So this summer my mom wants to do a sort of family vacation with me and my sister somewhere. Naturally, I thought Whistler would be a great location. After having searched both here and in the Lounge a bit, I have yet to find the answers to some of my questions. Basically, I'm wondering where to stay, how to get there, and any other pointers people might have.
I am thinking tentatively at this point that driving from SoCal would be easiest - no need to pay baggage surplus fees on the plane, and no worrying about my bike. At the same, it would put wear-and-tear on the car, and takes much longer. Any opinions on this?
Next, I'm not quite sure when to go. July I will be working pretty much the entire month, so I am thinking mid August would be best, after Crankworx. That way, we miss the huge crowds, and hopefully the weather will be decent. Is this a good time to ride? Since it's not a "riding" vacation, I think that my riding time will be limited to maybe 3 or 4 days, so I want to really ride and not just watch pros, even though I'm sure the atmosphere is amazing.
Lastly, any tips on where to stay? This is all very preliminary still, so I really haven't looked into much of anything in the way of lodging. However, considering it's 3 people, 2 of whom want to stay somewhere "nicer", and condos/hotels that aren't too expensive yet aren't complete dumps either with people sleeping on the floor? If it were just me I'd do it completely on the cheap, but what can you do. I need to be looking into other activities or maybe locations as well, not just the lifts and hotel, but I figured I would try to figure out my part of this before worrying about the details.
I know I should be thinking about extra parts, clothes, etc. at this point too. I'm thinking basically my normal kit with a rain jacket in case would probably suffice, and maybe a thermal layer just in case it gets really cold. Other than that, I'm just pumped I might actually make it to Whistler!
Any advice is greatly appreciated.
I am thinking tentatively at this point that driving from SoCal would be easiest - no need to pay baggage surplus fees on the plane, and no worrying about my bike. At the same, it would put wear-and-tear on the car, and takes much longer. Any opinions on this?
Next, I'm not quite sure when to go. July I will be working pretty much the entire month, so I am thinking mid August would be best, after Crankworx. That way, we miss the huge crowds, and hopefully the weather will be decent. Is this a good time to ride? Since it's not a "riding" vacation, I think that my riding time will be limited to maybe 3 or 4 days, so I want to really ride and not just watch pros, even though I'm sure the atmosphere is amazing.
Lastly, any tips on where to stay? This is all very preliminary still, so I really haven't looked into much of anything in the way of lodging. However, considering it's 3 people, 2 of whom want to stay somewhere "nicer", and condos/hotels that aren't too expensive yet aren't complete dumps either with people sleeping on the floor? If it were just me I'd do it completely on the cheap, but what can you do. I need to be looking into other activities or maybe locations as well, not just the lifts and hotel, but I figured I would try to figure out my part of this before worrying about the details.
I know I should be thinking about extra parts, clothes, etc. at this point too. I'm thinking basically my normal kit with a rain jacket in case would probably suffice, and maybe a thermal layer just in case it gets really cold. Other than that, I'm just pumped I might actually make it to Whistler!
Any advice is greatly appreciated.