Alyeska Resort, nestled within Girdwood (population 2,000) and Chugach National Forest, can’t boast the most skier visits per year. And if you stay at Alyeska Prince Hotel, there’s a good chance the majority of the halls will be empty—and that’s precisely the reason to go ... well, that and the heady amount of snow that falls on the resort. Average snowfall is more than 631 inches mid-mountain and 742 inches at the summit annually.

Alyeska gets most of its 135,000 skiers from nearby Anchorage, simply because those in the Lower 48 mistakenly view Alaska as hardcore terrain, offering nothing but darkness and below-freezing temps. But one man’s terror is another man’s treasure. Those sick of the mainstream resort scene will discover that Alyeska is the antithesis of the typical resort. You won’t have to wake up at the crack of dawn to fight your way through the lift lines, and if you’re less than confident in your abilities, you don’t have to be intimidated: More than 50 percent of Alyeska’s runs are intermediate. Plus, there’s a good chance the slopes will pretty much be all yours.

Experts won't feel out of place here, either—this is the last frontier, and pure, adrenaline-fueled Alaskan pistes are all over the mountain. The North Face, with 2,350 vertical feet, is the longest continuous double-black diamond in North America. The resort also offers night skiing—a necessity with only eight hours of daylight in winter—not to mention heliskiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing.