more remote Lake Louise.
If you want to optimize your day for the fewest lines, get off at the gondola mid-station and head to Goat’s Eye first, then head to the higher elevations later on. This is essentially the inverse of typical resort circulation; most guests ride the gondola to the upper mountain and spend their mornings there, then filter down to the Goat’s Eye pod in the afternoon.
When it comes to the lifts themselves, Sunshine boasts a thoroughly modern setup. The overwhelming majority of terrain access comes from high speed lifts, with only the Wawa pod seeing service exclusively from a slow, fixed-grip chair.
A large portion of Sunshine Village’s terrain is susceptible to uncomfortably frigid conditions, even outside of the worst cold spells. The upper-mountain bowls are heavily exposed, and the wind chill in this area can often reach unbearable levels. The Teepee Town Luxury Express quad, which services much of the bowl terrain, is one of the most effective bubble chair installations we’ve experienced. On days when it’s too cold to even ride the upper-mountain lifts up, the sheltered Wolverine pod is the place to be.
For such a large mountain, it’s pretty difficult to get lost at Sunshine. The resort has an intuitive layout, and it’s possible to get to nearly every resort area with only two lift rides. Each trail starts with a protruding pole that advertises its trail rating, resulting in excellent difficulty markings. The mountain gets narrower as you go down, and with only one base, it’s impossible to end up in the wrong spot at the end of the day.
The one major pain point is the trail map—or, rather, the three different trail maps that depict different sections of the resort. These maps are terribly designed and make it really hard to reference where you are when you’re first navigating the resort. In addition, lift directions are few and far between, and it’s too easy to miss a few mid- and upper-mountain loading areas. Finally, it’s a bit of a walk from the gondola top-station to some of the upper-mountain lifts.
Getting There
Banff Sunshine is a 20-minute drive from the Banff city center, which itself is a 1.5 hour drive from the Calgary International Airport with no traffic. The resort runs free shuttle bus services to and from town, and there are several bus options available to town from the airport. Both Banff proper and Sunshine Village are within Banff National Park, and it’s worth noting that those driving must purchase a park pass to drive to the resort.
Sunshine’s parking lots sit along a narrow canyon, and the furthest lots are a bit of a walk from the gondola. The resort does not offer premium paid parking, so those hoping to get a good spot near the gondola will have to get there early.
Lodging
Sunshine’s high-alpine village is home to a singular, incredible on-site hotel: the Sunshine Mountain Lodge. This ultra-luxury accommodation is pricey, but it comes with direct ski-in/ski-out access to the resort’s upper mountain and generous amenities such as a hot tub and spa. Ikon and Mountain Collective passholders get 15% off their booking at this entity.
A much more extensive array of lodging options exist nearby in Banff. Options in Banff can be found for any budget, ranging from economical shared-room hostels to the ultra-luxury Fairmont hotels. For those looking for a bit better value from their accommodations, the town of Canmore sits 30 minutes from Sunshine Village and 20 minutes from Banff proper.
Aprés-ski
Aprés at Sunshine Village is limited. The upper-mountain village contains a few bars, but they’re typically humdrum. But the resort isn’t a total snoozer, and the Creekside base lodge occasionally hosts live music.
Options become much more substantial in the town of Banff itself, with several bars, restaurants, and activities to keep guests entertained. The venues are close to one another, making it easy to bar hop.
Verdict
So while Banff Sunshine is a bit more frigid and remote than some might prefer, it offers one of the most well-rounded experiences of any ski resort in North America. With diverse terrain for all abilities, world-class views, and a modern lift setup, Sunshine is a great place to ski or ride for essentially everyone. Ticket prices are surprisingly reasonable, making the resort an incredible value for what you get.
