Whistler, BC has become a really popular destination for Seattle families-it’s about a 4-5 hour drive away and it’s easily combinable with a Vancouver trip for shorter travel days and a longer vacation too. Over the years it feels like we’ve stayed at nearly all the properties on the mountain and our favorites so far have been the Four Seasons (for the pool and comfortable spacious rooms) and Nita Lake Lodge (for amenities like free boat and bike rentals). Most recently we stayed at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler booking with Amex Fine Hotels and it was such a great pick for a summer stay as well. (Also it is dog-friendly so Scout could come along!)
All about our room at Fairmont Chateau Whistler Resort
We only had one night to spend in Whistler but needed to check in early and booking with Amex Fine Hotels doesn’t guarantee early check in but we’ve found it really helps. We managed to check in at noon and we also like that most places in their program give a 4pm late check out too. We’ve found especially with post-covid travel it has been very difficult at other hotels to arrange late checkout. So I booked just a regular double bed family room and we were upgraded to a Mountain View double bed family room. It was so nice to be able to see the mountain and we could also keep an eye on the pool and see when was the best time to go.
Our room rate with Amex Fine Hotels included breakfast for 2 and a $100 food/beverage credit per stay. We also had to pay a $50 dog fee for bringing Scout along. The only problem is Scout isn’t allowed on the patios or in restaurants. The Wildflower at the hotel has one of the best breakfast buffets we’ve ever been to, so Scout and I ate in room for breakfast (so I could have some quiet boy-free time to myself) and the hubby and two teenagers devoured the breakfast buffet and came back completely stuffed. I really like that the Fairmont properties we’ve visited use Le Labo bath products-they are heavenly. We were also given a dark chocolate bar made at the hotel and I ended up calling and ordering a few more-it was one of the best chocolates we’ve ever had.
Complimentary Bike Valet in the Summer
I’ve heard about the ski valet at this hotel in the winter and we were happy to find out they have a bike valet. We decided to bring our bikes to try out a few local trails and this was a mostly good idea. I watched one of our teens fly over the handle bars of his bike (miraculously unscathed) and survived. This led the hubby and I to happy hour to recover. And I’m not sure if it happens every night or only on Fridays but the happy hour at this hotel is reasonably priced and there was live music and it was nice to sit outside on the patio and have good drinks and snacks. We went out on our bikes a few times and the hotel bike valet was such an easy way to keep our bikes safe.
Yes there are Tesla and EV chargers at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Some of the EV chargers in the parking lot here are also free. There are Tesla super chargers in the garage too. I think we counted at least 10 chargers altogether. We’ve used the Tesla Charger in this garage before and it’s just really convenient and helpful to have places like this to charge. Because these are in a parking garage these are also covered EV chargers-most of the EV chargers we visit are not in covered parking lots.
And our favorite place to get breakfast in Whistler?
We love the Portobello cafe in the bottom of the Fairmont. They have really great pastries and tasty food. We were able to use our food credit here and that is always the best because we would have spent money here anyways. I had a stuffed croissant from here the day the boys went to the Wildflower buffet and it was so ginormous I couldn’t finish it.
For other meals we often takeout from Pasta Lupino. We also really love Samurai Bowl just outside of the main Whistler Village (and there is a patio area where the pup can sit with you while you eat too-there are few places pups can go while you eat in the area). I tried a delicious butter tart from PureBread this time. And the coffee at Camp in Function Junction is reliably good as well.
The Chateau Fairmont is oh so close to all the mountain activities
This time because we did a lot of biking we didn’t go up Whistler at all. But we could see it from our window and it is nice to be so close to the mountain. It’s also a little secluded but not isolated from the main village so . If we had more time and didn’t have the dog I really wanted to try the suspension bridge at the top of the mountain.
And a few free things I didn’t know about at the Whistler Chateau Fairmont too
There were a few spots every morning to go on a free paddle boarding trip at Lost Lake as well as yoga classes and a visit to the Audain Museum (I’m not sure if this one had a fee or if it was free. For Seattleites if you have a Patron Membership at the Seattle Art Museum you can currently enter the Audain Museum for free as well.). There was also coffee and water boxes early in the morning too.
(PS. This was based on a summer trip in Whistler, and conditions definitely change in wintertime. Are you a Seattle family who will be visiting in winter? If you have kids under 6 years old, make sure to check for discounts and deals. Also, if you have young kids in tow on your trip to Whistler you might want to stop at the Britannia Mine Museum on your way to or from Vancouver to break up the roadtrip too. In 2023 we revisited the Fairmont Whistler in winter and it was just as fabulous as in the summer. And I also recently compared the Fairmont to the Westin Whistler if that’s what you’re looking for too.
Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys. She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live. She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)