The oldest ski resort in the United States doesn't look like it has been around since 1936. The amenities are truly top-shelf, with a decidedly French air, lots of furs, and ski apparel that retails for the cost of a season pass. But that's just the surface. As you'd expect from a resort that has been in the game for almost a century, Sun Valley is as its best when viewed through a pair of goggles.

The majority of skiers and riders understandably flock to massive 9,150-foot Bald Mountain, where the bulk of the resort's 92 runs reside, from the blue-level Warm Springs, which descends the resort's entire 3,400-foot vertical drop, to a veritable geographic collage of bowls, ridges, and faces.

But Sun Valley takes all comers; the expert and advanced may feel slighted with only 22 percent of the mountain, but the blacks and double-blacks the resort has prove that it's not messing around. Tricksters have a world-class terrain park and half pipe to tempt the harsh mistress that is gravity. Beginners and families, meanwhile, tend to flock to nearby Dollar Mountain, a 6,638-foot peak that seems small only in comparison to Bald. A modest collection of blue and green runs are complimented with a variety of snow parks.

Of course, at this veteran resort, there's a lot more to do than merely ski. Ice shows, ice skating, luxe shopping and dining, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and the copious distractions of nearby Ketchum—the epicenter of the après scene—make Sun Valley a welcome refuge for all your winter-inspired activities.