The World's Best Powder Ski Resort Is A Canadian Alpine Gem With Record Verticals And Cozy Après Vibes

Powder is, according to pretty much any winter lover you ask, one of the best types of snow there is. Created when fresh dumps of the white stuff occur as the temperatures dip below freezing and the air remains dry, it's a ski aficionado's ticket to the most sought-after mountain sessions there are. With powder, you can float and bounce over cushions of snow, enjoying a feeling of weightlessness that skiing or snowboarding on compacted snow simply can't give. Tempted? Well, there's one name that should be on your winter travel bucket list: Revelstoke Mountain Resort in British Columbia.

Revelstoke has been crowned the finest place to go powder hunting. It was named alongside Utah's Alta Ski Area — another North American mountain resort known for having the deepest, freshest snow and Wyoming's Grand Targhee Resort, a place that records 500 inches of snow each year — as the top powder snow resort on the planet. The findings are a part of the 2025 edition of the annual Snomad Ski Resort Awards, which decide winners based on over 140,000 reviews submitted by actual winter sportsters over the course of the 2024-2025 season.

Remarking on the results, Ryan Melnyk, VP of Commercial Strategy and Marketing at the Revelstoke Mountain Resort, said: "Beyond a broad range of terrain unlike anywhere else, we are graced with an average of 34 feet of snow each year, creating that light, champagne powder skiing and riding experience that people travel from all around the world to enjoy." Indeed, Revelstoke's ability to deliver world-class powder is nothing new. It's all thanks to the combination of wet oceanic air from the Pacific meeting the jagged Selkirk Mountains, creating perfect snow for the range of groomed slopes, tree-lined runs, and big mountain bowls.

Of course, powder is just one part of the Revelstoke story. The U.K.-based ski tour operator Ski Solutions ranks it the fourth best resort in all of Canada, while independent ski resort rater Peakrankings places it in the top 15 resorts in all of North America. Each organization cites all sorts of qualifiers for ranking Revelstoke as highly as they do, from the resort's abundance of heli-skiing opportunities to its eye-popping views. Those are on top of its unbeatable vertical drop, a measure of the difference in altitude between the top station of the highest ski lift and the bottom point of the slopes.

Revelstoke claims a formidable 5,620 feet of vertical in all. Discounting Whistler Blackcomb, one of North America's busiest ski resorts, where the 10,300 feet of vertical is spread across two separate mountains, it's the highest single mountain drop on the whole continent. This vertical drop is what allows for long runs like the Last Spike, a 9.4-miler that steepens and softens as it pushes through the trees and across ridges high above the valley, taking around 20 minutes to ride from top to bottom without stopping.

You can add to that even more striking mountain statistics, for Revelstoke offers 75 marked runs, four big ski bowls, and two full terrain parks for the tricksters out there. All that is fed by a well-planned network of four lifts, including one large gondola linking to two fast chairlifts higher up.

Revelstoke not only offers fantastic, powder-covered, high-vertical-drop skiing on the mountain. It's pretty alluring off the mountain, too. The town of Revelstoke is well-known for being an authentic and charming place to unwind after a day of blazing down the slopes. It traces its roots back to the 1880s, after all, when it popped up along the Canadian Pacific Railway. The downtown area still carries a whiff of those old-school days, with heritage façades hiding all manner of cafes and bars.

Head there once you're done skiing for the day. It's where you'll find places like the curiously named Village Idiot Bar and Grill, a cozy spot with tons of local charm, along with a menu of big plates of poutine and stacked burgers. The same area is also home to the Old School Eatery, which occupies a classroom in a former schoolhouse. The chefs there aim to fuse European and Asian flavors into a single menu of sticky dinner ribs and pan-seared salmon.

Dining and drinking aren't the only post-slopes entertainment on offer, either. Revelstoke boasts an incredible aquatic center that can rival major water park resorts. You can head there to drift along the lazy river, steam away in the saunas, or do lengths in the 25-meter lane pool. Alternatively, there's shopping aplenty, no matter whether you're on the hunt for artisan glass art or paintings inspired by the surrounding mountains.