Skiing in Canada may not be the bargain it once was, thanks to fluctuations in the U.S. dollar, but Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is trimming rates and tacking add-ons to a number of packages this season to sweeten the deal.
The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, about 20 minutes from Marmot Basin in Jasper, Alberta, is offering a Ski for Free package, priced from about $215 per room, per night. Available all season, the package requires a two-night stay and includes two lift tickets.
The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise in Alberta created a Winter Escape Package that adds a fifth night free to four-night bookings as well as a resort credit of about $188. Guests who opt for a seven-night stay pay for five and receive a resort credit of about $330. Resort credits are valid for lift tickets at Lake Louise Ski Area, cross-country skiing with the hotel's Mountain Heritage Guide program or dining anywhere at the hotel.
The package, priced from $281, is good from Nov. 11 to April 30.
Also in Alberta, the Fairmont Banff Springs' Ski for Free package includes two lift tickets for a two-night booking, four lift tickets for three nights and shuttle transportation to the ski area.
Also priced from $281, the rates require a two-night stay and are valid from Nov. 15 to April 30.
The Fairmont Tremblant in Quebec is offering two lift tickets for every night booked from Dec. 11 to April 12. The special costs from $330 per night.
The property boasts ski-in/ski-out accommodations at Mont Tremblant, about two hours north of Montreal. The mountain features 94 runs, 13 lifts and a base village with restaurants, shops and entertainment venues.
In addition to alpine and Nordic skiing, visitors can try dogsledding, snow-tubing, ice-skating and snowshoeing.
The ski package at the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City includes buffet breakfast and lift tickets to Mont Sainte Anne or Stoneham ski areas. The package is valid Dec. 15 to March 31 and costs from $328 per night.
Hotel features include an indoor swimming pool, a fitness center and several restaurants.
The Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu in La Malbaie, Quebec, has a snowmobiling package from Jan. 1 to March 31, from $168 per night. The special includes access to the resort's multisport facility and outdoor, heated salt-water swimming pool as well as snowmobile parking (vehicles are available for rent) and locker rental.
The Fairmont Chateau Whistler's Ski for Free package adds a one-day lift ticket per person per room from Nov. 26 through April 18. The package, which requires a two-night minimum stay, is priced from $338 in early season and from $432 in season, depending on the dates.
Other activities include ziplining, dogsledding, snowmobiling and horse-drawn sleigh rides.
Winter sports packages at Fairmont Heritage Place, Franz Klammer Lodge in Telluride, Colo., and Fairmont Le Montreux Palace on Lake Geneva in Switzerland also are available.
Visit www.fairmont.com.