Ski getaway to Blue Mountain Resort with kids  

For those of us living in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Blue Mountain can be an easy day trip. But when you have kids, or you want to immerse yourself in what a Canadian winter has to offer, it’s best to slow down and spend a few days.

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What’s so special about Blue Mountain?

You probably won’t see Blue Mountain Resort at the top of Canada’s extensive list of ski destinations (although, due to its location, its one of the busiest). Ontario just don’t have the Rockies of the West, or the Laurentians of Quebec. And when you search for “Blue Mountain Resort”, you have a greater chance of being directed to the ski resort in Pennsylvania with the same name.

But to us Ontarians, Blue Mountain Resort is a popular getaway both as a winter destination, as well as a summer retreat. It is the biggest ski and snowboard resort in Ontario, located near the town of Collingwood along Georgian Bay. I’m no expert, but as beginner and intermediate level skiers, Blue Mountain had plenty of runs to keep us skiing all day. You can choose your own adventure of staying in the village itself just under the mountain, a lively and vibrant resort with plenty of shopping and eats, or opt for a cottage-like feel in one of the nearby airbnbs. The resort itself has a plethora of kid-friendly activities in the winter and summer. And best of all, it’s only a 1.5 hour drive from the GTA.

Where to stay?

We spent four days at Blue Mountain over the Christmas break. Due to the COVID pandemic, we rented an airbnb at the North Creek Resort and brought most of our food with us.

1) Airbnb

We find renting an airbnb the preferred option when traveling with kids. It gives you a little more freedom and way more amenities than most hotel rooms do. The North Creek Resort is – aptly named – north of Blue Mountain. Most of the units are owned and rented out for short term stays. It’s less than a five minute drive from the village and ski lifts. It’s possible to ski in and out directly from the resort, but the north side of the mountain are all black diamond runs, with one blue that connects to the other lifts. With our kids who are beginners, this would not have been an option. These runs were not open when we went in December (resort had been open for a few weeks, but had closed for a week in between due to warm weather.)

The units at North Creek all look pretty compact. We had a studio space, with a bed and a pull out sofa in the sitting area. It was just the right size for us, but we did have to be careful where we stored all our gear (the suites also provide lockers). If you’re looking for more space, we’ve also stayed at Mountain Walk resort homes just across from the village, with three bedroom units and highly recommended. There are a number of resort “complexes” in the area that have units listed on airbnb. You do need to look and book early – some of these places are fully booked for the winter by summertime!

2) Blue Mountain Resort

Blue Mountain Resort itself also has condo units, as well as standard hotel rooms, in and around the village. There is obviously a premium for this, and you do need to book far in advance for the condo units as well. Most of these hotels have direct access to ski lifts, but some of them (eg. the Blue Mountain Inn) are still not within easy walking distance from the village, especially for kids. If you are a learner and your class is at the South base lodge, this is at least a 15 minute walk even from the south side of the resort. Not a convenient trek with gear. Ultimately, I personally feel staying at the resort itself is not necessary, especially if walkability is your main concern. Another consideration is if you have kids who sleep early, the village can be quite loud late at night.

3) Collingwood

Another, more economical option, is to stay one of the many hotels in Collingwood. It’s a short ten minute drive away from Blue Mountain, but you do miss some of the “winter magic” that comes from staying near Blue Mountain itself.

Eating at Blue Mountain

We like to make our own food for the majority of our meals. Our kids are not great restaurant eaters at the best of times, particularly when it comes to fine dining. They’re doubly short on patience and extra-squirmy when they’re tired after a day of skiing and outdoor activities.

Back at our own airbnb, we can relax and put on a movie or start a bath for the kids (bonus points if there’s a jacuzzi), and take our time with food. We’ll usually throw together something easy, like a one-pot pasta or tacos, so we can enjoy the time together without worrying about a huge post-prep cleanup.

There are all the big name grocery stores in Collingwood, less than 10 minutes away, including Walmart, Metro, FreshCo.

If we’re having a full skiing day, we’ll grab something from the ski chalet for lunch.

We do like to hit up the great Canadian traditions when we’re in the village. There’s Mile High Poutine, always great for an apres-ski snack or light meal. There’s also Beaver Tails, which is a must-stop for the kids. Blue Mountain has a second Beaver Tails shack up on the mountain where the Southern Comfort chairlift is. It’s also conveniently the entrance to the Woodland skating trail (in case you need a boost in between any of these activities…) The last time we visited the village, we discovered Royal Majesty Espresso Bar Bakery, when we were on the hunt for a late night hot chocolate.

6 family activities for a Blue Mountain winter getaway

Blue Mountain Resort *is* a ski resort, but there is plenty to see and do if you’re not planning to ski. There are many families who visit for its vibrant village and other winter attractions.

If you want to ski:

1) Ski camp for the kids

Out of our 4 days, only one of these days was a full day of skiing. The price of daily lift tickets are expensive over the holiday season – 105 CAD for an adult and 91 CAD for youth (including tax). I didn’t want the family to feel pressured into skiing all day, especially as the kids had only skied a few times before our trip.

We did sign the kids up for Blue Mountain’s “half-day” ski camp for our first two days. They offer two groups, one for kids 4-6, and another for kids who are a little older. We found the camps weren’t so much “camps”, but rather 1.5 hour semi-private-ish (groups of 1-3 children depending on comparable levels of the kids) lessons. They also offer private lessons for “tots” (4 years and under), and the private lessons looked pretty much the same. They teach kids the basics, such as pizza and introducing them to using edges. The magic carpets at the beginning hills are busy, and they only really get to go down 3-4 times. We still found by the end of the two sessions, Big S and Lil S were comfortable getting onto and taking the magic carpet themselves, and could both make it down a beginner hill alone making ‘S’s’.

You do get more bang for your buck if you plan on skiing later in the day, as daily lift tickets are only $10 with the purchase of a lesson. If parents are skiing, you can get 1.5 hours of quality ski time while your kids are in lessons or camp. We weren’t skiing on those days, so we enjoyed a beverage in the ski chalet while we waited.

2) Ski day!

This is probably the reason many families want to go to Blue Mountain.

We purchased day lift tickets for all of us on our third day. We started out early, and we were at the village to pick up our tickets right at 9am, when the resort opens. We’d purchased our tickets online in advance – a good idea especially during holiday season, when walk-up tickets are limited. This made pick up a breeze. We got to bypass the line, and the process took all of five minutes.

We did bring our own equipment, but Daniel discovered there was something wrong with the binding of one of his skis. He tried the repair shop on site, but ended up having to rent out a pair of skis. This was a bit of a rigamarole, as usually rentals come in packages of skis, boots, poles, and helmet. He had to go through several managers before he was able to make off with just a pair of skis, and the entire process took almost two hours.

In the meantime, I took the kids down the bunny hills. I was mentally prepared to spend all day there, but soon Big S was clamouring for something more challenging. Blue Mountain has two chair lifts geared toward beginners and green runs. The kids navigated their first chair lift like a champ. Getting to go for such a cool ride high in the air was probably the highlight of their trip!

We spent most of the day on these green runs. The kids were fearless and having the time of their lives. The weather was perfect. It was sunny, not too cold, and there were intermittent flurries to get us all in the mood. The kids only reluctantly agreed to go back to the airbnb for a late lunch/early dinner around mid-afternoon (they’d had a beaver tail each for snack). A lunch, movie, and nap later, and they were ready to go again. It was dark by then, and the kids were eager to try night skiing.

We introduced the kids to, in my opinion, one of the best beginner runs I’ve been on – Happy Valley. The chairlift up to the run is a 6 person behemoth of a thing (at least it felt like it after the rickety metal lifts at the beginner hill!) The kids were surrounded by adults and very pro-looking skiers/snowboarders, but they didn’t care one bit. Happy Valley is a fantastic run for confident beginners. It’s one of the longest green runs I’ve been on, but it’s still challenging. When you’re just off the top there is a great view of Collingwood and Georgian Bay below.

We made a good few runs down the mountain, before calling it a (very full) day. Back to the village to return Daniel’s skis, and we picked up some apres-ski poutine along the way. It was a fun and exhausting day for all, but I’m glad we didn’t jam pack our getaway with full days of skiing. We loved the other (below) attractions, too!

Non-ski activities:

3) Woodland Mountaintop skating trail

This was an absolute highlight of our trip. It is a 1.1 km skating loop that runs through the woods at the top of Blue Mountain.

We headed over just before sunset on one of the days after the kids’ lessons. During the day, you get a scenic lookout view over Georgian Bay, but at night, the trail is lit with whimsical lights and becomes absolutely magical. There are speakers along the trail that play festive music and sporadic defunct chair-lifts for benches. Big S treated the trail as his own race track, while the rest of us took our time and soaked up the vibes.

We brought our own skates, but when you’re purchasing your tickets you can rent them as well. Tickets run around 23-26 CAD for youth and adults, and gives you a 2hr skating slot.

4) Walk around Blue Mountain Village

The Village at Christmas time is gorgeous. There are trees and lights everywhere, and festive storefronts and delicious aromas. It’s fun to walk through the village and browse through the shops. The “Pond” at the centre of the Village turns into a skating rink in the winter. I only wish they had more benches/muskoka chairs and fire-pits to sit and take it all in.

5) Hike-n’-Tube

We did this activity on our last day. It was a bit of a let down for the adults – Daniel and I chose not to do it at all – but the kids had a blast. Tubing doesn’t open until 12pm, and the “hill” is a fenced off area at the bottom of the mountain. There were a number of families in line with us who ended up vetoing the activity once they saw how it looked. The elevation was maybe only 7-8 feet. Everyone who is riding has to ride alone, though there are two lanes for people who want to ride at the same time. Tickets for this are 23-26 CAD as well, and buys you an hour of tubing.

6) Blue Mountain Ridge Runner roller coaster

We didn’t end up doing this activity during our winter stay, but Big S desperately wanted to. The Ridge Runner is a roller coaster accessed from the village that weaves through the mountainside. We’ve gone on it in the summer. It’s a fun, rickety ride that twists and turns down the mountain, and you can control your own speed. In the winter they put up a windshield to protect from the elements.

We just didn’t have time for this, but the cost of one ride is also quite steep – also 23-26 CAD. In the summer, you can choose to buy a Blue Mountain attraction pass, which gives you unlimited rides on Ridge Runner all day long.

7) Plunge aquatic centre

This is also not something we’ve done, either summer or winter, but we have considered it. Plunge is Blue Mountain’s pool and waterpark area, and friends who have gone have enjoyed it. There are just so many competing interests for winter activities, and in the summer the kids prefer the beach. But it would be a good way to spend a rainy day, or an extra-cold winter day.

8) Relax at your airbnb/hotel/chalet

Don’t forget to build time to relax and unwind in the middle or at the end of the day. There’s something different about spending family time away from home. You talk more, play games, snuggle more. We played Jenga, cards, ate snacks every chance we got, and watched all of the Kung Fu Panda movies.

Getting away to Blue Mountain in the winter is a great way to spend family time and explore Canada’s winter scene. Have questions about planning a Blue Mountain getaway? Drop us a note!