Whistler Camping Options
British Columbia is an excellent place for camping and the area surrounding Whistler is no exception. The spectacular sea-to-sky highway between Vancouver and Whistler offers a taste of the stunning scenery that is so plentiful in this region.
The choice of campsite is varied. Some are private and some are operated by BC Provincial Parks. While there are also many great walk-in campsites this article will focus only on those that have vehicle-accessible sites.
Beginning with the closest to Whistler village they are as follows:
The Riverside RV Resort and Campground is by far the closest, in fact only approximately 2km from Whistler Village. Although tent camping was unavailable here for some time, as of July 2009 it has been reinstated. There is also a cafe on site.
Nairn Falls Provincial Park
Nairn Falls is a BC Parks site. It is about half an hour drive (29km) north of Whistler on Highway 99. It has fairly big wooded sites and it’s only a 20 minute, easy walk to the falls themselves. It’s suitable for tents and RVs and only about 5km into the town of Pemberton, where there are stores, restaurants and at least one gas station.
Approx 1 hour south of Whistler (60km) is the town of Squamish where there are a number of camping options. Eagle Vista (4km north), Dryden Creek (8km north) and Paradise Valley (19km north) are the private sites in this area.
Alice Lake (13km north) is the closest BC Parks site and the location of the site at the lake is a very pleasant one. It does tend to get busy though.
Porteau Cove Provincial Park
Even further south (78 km from Whistler) is Porteau Cove BC Parks site. It has a number of waterfront campsites with excellent views over Howe Sound and the islands. Porteau Cove makes a particularly good stop-over for those traveling from the south and keen to get out of Vancouver before they camp.
If you’d rather head north, Birkenhead Lake (88km from Whistler) is another BC Parks site. This is quite a peaceful site, about 1.5 hours drive from Whistler, with the last part of the drive being on gravel road. It’s advisable to bring everything you need to this site as the area is quite rural with few settlements.
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