My first family foray a few years ago to SilverStar Mountain Resort permanently altered my on-mountain paradigm. A "first chair-ski thru lunch" type for years, SilverStar implored me to transform my personal ski vacation into a snow holiday for everyone. Sounds like semantics, I know, but this change in outlook actually saved our alpine excursions going forward.

At SilverStar, I learned my kids are happy to ski as long as there's time for pick-up hockey on Brewer's Pond, a natural skating surface that encircles an island stand of conifers. Brewer's Pond Pavilion added a café in 2016, so my teens could hang without a parent in sight over a bowl of chilli or hot chocolate after night runs down the undulating tubing lanes.

Even among ever broadening destination resort options, few ski areas compare with Silver Star. Located outside Vernon, B.C. about six hours drive from Seattle – or 50 minutes from Kelowna International Airport, SEA-YLW flights run under an hour; Silver Star tosses out snowshoe and snow cat tour dinners, Nordic and even ten-pin bowling. Yes, this is only the only ski-in/ski-out bowling alley in Canada. And, Americans can access great package rates with a strong exchange rate. 

Our typical SilverStar day definitely involves skiing; Interior B.C. is famous for abundant dumps of Colorado-dry snow, but family members also choose to pole along the 65 miles of groomed Nordic trails. Find out how much snow has fallen at SilverStar this week here. The famous system links to adjacent SilverStar Provincial Park, drawing scores of serious Nordic skaters and teams from as far away as Dartmouth College.

Bowling or no, I still come for the alpine. The 3,282 ski-in, ski-out acres, third biggest in the province, features a few meadows make for killer powder runs and plenty of side-cuts. This concentrated diversity means mixed-ability families like mine can pick their pitches then rejoin at the Comet Express six-pack rather than at lunch. (That said the new Putnam Creek advanced area, 35 black and double black runs, is ridiculous with few equals in the Northwest!)

Everyone also comes together over après at Long John's Pub or the Red Antler, both village staples within an easy walk from our condo, for when mother and grandmother take the afternoon off.

Used to be we'd never dream of bringing grandparents on our ski vacation. But having a winter holiday with my East Coast in-laws at SilverStar is, in many ways, easier than being sequestered in drenched Seattle. She may not be up for fat tire biking, but my mother-in-law does test out her new hip on a short snowshoe tour before watching the boys skate, while her husband and I get in some Putnam Creek turns.

The grands also love the idea of a family-filled snow cat – which is indeed as cool as it sounds, for dinner at Paradise Camp. Climbing through forested hills in the dark blends a bit of blind adventure with a sense of exclusivity – a bonding formula if ever there was one. We'll have to leave the short snowshoe dinner tour to Wild Horseman's Camp for another time.  Get planning and explore SilverStar on skis this season, click here. 

There's just so much to do you might crave a couple more days. Fret not - those extra two nights are free (after five-night stays) between February 26 and March 12, as are the lift tickets. Whenever you plan to come, you'll benefit from a favourable exchange rate and discover a B.C. mountain resort that has transformed a set of ski runs into full family festivities without losing sight of the snow.

58-year old SilverStar Mountain Resort is full of characters & character. Learn about the "Naughty Neighbours" and enjoy more colourful resort intel by reading Crai's second story on  http://www.snowseekers.ca/britishcolumbia/silverstar/seattle