WinterPRIDE is just 2-weeks away

Another massive Pacific storm front has just moved in dumping another 43cm of glorious powder on Whistler and Blackcomb mountains and just in time with WinterPRIDE now just 2-weeks away and counting.

We are very excited to share with you the 2014 WinterPRIDE Festival Guide showcasing a star studded line up with a double threat from the Southern Hemisphere with COURTNEY ACT - Australian Idol finalist as well as a contestant on this year's RuPaul's Drag Race - Season 6.  Last time COURTNEY ACT was in Whistler she was bound and determined to meet a handsome ski patroller, paramedic and doctor.  She went all out and ended up checking out some of Whistler's finest men in full action with a dramatic rescue off of Whistler Mountain.  I have been personally assured that this year she will keep both feet firmly planted on terra firma, however what happens in the hot tubs is a totally different story...

CHRIS OLWAGE - New Zealand's Got Talent finalist for his dramatic portrayal of "Black Swan" with his pure brut strength and masculinity brought this tragic story alive with an exciting twist.  Chris will be doing a special performance at the Mr. Gay Canada Grand Finale & Fashion Show which will be a MUST SEE event.  Chris also won the prestigious title while in Antwerp, Belgium this past summer while at the worldOutgames as the current reining Mr. Gay World.  While in Whistler he will be one of several celebrity judges at the Mr. Gay Canada competition.  Other celebrity judges include the Mayor of Whistler.

WinterPRIDE's new entertainment director, Sunil Sinha of Big Roger Events, has worked overtime to secure some of the hottest DJ's on the circuit today.  Whistler is thrilled to welcome: IVAN GOMEZ (Barcelona), DJ PHIL B (SFO), DJ SETH COOPER (Chicago), DJ PORNSTAR (LA), DJ PAULO (LA), local dj's include:  NICK BERTOSSI, DJ QUEST, DJ KASEY RIOT, DJ LISA DE LUX.  Ticket sales have been strong and we are expecting another incredible year.  We do encourage you to get your tickets today before we are sold out.

The 2014 WinterPRIDE Festival Guide is now online so take a few minutes and dive in and plan your week.  See you in a few weeks!

1700+ acres open in time for US Thanksgiving at Whistler Blackcomb

Blackcomb Mountain to Open at Whistler Blackcomb Thursday November 28

PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola and Full Size Terrain Park Also Opening

WHISTLER, BC November 27, 2013 – This Thursday, November 28, Whistler Blackcomb will complete its winter kick-off by opening Blackcomb Mountain to skiers and snowboarders. After two successful weeks operating on Whistler Mountain, the operations team has readied Blackcomb Mountain which will add approximately 700 acres of terrain to Whistler’s 1000+ acres for guests to enjoy.  Blackcomb’s lift operations team notes there will be seven lifts opening including the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola. Guests will have the option to either upload at the Wizard Express in the Upper Village, the Excalibur Gondola in Whistler Village, or cross over from Whistler Mountain via the PEAK 2 PEAK. Also opening on Blackcomb will be the Excelerator Chair, Solar Express, Jersey Cream and Catskinner chairs.  As an added bonus, the Whistler Blackcomb Terrain Park crew has been putting in long hours to have a full terrain park built and ready to ride on Thursday.

“We are extremely excited to get guests up on both mountains and are proud of the hard work our operations teams have been putting into our opening days,” says Doug MacFarlene, Mountain Manager at Whistler Blackcomb.  “We’ve been focusing on our snowmaking to help out Mother Nature and with our recent snowmaking upgrades on Blackcomb things are looking really good.  Again we would like to remind guests it is still early season, and it is important to obey signage and ski and ride on open runs only.” 

Blackcomb Mountain Food and Beverage locations that will be opening on Thursday include Merlin’s Bar and the Wizard Grill at the base of the mountain, as well as the Rendezvous and Glacier Creek Lodges on the mountain.

The hours of operation for both Whistler and Blackcomb will be 8:30am to 3:00pm with the last upload at 2:30pm and the ski out open to Whistler Village from both mountains. Lifts tickets will be available from the Whistler Village, Creekside and Blackcomb Daylodge ticket windows or online at www.whistlerblackcomb.com. Edge Cards are also available at the early bird rates until December 2 for Canadians and Washington State residents, and later that month the Grand Opening of Whistler Blackcomb’s two new lifts; The Crystal Ridge Express and the Harmony 6 Express is scheduled for Saturday, December 7.

New version – Whistler Blackcomb Mobile App and Mobile Website
The latest version of the free Whistler Blackcomb mobile app, powered by TELUS is available for iPhone and Android phones. The improved app features a completely new user interface plus reports on live mountain conditions, webcam feeds, snow and lift alerts to ensure a connected mountain experience. Through the 2013.14 winter season, Whistler Blackcomb will add more content to improve the app including a new completely enhanced Run Tracker with Cloud support and a new Friend Finder feature. The newly released mobile website quickly provides all the detailed mountain information right to any mobile device and tablet. Visit http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/app for more information.

Guests looking to plan a trip to the consistently rated No. 1 Mountain Resort in North America can visit whistlerblackcomb.com/deals_packages  or call 1-866.787.1966.

The Aava Whistler Hotel is a proud sponsor and host hotel for the 22nd Annual WinterPRIDE festival January 26 - February 2nd, 2014.  Plan your Whistler Gay Ski Week escape today.  Special guests include:  Ivan Gomez (BCN), DJ Phil B (SFO), DJ Pornstar (LA), DJ Paulo (LA), DJ Seth Cooper (Chicago), DJ Nick Bertossi (Vancouver), DJ Del Stamp (Vancouver) and more! Use Promo Code: "Turkey" and take an additional $22 off for #BlackFriday.  Get your festival tickets today!  Happy US Thanksgiving!

Event management for WinterPRIDE Men's Event Passes 2014 powered by Eventbrite

GayWhistler’s WinterPRIDE GENERATES $9.0 MILLION TO THE PROVINCE OF BC

The twenty-first annual GayWhistler WinterPRIDE - Gay & Lesbian Ski/Snowboard week took place
This year the Resort Municipality of Whistler commissioned an economic impact study to better understand the overall value of the festival.  The report found spending made by participants, spectators and event organizers generated $9.0 million in economic activity for the Province of British Columbia.

Mayor of Whistler at the Mr. Gay Canada Grand Finale

on February 3-10, 2013 and attracted visitors from around the world. Approximately three thousand gay and lesbian vacationers from 28 nations descended on the region with their friends over the eight day, sixty five events at the award winning ski resort of Whistler, BC, Canada.
Economic Activity
Total Industry Output representing direct and indirect expenditures generated by the event.
 Total to Province of British Columbia: $9.0 million
Total to Whistler: $4.8 million

Jobs
Spending associated with the event supported $3.1 million in wages and salaries in the Province through the support of 69 jobs, of which 52 jobs were supported in Whistler.

Tax
Considerable tax revenues were supported by the event totaling $2.1 million.
$953,000 federal
$772,000 for province of British Columbia
$332,000 for municipality of Whistler

* The economic impact assessment in 2013 was conducted by the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance (CSTA), using the Sport Tourism Economic Assessment Model (STEAM).The 2013 study was funded by the Province of British Columbia’s Resort Municipality Initiative (RMI). The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) allocated RMI funds to produce a series of economic impact analyses for events throughout the community including GayWhistler’s WinterPRIDE.

The festival is Whistler’s primary LGBT activation to welcome the gay and lesbian traveler to experience the dynamic and welcoming nature of the province and attracts tourism spending in British Columbia that goes beyond the weeklong event. In fact, according to survey research, 31% of participants plan to visit Vancouver/Whistler two or more times outside of the WinterPRIDE week, including 52% of the out-of-province participants.
 

“We are very proud of the economic impact that our event has made to the province,” said Dean Nelson, CEO and Executive Producer of GayWhistler’s WinterPRIDE. “It demonstrates the strong buying power of the gay community and how loyal this segment is in supporting a destination that embraces diversity and makes everyone feel welcome.”

Post-festival entertainment in Vancouver, encouraged participants and their friends to extend their stay pre/post Whistler vacation.  Strategic partnership with some of Vancouver’s LGBT community groups and special events help to entice guests to stay a bit longer in the Province.
 

“The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) is committed to working with our partners to create an environment conducive to events,” Said Mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden. “We are delighted to work with third party event producers such as GayWhistler – producers of WinerPRIDE Whistler – to attract incremental visits to the resort.”

The event, which takes place annually on the first week of February, has taken one of Whistler’s historically slower winter weeks and made it one of the busiest in the calendar year.  Next year, the festival will move a week sooner to the last week of January to ease some of the added pressure the new BC Family Day holiday as well as the Chinese New Years celebrations has on the resort.
The twenty second-annual WinterPRIDE festival will take place on new dates of January 26th to February 2nd, 2014. For more information, visit www.gaywhistler.com

 

WinterPRIDE on the Air with Global BC Saturday Morning News with Lynn Colliar

Saturday, January 26th - GayWhistler's WinterPRIDE was invited on to the set of the Saturday Morning News with Lynn Colliar at the Global BC Burnaby studio. Dean Nelson, CEO & Executive Producer of WinterPRIDE along with Brandon Hamilton, Winner of the Vancouver heat of the Mr. Gay Canada cross country search. Together they were able to share some of the highlights the viewers on Global TV can expect to experience Feb. 3-10, 2013 in Whistler Blackcomb. For ski packages & last minute deals call 1.866.787.1966 or visit online at GayWhistler.com

72-HR Winter Sales just in time for Pride

News Flash!! Whistler Blackcomb has just released an exclusive 72-Hour Sale with savings up to 50% this season. This is fantastic news on top of the already 17+ feet of snow this year... you could sort of say this is the icing on the cake for our 20th annual celebration of Gay Ski Week!

So what are you waiting for? This is the time to jump off that fence and make your way up to Whistler and experience 100% of the 8,171 acres of pure skiing bliss! Book Online Now! or call 1.866.787.1966
WinterPRIDE - Whistler's Gay/Lesbian Ski/Snowboard Week is Feb. 5-12, 2012 and has a wicked line up of some incredible talent including: International DJ/producer Manny Lehman, DJ Ted Eiel (Chicago), DJ Tim Jones (London), DJ Dan Murphy (Sydney), DJ Adam Dreaddy (Vancouver), DJ/Producer Bertossi (Vancouver), DJ Zach Shore (Vancouver), JC Simon ARCADIA (Ottawa), DJ Riki Rocket (UK), DJ Miss M (Vancouver), DJ Kasey Riot (Vancouver), DJ Foxy Moron (Whistler), DJ Byron James (North Vancouver), DJ Kevin Costner (Whistler), DJ Doug Cameron; Special Guests: Jason Stuart, Julia Stretch, Ruckus Deluxe, Patrick Masse, Tyrell Witherspoon, Symone Says, Jodie James, Syren, Samantha mack, buster Cherry, Burgundy Brixx, Madame Mae I, Cris Derksen, Mr. Gay Canada 2012 Delegates

For complete listings visit gaywhistler.com or click on the festival guide below:

- Click to search other GayWhistler publications

GayWhistler's WinterPRIDE is Feb. 5-12, 2012 in Whistler, BC, Canada

Air New Zealand - Contest Winner Announced!

Congratulations to Kate Keyes, the winner of the grand prize with Air New Zealand's "Celebrate" photo booth challenge during the Vancouver Pride day celebrations at Sunset Beach (July 31, 2011). Hundreds of pride festival participants stopped by the Air New Zealand photo booth to get their photo taken with some of our handsome Air New Zealand models as well as special guest appearances with Rob Goddard - Mr. Gay Canada 2011 and Francois Nel - Mr. Gay World 2011 (Mr. Gay South Africa 2011). Kate (right) is posing with her friend Karla (left) showing us how they like to "Celebrate." Visit Air New Zealand Canada's fan page to see all the other photos from pride!

Kate now has the task of determining who she will take with her on the Pacific Economy Round Trip tickets from Vancouver to Auckland (approx. retail value: $3,500). To learn how you can participate in other contests and special offers become a FAN and LIKE Air New Zealand Canada fan page on Facebook. [ Click here to read the 2011 Celebrate Contest Rules & Regulations ] Air New Zealand is a proud sponsor of GayWhistler's WinterPRIDE. WinterPRIDE is celebrating 20 Years of being OUT on the Slopes in Whistler. Come and join us for an exciting week both on and off the slopes in Whistler Feb. 5-12, 2012. For more information visit gaywhistler.com