"Saturday's success is unprecedented in real estate and resort development, said Gary Raymond, president of Intrawest's Resort Development Group. "We normally launch one building at a time, but the pent-up demand was so high that we decided to launch the first three buildings in the new village all at once. Our results prove that those who know and love Copper are enthusiastic about our vision for the resort and want to be a part of it."

The New Village at Copper is just one of a number of villages Intrawest is building across North America as part of its strategy to transform the resort industry. "A key ingredient in our resort development strategy is the concept of an animated resort village," said Dan Jarvis, Intrawest's executive vice president and chief financial officer. "With 11 years experience and 300 professionals across North America, we are one of the few companies in North America with the expertise to turn an under-performing resort into a thriving, successful one. Saturday's success at Copper testifies to the public recognition of that expertise."

Intrawest is the company responsible for the success of Tremblant in Eastern Canada, a resort that was near bankruptcy when the company bought it in 1991 and is now rated no.1 in the east by SKI magazine and no. 1 in North America for lodging. Their resort network also includes Whistler/Blackcomb, North America's no.1 rated resort.

More than 300 preferred customers attended the real estate launch of The New Village at Copper in downtown Denver. Excited to be part of the future of Copper Mountain Resort, buyers made their home selections and signed contracts for the first three buildings in the heart of the new village: Base One, The Mill Club and Crossroads Inn.

With this one-day success, Intrawest has announced the release of the fourth and final building in the heart of the village, Tucker Mountain Lodge. "We are very excited about the launch of Tucker Mountain Lodge," said David Hill, senior vice president of Intrawest's Rockies Region. "The overwhelming response has led us to release the final building in the core of the village which allows us to transform the entire village core all at once."

The public offering of Tucker Mountain Lodge has been scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Wednesday, February 24 at the Denver Hyatt Tech Center.

Reminiscent of a national park lodge, Tucker Mountain Lodge features outdoor hot tubs, a fitness room, secured underground parking and ski lockers. In addition, buyers will enjoy easy access to Copper's slopes and all the amenities the new village will have to offer. The core of The New Village at Copper, which will include these four distinct new mountain lodges as well as shops, restaurants, social spaces and festival plazas will be completed simultaneously and ready for occupancy by Summer 2000. 

"This pedestrian village, the heart of the new Copper Mountain, will be a place where people can stroll in social spaces filled with interesting shops, a variety of restaurants, music, street performers, events, family activities, sports and nightlife," said Jim Onken, vice president of Copper Mountain Resort Development.

"The completion of the village will mark the new beginning for Copper Mountain as a world-class, year-round destination resort."

The vision Intrawest has for Copper Mountain Resort includes a proposed US$450 million in improvements over the next five to ten years. These improvements include more lodging and conference space, as well as significant new lift, terrain and skier facility additions on the mountain, a re-designed championship golf course, and extensive biking and hiking trails.

The launch of Tucker Mountain Lodge is scheduled for Wednesday, February 24, 1999, at the Denver Hyatt Tech Center. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. sharp. Starting at $169,900, these 80 fully furnished, studio to two bedroom mountain condominiums are expected to go fast.

Intrawest is the leading developer and operator of mountain resorts across North America. The company owns Whistler/Blackcomb, rated North America's no.1 resort. It also owns Panorama in British Columbia, Tremblant And Mont Ste. Marie in Quebec, Copper in Colorado, Stratton in Vermont, Snowshoe in West Virginia, Mountain Creek in New Jersey, Mammoth in California, Blue Mountain in Ontario and Sandestin, a golf and beach resort in Florida. The company has a premier timeshare business and is creating world-class, four-season resort villages at Keystone, Colorado, Solitude, Utah and Squaw Valley near Lake Tahoe, California. Intrawest has a significant investment in Compagnie des Alpes, the largest ski company in the world in terms of skier visits, and recently announced the acquisition of 45% of Alpine Helicopters, Ltd., owner of Canadian Mountain Holidays, the largest heli-skiing operation in the world.

Intrawest Corporation's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (IDR) and the Toronto and Montreal exchanges (ITW). The company is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The statements which are not historical facts contained in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Intrawest's actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, seasonality, weather conditions, competition, general economic conditions, currency fluctuations and other risks detailed in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.