Chateau Whistler Named Top Resort

Fairmont Chateau Whistler celebrated the 25^th birthday of its golf course in style when it was named the 2019 North America Golf Resort of the Year in a poll of tour operators around the world.

Fairmont Chateau Whistler capped the 25^th anniversary season of its golf course with a flourish when it was named the 2019 North America Golf Resort of the Year by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO). The announcement came during the 21st International Golf Travel Market (IGTM) in Ljubljana, Slovenia, October 15 to 18, 2018. This is the first time a Canadian resort has won the award.

Voted on by 682 golf tour operators in 62 countries, the award is based on a variety of criteria, including: customer satisfaction; quality of golf courses and accommodation; value for money; support from suppliers, tourist boards and airlines; professional conduct of suppliers; and accessibility to tee times.

Fairmont Chateau Whistler is a luxury hotel with 539 guest rooms and 32,000 square feet of meeting space. A ski-in and ski-out hotel in winter, the property is a modern take on a European-style A-frame ski chalet. It quickly became the preferred place to stay in Whistler following its opening in 1989.

Launched to critical acclaim in 1993, the Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Course is a constantly thrilling design by Robert Trent Jones Jr. carved through the lower slopes of Blackcomb Mountain, a short walk or shuttle ride from the hotel.

During the opening three grinding uphill holes alone, golfers face an an elevation change of more than 300 feet. Creeks, ponds and granite outcroppings confront golfers throughout the course. Typically fearsome is the signature 8th hole, a 212-yard par three playing downhill to a green guarded in front by a pond, and to the rear by a massive wall of granite notorious for bouncing errant balls into orbit.

For more information about golf and other attractions in Whistler, see our feature story, Golf Whistler in the Summer Wind.