Frequently Asked Questions - Whistler Wander

Here are the answers to the most frequently asked questions so that you can have them all together:

What kind of Visa do I need to enter in Canada from Mexico?

Starting March 1, 2024, all Mexican citizens must apply for the eTA electronic authorization or a Canadian visitor visa.

If you have an eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization) issued before this day, you need to request a new one. To request a new eTA with a Mexican passport, you will also need one of these two documents: an American visa or having had a Canadian visitor visa in the last 10 years. Without one of these two documents, the eTA will not be approved. To apply for the eTA you need to do it through this link, any other link may be false. The price is $CAD 7 and the permit lasts 5 years as long as your passport or American visa does not expire before.
If you do not meet the requirements for the eTA, you need to apply for a Canadian visitor visa. This costs $100 and once you have it, it lasts for 10 years. It consists of a piece of paper that will be stapled to your passport. The correct link to apply is this one.

In both cases we recommend that you request either of the two options as soon as possible, since the eTA may arrive by email immediately or it may take a few days if there are any complications, and the Canadian visitors visa may take months to arrive. Please note that in neither case can we help you with the approval process. If you have any questions, we recommend contacting a specialized immigration lawyer.

IMPORTANT: the eTA is only valid as long as you come to Canada by plane. If you come by car, train or boat, you will necessarily need a Canadian visitor visa.

VERY IMPORTANT: to fly to Canada, you must carry the same passport that you used in your application. If you have a new passport, you must apply again using this one.

If you have a Spanish passport, you only need to apply for the eTA with this passport and travel with it.
If you have a US passport, you do not need any other permission. They only need to travel with that passport.Do I need health insurance to travel?

Do I need medical insurance to travel to Canada?

The short answer is a hard YES. The ski resort does not cover any type of medical insurance. What they provide is medical care on the slopes. In case you get injured on the slopes, the Ski Patrol Team will take care of getting you to the hospital (there is a small clinic in Whistler), but once you are there, you will have to pay for all the expenses. That is why we would recommend that you take out travel medical insurance, as the prices here are extremely high.

Where do I need to fly?

Whistler is located in the state of British Columbia, about 2 hours from the city of Vancouver. This would be the city you would have to fly to. The airport is called YVR.

Once you get there, we will take care of the rest!!

The most common airlines to come to Canada from Mexico are Air Canada and Aeromexico. From experience we have seen that Aeromexico offer better prices. A very good option to fly to Vancouver (YVR) is the flight that lands at 1.10pm (AM 600). Most of our clients arrive at that time ✈️, it is a good time to arrive because it gives you enough time to see the road to Whistler during the day, which is beautiful, and get settled at the hotel with no rush.

We will also come to meet you at your hotel the day you arrive to have our welcome day and prepare everything for the next day, so it is important that you arrive at your hotel by 7pm the latest. The travel time from the airport to the hotel is 2.5-3 hours.

Private lessons or group lessons?

Whistler Wander specializes in choosing the best instructor from Whistler Blackcomb Snow School based on our client´s needs. This instructor will be exclusively teaching whoever you choose and will also be Spanish speaker (unless you prefer to speak in English). These classes can be attended by a maximum of 5 people of similar level and age and the price is total per instructor regardless of the number of people attending.

Group lessons work differently. The school itself will automatically put you with different people of the same level. In addition, the instructor will be randomly selected by the school (not us) that day and we will not know who you will be with or guarantee that they will speak Spanish. They usually only speak English. This is why we always recommend private lessons much more as the client´s experience is much better.