Panorama-RAMA!

Our winter weekend getaway to the new-and-improved Panorama Mountain Resort in southeast B.C. took us to the top of the world—here’s our itinerary to help you achieve great heights, too.

stay: Cosy and hugely convenient, accommodations at Panorama range to suit all tastes and budgets, with many literally a snowball’s throw from a chairlift. Between the upper and lower villages, your options are wide open (bonus: a free gondola runs between the two areas all day and late into the night).

ski: Panorama’s rejuvenation has created a resort destination for skiers of all levels. The greenies on our trip enjoyed their time in the Discovery Zone—a safe area suited to those who are new (or returning) to the slopes that includes an awesome Kids Learning Centre and twin Red Carpet conveyor lifts (perfect for wee ones). If it’s black diamond runs you’re after, Taynton Bowl, previously heli-ski-only terrain, is now open to anyone who dares take on its challenging chutes, bowls and glades. All up, Panorama offers more than 120 runs, with several lifts servicing the whole mountain.

sup: Top-notch dining experiences include the recently opened Monticola, with fresh Italian-fusion fare and a mouthwatering list of handcrafted and expertly executed cocktails (try the Italian Gunfire—a reimagined Old Fashioned with, wait for it, a red wine float—or a house Caesar with homemade clam juice). Or head over to Cliffhanger at the Greywolf Golf Course, where delicate modern European dishes satiated our fancy appetites. A meal at one of the resort’s three mountain cabins is also worth doing; it’s just a short chairlift ride to Panorama’s Mile One or Summit hut, where you can enjoy a cheese and chocolate fondue feast, or, ski to Elkhorn cabin for raclette—a traditional Swiss alpine-style cheese grill—and an exhilarating night ski down to the base when you’re done. All serve delightful B.C. wines and brews to wet your winter whistle.

spa: No ski weekend would be complete without some well-deserved downtime. Pop over to Pure Massage for a hot-stone massage and coconut passion fruit wrap (talk about yummy). After you’re sufficiently blissed out, slide into Panorama Springs Pools—Canada’s largest slope-side hot pools—to soak away those aches and pains après. With three steaming in-ground pools set right at the base of the mountain, you can bathe with a view (in other words, the perfect end to a perfect day).

So many (new) reasons to strap on those skis. —Amy Dillon

Panorama Mountain Resort, 2000 Panorama Dr., Panorama, B.C., 1-800-663-2929, www.panoramaresort.com