Ski and Snow Resorts - Overview of the Best Skiing Destinations Around the World

There are too many excellent ski resorts to cover in one article, and an even larger selection of ski holidays to choose from. We’ve tried to pick a selection of the best areas and resorts to help you choose your ultimate ski destination.

Since a ski resort tends to be all-inclusive for lodging, restaurants, equipment rental, interesting activities, etc, you want to pick one that meets your needs. How advanced do you want the runs, trails and pistes to be? Do you want a relaxing atmosphere or a party one? You have a variety of choices, so study different destinations and decide which is best for you.

A ski lift system will take you up the slopes easily, and some resorts even give you the ability to ski in and ski out the door. There are many other activities that you can take part in such as snowboarding, dog or reindeer/horse-drawn sledding, snowmobiling, and ice skating. In the summer you can go hiking, mountain biking, swimming, or play tennis or golf.

The United States offers many world-renowned ski areas such as Aspen (in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, which is a European-style village with nearby trout fishing, jeep trails, horseback riding, paragliding, etc), Vail (also in Colorado), Squaw Valley (one of the U.S.'s largest ski areas with 33 lifts able to accommodate 49,000 skiers per hour), Stowe Mountain Resort (located on Vermont's highest peak with 47 trails and the world's fastest gondola), Deer Valley Resort (in Utah, and named by SKI magazine as the #1 resort in North America), and many more.

The Alyeska Resort in Alaska has 1,000 skiable acres for all skill levels and all ages and was rated by Skiing Magazine in 2006 in the Top 25 Ski Resorts in North America. In addition to skiing, they offer tours for salmon and halibut fishing, glacier hiking, bear watching, white water rafting, dog sledding, and sightseeing by helicopter.

Quebec is a destination with European charm, and British Columbia has 13 ski resorts with big vertical drops and spectacular terrain.

Europe offers high amounts of vertical drop in France, Switzerland, Italy, and Spain. But that does not tell you how many trails, runs or pistes there are, nor what expert levels are designated.

Europe's Alps is where skiing was born and perfected, and there are hundreds of ski resorts to choose from.

If you want a truly unusual adventure, go to an Igloo Village such as one in Slovenia, where you can participate in snowshoeing and snow biking as well as skiing and stay in memorable surroundings.

With so many great destinations it's hard to choose just one. But why stick to just one place for your skiing holidays? Take your pick of the best and tour the resorts. Each continent and country has something different to offer but with one thing in common; great skiing!

For a full list of the world's ski areas and resorts why not visit Wikipedia

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