Olympic Train Ride to Whistler - on the ALBERTA train

Our family got a last second offer to ride (appropriately) the ALBERTA train from North Vancouver to Whistler on the last Saturday of the Olympics. The kids were troopers (after a night of Curling) as the wak-up call was 5:15 a.m. to be at the departure area at 5:45 a.m.

Basically, the train is a First Class executive train that the province of Alberta uses to recruit and wine & dine foreign investors and business partners when they visit Canada (yes, despite the fact that the ride goes up and down one of the best sites of BC... ironic). We got in because the agency that runs the tour also works with EA (thanks for the hook up Bongo).

The day was:
- A first class train ride up the see to sky highway, complete with breakfast that included "wild boar bacon" and our own private "play area" in an empty train car.
- Beautiful scenery as the cars were full of windows
- Hospitality at the Alberta House (i.e. Whistler Golf Course house). Yummy marshmallows in hot chocolate!
- A stroll through Whistler Village that included pictures by the rings and the torch, listening to Usher do his dress rehearsal on the LIVE Events stage, and walking by the Switzerland house (re: Geneva, Swiss) but not venturing in to eat the weird menu.
- Discovering that White Spot is the best value/ least crowded place to eat for families in the village now. Logan and Sydney had their first Pirate Ship lunches. Staff was excellent at outlining potential allergy issues.
- Multiple photo ops (bobsleds, mascots, etc) and trying to get on CTV with the kids.
- Story time with Matt, Danielle and Rosen on the train ride back, and "open sesame" with Monique and her friend. Food service was a little slow and light, but they made up for it with the wine. Trip was AMAZING as he shared a princess story with Sydney.

A 5 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. day. Tons of fun and an ideal way to take in Whistler over the Olympics (with a family of four).