Sunshine Villa

Sunshine Village has long been known for its winding gondola ride that carries you almost 1,650 vertical feet from the parking lot—along the walls of a valley and box canyon—to the village base area and the rest of the lifts.

On the 13-minute ride on the fastest gondola in the world to the rest of the lifts (or 6 minutes to Goat's Eye mid-station) you have plenty of time to survey the slopes where the real thrill rides begin. Much of the skiing on Sunshine's three peaks is wide-open, bowl-type skiing, but the bottom half of the slopes are covered in evergreens for those who like their runs cut through trees.

Though a restaurant and rental shop are near the parking lot at the gondola base, the real "base area" for Sunshine is at the top of the gondola at 7,082 feet, where you will find a mountain village with a lodge, rental shop, general store, restaurant and the only slopeside lodging in the national parks. (A clarification: The base-elevation stat we list is for the gondola base; we use the term "base area" to mean the greatest concentration of shops and services.) From this point lifts take off in all directions. Most people never head all the way down until the end of the day and some not until the end of their vacation.

For a daily charge of C$32, Sunshine offers one of the only GPS tracking systems in the mountains that monitors your day on the hill. Ask about a Slope Tracker when you check in. It's an arm band equipped to register top speed, number of runs, calories burned and hours spent on the snow. At the end of the day, users return the arm band and get a poster trail map print out of the above information. Also ask at the ticket base about linking up with one of the mountain's Snowhosts, a solid group of volunteers who know the mountain well and will make your day a joy.

It's worth noting that Sunshine has the longest ski season in the region, running from the middle of November sometimes through late May, because it gets up to three times the snowfall that the other Banff ski areas get. If the weather is clear, the views across and down the canyon are as breathtaking as the runs.

Sunshine Village Ski Resort Facts:

Summit elevation: 8,954 feet
Vertical drop: 3,514 feet
Base elevation: 5,440 feet

Expert: ++++
Advanced: ++++
Intermediate: ++++
Beginner: +++
First-timer: +++

Address: Box 1510, Banff, Alberta, Canada T1L 1J5
Area code: 403
Ski area phone: 762-6500
Snow report: 760-7669
Toll-free reservations: (877) 542-2633
Fax: 762-6513
Internet: www.skibanff.com, www.skibig3.com

Number of lifts: 12—1 high-speed 8-passenger gondola, 5 high-speed quads, 2 quads, 1 triple, 1 double, 2 moving carpets
Skiable acreage: 3,358 acres
Snowmaking: None
Uphill capacity: 20,000 per hour
Parks & pipes: 1 park, 1 pipe
Nearest lodging: Slopeside, hotel
Resort child care: Yes, 19 months and older
Adult ticket, per day: C$74 (07/08, without tax)

Banff Region Facts:

Dining: ++++
Apres-ski/nightlife: ++++
Other activities: +++++

Internet: www.skibig3.com (tri-area skiing); www.banfflakelouise.com (tourism bureau); www.canadianrockies.net (townsite)

Bed Base: 10,000 in Banff