The best winter destinations
23 places we'd send a winter-first traveler, from household names to under-the-radar picks.
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Almaty, Kazakhstan Big-mountain backdrop, Silk Road bazaars, cheap alpine skiing -
Andermatt, Switzerland Uncrowded alpine skiing in winter, high-pass hiking in summer -
Aspen, USA Champagne powder in winter, wildflower peaks come August -
Banff, Canada Turquoise glacial lakes and peak trails in short alpine summer -
Bansko, Bulgaria Pirin peaks and cheap Balkan skiing with mehana feasts in winter -
Bariloche, Argentina Andean lakes town for winter skiing and summer trail days -
Breuil-Cervinia, Italy Long Matterhorn runs into Switzerland, reliable deep-winter snow -
Chamonix, France Mont Blanc's basecamp: glaciers, cable cars and deep winter powder -
Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy Dolomite peaks, ski culture in winter, via ferrata in summer -
Deer Valley, USA Groomed Wasatch bowls and ski-in luxury, deep January powder -
Harbin, China Ice-and-snow palaces lit neon and Russian domes, deep January freeze -
High Tatras, Slovakia Alpine lakes and granite ridges, hiking summer or skiing winter -
Lapland, Finland Aurora season under glass igloos, deep-winter Arctic silence -
Leavenworth, USA Bavarian village glowing under lights in deep December snow -
Oulu, Finland Northern lights over the Arctic coast without Lapland prices -
Quebec City, Canada Walled old town and winter carnival in snow-globe February -
Queenstown, New Zealand Southern Alps powder and lakeside apres in deep winter -
Taos, USA Pueblo adobe and powder skiing under snowcapped Sangre peaks -
Telluride, USA Box-canyon powder in winter, alpine wildflowers come July -
Tromsø, Norway Aurora nights and dog-sled Arctic silence deep in polar winter -
Val Gardena, Italy Dolomite valley of jagged peaks, meadows in summer, powder in winter -
Zakopane, Poland Tatra ski slopes and highlander cheese huts, snow-sure in winter -
Zermatt, Switzerland Car-free village under the Matterhorn, ski slopes open into spring