Examining the trail map you’ll easily locate the area with optimal conditions for newbies; right next to the midway terminal of the Whistler Village gondola in the Whistler Mountain section is the area designated for beginners. Here, two beginner tows help make the first couple of runs less strenuous. Another option is the trail “Upper Fantastic” off the Olympic chair, which doesn’t connect to any other trails, so it allows first-timers to break in their ski-legs without being disturbed by other skiers.
The beginners’ area in Blackcomb can be found right at the base at the Magic chair. Once beginners are ready to step it up a little, we recommend heading over to the “Family Zone” off the Emerald Express at Whistler Mountain. The trails “Ego Bowl” and “Lower Whiskey Jack” are perfectly suited for the first attempts at a longer run. When you feel ready to start adding some blues to your repertoire, we suggest testing yourself on “Lower Fantastic” at the midway terminal of the Whistler Village Gondola before venturing up to the upper part of the ski area. Should you at some point realize that you’ve reached your limit on the mountain, you’ll normally be able to get back to Whistler Village pretty easily. Most of the time all you need to do is follow the signs that say “Easiest Way Down.”
All in all, conditions are pretty good for beginners at Whistler Blackcomb, though some parts of the ski area are only accessible via blue (intermediate) trails. But though Whistler Blackcomb is known more for its more challenging runs, since there are quite a few green (easy) trails as well as a couple practice areas, we found it deserving of 8 stars in the Beginners category.