Winter Park, CO

Winter Park, the closest ski resort to Denver, has long had the reputation as Colorado’s favorite ski area. It's understandable that lucky locals who have the best skiing on earth on their doorstep appreciate a ski area with grandiose and varied terrain, constant upgrades to lifts and day ...

Taos Ski Valley, NM

Taos, of course, is the stuff of legends. In skier lore, it ranks with Aspen, Sun Valley, and Squaw Valley among North America's must-ski places. So, when I'm standing at the bottom of Al's Run, the legendary trail at the legendary resort, and reading the sign that starts out by saying "Don't ...

Dillon, CO

"Arapahoe Basin ... Where the spirit of freedom and big-mountain challenges create life-altering experiences."

Arapahoe Basin’s old-school motto may push the ski-bum mentality to near-religious extremes, but after you burn your quads in this epic, 900-acre resort you will likely ...

Fayston, VT

Mad River Glen: Ski it if you can. While most ski resorts would view this intimidating tagline as a marketing disaster, the owners of Mad River Glen wear it like a badge of honor. That’s because Mad River Glen isn’t like most Vermont ski resorts. For starters, it’s owned ...

Teton Village, WY

The Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is, in its own words, "Like nothing you have skied before." This sign, on a T-shirt in nearly every shop in town, hangs above the entrance to the resort's tram dock and goes on to say, "It is huge. With variable terrain from groomed slopes to dangerous cliff ...

Steamboat Springs, CO

Tucked into Colorado's northwest corner, some three and a half hours from Denver and an hour's drive north of Summit County, Steamboat is a world unto itself. The mountains here are rounded peaks, not the jagged Rocky Mountain slopes you'll find farther south. But the snows still come in ...

Carrabassett Valley, ME

Sugarloaf is Maine's second-highest peak next to Mount Katahdin (5,267 feet) and rises from 1,417 to 4,237 feet, giving skiers and riders 2,820 feet of continuous vertical to play with. Sugarloaf has the only above tree-line skiing and riding in the East, "The Snowfields," and sits immovable ...

Aspen, CO

Aspen is Colorado skiing at its most fulfilled—epic terrain with plenty of variety, an apres-ski and town scene that pulls celebs and stargazers alike, and customer service that should serve as the benchmark for all North American resorts, including "ski ambassadors" who give complimentary ...

Avon, CO

Colorado's most luxurious resort continues growing around its new village center. Luxurious lodgings in an elegant and monumental mountain style, fine dining (Wolfgang Puck’s eatery is a staple), and subdued nightlife are the resort's hallmarks, but Vail-based skiers commute to ski the ...

Stratton Mountain, VT

Snowboarding was born here, and the resort remains a favorite among riders. The sport's roots are honored each March with the annual staging of the U.S. Open competitions. Stratton was also one of the first mountains to install a six-passenger, high-speed chairlift. The downhill boarding is ...