For the 2.1 million people who visit every year, Whistler is the backdrop for the vacation of a lifetime.
But for the roughly 10,000 people who call Whistler their full-time home, Whistler is the backdrop for everyday life – an everyday life that happens to be infused with outdoor activities, towering mountains, and a healthy dose of ski bum culture.
From the outside looking in, it’s hard to imagine what it would be like to live full-time in Whistler, but those who live it every day couldn’t imagine a different life. Here’s a glimpse of what it’s like to live in Whistler.
It doesn’t take long to feel like an integral part of the Whistler community.
Spend some time volunteering, reading at the library, watching shows put on by the Whistler Arts Council, attending talks at the Whistler Museum, or just grabbing a daily coffee in the village, and you’ll start to recognize faces around town. Before long, you won’t be able to go grocery shopping without bumping into at least a few friendly neighbours.
Despite welcoming so many visitors every year, Whistler maintains a distinct small-town vibe that’s becoming increasingly rare. Neighbours know each other, and – more importantly – they care about each other. It’s a pretty great feeling
Not many small towns can say that they host a huge annual food festival (Cornucopia) and a huge annual snow sports festival (the World Ski and Snowboard Festival) and a huge annual mountain biking festival (Crankworx) and… well, you get the point.
Living in Whistler means that you get to partake in the big-time attractions that come to town, whether it’s a free concert in the park or a world-class sporting event. Local service providers work hard to offer once-in-a-lifetime experiences for those who travel from afar—and we get to enjoy them, too. And don’t even get us started on the exceptional restaurants we get to choose from for special occasions!
It’s hard to live in Whistler and not have a pastime that involves being active in the outdoors. Our community is obsessed with skiing, snowboarding, mountain biking, hiking, trail running, cross country skiing, or otherwise findings ways to appreciate the big backyard we are spoiled with. From fearless kids to super strong seniors, a healthy and active lifestyle simply comes with the territory.
As much as we love staying fit, we also know when to kick back and celebrate – that’s what après is all about!
You don’t live in a town with such exquisite bars and pubs without imbibing every so often, and there’s always a great celebration going on for Halloween, New Year’s Eve, Canada Day, and every other holiday you can think of. Living in Whistler is seriously fun.
Too many people feel removed from nature – but that’s not the case in Whistler. We don’t tend to get fussed if we bike past a bear. Most of us couldn’t tell you what happened to the stock markets yesterday, but we could talk for hours about the snowfall that took place overnight.
It’s refreshing to live in a place where your neighbours care about and respect the great outdoors as much as you do. Those who live in Whistler know that it’s nature that makes it such a special place, and we’re eager to help preserve our slice of paradise.
The beauty of Whistler is that while it feels “away from it all”, it’s really only an hour or two from the big city (Vancouver) and all the amenities that come with it. The airport isn’t overly difficult to get to, and there are always people willing to carpool for a monthly Costco run.
In short, living in Whistler is pretty great – and we don’t take it for granted for a single minute!