Accessibility in Whistler

You can leave your wheelchair at the top of the Whistler Village Gondola and ask the lift attendants to move it to one side for you, behind the roped-off area. You can also request that the lift attendant send it back down to the Village or mid-station so it's there for you at the end of your ski day (and vice-versa). Guests can also utilize the Rupert Rollers. More information about these devices is available below.

The Creekside Gondola can accomodate a sit skier, or a person in a wheelchair, however, there is no wheelchair storage at the top of the gondola, so guests should either have their chair sent back down to the bottom by the lift attendant, or leave their chair at the base and utilize the Rupert Rollers with their sit-ski.

Wheelchair accessible washrooms are located on the first floor of the Roundhouse Lodge, along with a retail shop and Pika’s Restaurant. There is an elevator to take you to the upper floor of the building to access the Roundhouse Restaurant, Umbrella Bar and Steep's Grill.

• The Peak Express Chairlift does not accommodate wheelchairs
• There is no hiking or sightseeing access via the Creekside Gondola

Whistler Mountain Bike Park is committed to providing a great experience for all riders and uses an adaptive mountain bike trail rating system with considerations specifically tailored to the needs of those users. Pay special attention to the adaptive mountain bike (AMTB) specific rating as it may differ from the traditional trail rating. The rating system was created by the Kootenay Adaptive Sports Association, To learn more about the ratings, please visit kootenayadaptive.com.

• Whistler Mountain Bike Park Trail Map with Trail Rating Matrix
• Whistler Bike Park Orientation Guide (see page 9 for AMTB-specific recommendations)

Arrival

Guests are encouraged to purchase passes online and collect them from the Express Lift Ticket location at the Whistler Village Gondola, or within Guest Services. Please note that most adaptive mountain bikes do not fit through the doors at Guest Services. If you require assistance, please ask a staff member.

There is storage for wheelchairs inside the Whistler Village Gondola building. For assistance, please speak with a guest service staff member or lift operator. You are welcome to leave your chair in this location for the day if you so choose.

There is a designated Adaptive MTB (AMTB) entrance and lineup on the left side of the Whistler Village Gondola building. This is directly adjacent to the wheelchair storage space within the building.

Upload

Fitzsimmons Express Chairlift

In order to upload, guests must use the following procedure:

• Guests will use the adaptive entrance of the Fitzsimmons Express maze, leading through to our side-load area
• When ready to load, Lift Operators will stop the chair in a position that allows space for the guest to maneuver, parking in-line with the chair
• Next, an operator will steady the chair to allow the guest to transition into the seat
• If the guest is riding with someone, they can now load their bike onto the carrier in front, before joining on the chair
• Once the comfort bar is down, operators will then lift and place the aMTB on top of the bar and seat

For unload, the reverse process will be applied.

Whistler Village Gondola

Most AMTBs (Bowhead, Sport-On) can only fit in the cabins vertically. If you have an Adaptive eMTB, it will be carefully transported in its own cabin with no occupants.

In order to upload, guests must use the following procedure:

• Ask the Lift Operator to stop the gondola
• Move next to the gondola and transfer from your bike onto one of 3 options:
  
  
  • Personal wheelchair
  • Whistler Blackcomb supplied transfer benches
  • Whistler Blackcomb supplied wheelchairs*


• The Lift Operators will load your bike into a cabin
• Ride up in either your wheelchair, or on the cabin bench
• The Lift Operator will stop the gondola when you reach the top
• The Lift Operator will unload your bike and can assist you in exiting the cabin too
• Transfer to your bike

If you choose to ride up in your wheelchair, they will then send your chair back down to the base area where it will be waiting for you in the same storage location.

Creekside Gondola

Upload access from Creekside is only available via the Creekside Gondola. Most AMTBs (Bowhead, Sport-On) can only fit in the cabins vertically. If you have an Adaptive eMTB, it will be carefully transported in its own cabin with no occupants.

In order to upload, guests must use the following procedure:

• Ask the Lift Operator to stop the gondola
• Move next to the gondola and transfer from your bike onto one of 3 options:
  
  
  • Personal wheelchair
  • Whistler Blackcomb supplied transfer benches
  • Whistler Blackcomb supplied wheelchairs*


• The Lift Operators will load your bike into a cabin
• Ride up in either your wheelchair, or on the cabin bench
• The Lift Operator will stop the gondola when you reach the top
• The Lift Operator will unload your bike and can assist you in exiting the cabin too
• Transfer to your bike

If you choose to ride up in your wheelchair, they will then send your chair back down to the base area where it will be waiting for you in the same storage location.

Garbanzo Chairlift

This is an open-air, 4-person chairlift which can accommodate 1 AMTB and rider at a time. In order to load, use the following steps:

• Ask the Lift Operator to stop the chair
• Move next to the chair, and transfer from your bike onto the chairlift seat
• The Lift Operator will hook your bike over the backrest
• Ride with your bike to the top station
• The Lift Operator will stop the chair
• The Lift Operator will unload your bike and position it for you on the ground
• Transfer to your bike from the chairlift seat

For more information on the on-mountain accessibility experience, contact Whistler Blackcomb at 604.967.8950 or speak with Guest Services.

*Temporary use folding chairs.

The Rendezvous Lodge can accommodate a wheelchair user in the restaurant, and has an accessible bathroom. Glacier Creek Lodge has an accessible bathroom, but no elevator to access the restaurant.

It is recommended that sit-skiers leave their wheelchairs in the secured storage areas at the base of Blackcomb and access the mountain via the Blackcomb Gondola.

The Blackcomb Gondola can accommodate guests in wheelchairs. Guests can ride to the top of Blackcomb on the gondola and easily access the Rendezvous Restaurant, which also has an accessible bathroom. For access to Christine’s on Blackcomb, please speak with the host upon arrival.

The distance from the Rendezvous Lodge to the PEAK 2 PEAK terminal is approximately 78 metres (256 feet) with an average grade of 5.7 percent.