Westin Whistler vs the Fairmont Whistler for a skiing vacation with kids

First of all, I need to clarify that I currently travel with teenagers. We are a family of four and our twin boys are 15. We also often travel with our Yorkie Poo (and our pup was welcome at both hotels but we did not bring him when we went to the Westin Whistler). We traveled to the Fairmont Whistler in March by booking with Fine Hotels and Resorts with Amex and we traveled to the Westin Whistler during the winter holiday season in December using points with Marriott as well as our Marriott Bonvoy card that gives us Platinum status at this Westin hotel. If both hotels were the same price I would choose the Fairmont Whistler. (And if I could choose any hotel at Whistler I’d choose the Four Seasons Whistler in a heartbeat.). But both of these are excellent hotels to stay at for a skiing vacation with kids.

Staying at the Westin Whistler in December (specifically during the holiday season when kids are out of school)

We were hoping to meet up with family in Whistler and accommodations in Whistler are spendy over winter vacation so we used Marriott Bonvoy points to book our hotel. Because we were only there for one night I booked a studio suite with a pull out couch for the boys. We have platinum status through a Marriott Bonvoy credit card and upon arrival we were upgraded to a one bedroom mountain view suite. I forgot that the Westin Whistler is a resort hotel and these hotels do not have guaranteed 4pm check out for Platinum status so I was told to call and check in the morning for late check-out (it was busy and they told me the latest I could do was a 12:30pm checkout but that seemed fair because it was really busy and during a peak period.) Another thing to note is that the cancellation time frame is a lot smaller at Whistler hotels and especially during peak periods than what we usually expect for hotel cancellations. I think the cutoff to cancel our booking without penalty ended about 3 weeks before our actual stay and of course these things change all the time so it’s really important to check.

Parking at the Westin Whistler

We could choose between valet parking and self-parking and both were additional fees. We decided against paying $11 each for three sets of skis for ski valet so we also went with the self-park so the guys could get their skis from the car in the morning. Skis are not allowed in hotel rooms and we saw a number of people getting their skis from their cars in the morning. We also did not drive electric this time but noticed there is a fee for electric vehicle charging at this hotel. (we are seeing this more and more. When we first started driving electric many places had complimentary charging.)

Breakfast at the Westin Whistler

With Platinum status you can choose between a breakfast voucher for 2 or 1000 points at Westin hotels and it usually feels like a no brainer to get the breakfast. During the holiday season, this year the Westin Whistler also put together an Apres for Platinum+ members as well as a room specifically for breakfast. We stopped by the Apres and they had all sorts of drinks including hot chocolate and alcohol as well as charcuterie boards and samosas.

This was a really nice touch and I wish they had a lounge year round. We went to the breakfast lounge instead of the restaurant in the morning and the staff there collected our breakfast voucher but did not charge additional for our teens. This breakfast included an omelette station and so many other choices. This was such a great way to start a ski day. But I don’t think this is available year round either.

One bedroom mountain view room at the Westin Whistler Resort

The one bedroom mountain view suite was spacious and comfortable-it was nice having the separate area of the bedroom so I’m thankful for the upgrade. I’m not sure the studio would have felt as comfortable with our big guys. And the boys would have preferred a double bed to the sofa pull out. But these are extras not needs when we travel-especially when traveling during a high season. Our room came equipped with a kitchen and I might have brought extra snacks and foods if we were staying for a longer time or if we had the dog.

It is very difficult to eat out with our pup in Whistler, even patios don’t often let dogs sit near the table (except we walked by Araxi and saw two diners with their pups on the patio) so having a kitchen would have been awesome. We often take in Pasta Lupino when we are in Whistler with our pup. And I love getting breakfast from the Portobello casual restaurant in the bottom of the Fairmont Whistler but the lounge breakfast buffet here at the Westin was really delicious too.

Things I loved about the Fairmont Whistler that I missed at the Westin

We had a great time at the Westin Whistler but I have to do this comparison because my friend and I who booked the Fairmont Whistler last time are planning to revisit and need to compare both hotels. And whenever we think back to our last Whistler trip we all rave about the hot chocolate at the ski valet at the Fairmont Whistler-it was that delicious. And the ski valet was included in our stay at the Fairmont too.

And I know it wouldn’t be the best idea to book our way back to that hotel just for the hot chocolate alone but because we booked with Amex Fine Hotels we ended up with a guaranteed 4pm checkout on our leave day at the Fairmont Whistler (and some additional food perks) which we need to factor into our bookings the next time too because the latest guaranteed checkout we can get at the Westin Whistler is 11am and having late checkout helps so much especially if you are skiing on the day you leave. Because of these things I would probably book the Fairmont Whistler if the prices were comparable but staying at the Westin Whistler is still a really great place for families so we’ll see where we end up for our next Whistler ski trip.

(PS we have had so many incredible Whistler visits over the years because it’s not too far from Seattle and family in Vancouver so our kids have grown up skiing there at least once a year. One of my favorites was with Tourism Whistler and it was an over the top seaplane Porsche driving adventure. I often don’t ski Whistler anymore but spa or stop in at the Audain Art museum which is reciprocal with our Seattle Art Museum Patron level membership. A favorite stop on the way to Whistler is now the Watershed Grill in Squamish-apparently it’s in the show Virgin River if you’re a fan of stopping at places where shows are filmed too-and if you can order the baked brie dish it’s very popular and perfect.

Terumi

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)