Whether you're looking to escape the unseasonably-warm-but-still-pretty-frigid winter weather of the north for a beachy getaway, or you actually want to get in some quality time with good ol' Jack Frost and hit the slopes, we've got the perfect solution to help plan your trip!
Tomorrow (February 1), we're hosting a live Twitter chat from 3p.m. until 4p.m. ET, along with Travel + Leisure Deputy Editor Laura Begley Bloom.
Also joining in the conversation is a panel of travel experts, all eager to answer your burning seasonal travel questions. Our expert panelists include:
1. Log in to Twitter any time from 3-4p.m. EST and be sure to follow the chat hosts: @TravlandLeisure and @LauraBegley 2. Use the hashtag #TL_Chat to follow and participate in the chat. 3. To keep up with the chat in real time, head over to http://tweetchat.com/room/tl_chat 4. We'll pulse out some questions for our expert panel to answer, but feel free to post your own answers to our questions! Or ask your own questions! Take advantage of this special access to this fab panel and get some expert travel advice.
We hope to "see" you there!
Joshua Pramis is the social media editor and resident tech aficionado. Follow him on Twitter: @joshuapramis
As a former Colorado resident and onetime liftee (my first job out of college, at Winter Park Resort), I’m a huge fan of skiing in the state. So it was great to hear about the recent storm that dumped up to 10 inches of much-needed powder. It allowed ski resorts to open up new terrain, including parts of Vail’s awesome Blue Sky Basin.
The storm also brought out some great deals at ski hotels—and there’s no better way to end a great ski day than by getting a bargain at a luxury hotel. Here’s a sampling:
• Free night. Stay any RockResort (or other properties in Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, and Northstar) and get a free night and a $50 gift card. Minimum stay varies, but book by January 31 and travel before April 30. More details here, or call 866-614-7625.
• Another free night. Stay 4 or 7 nights at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek and get your last night free, plus—here’s the kicker—lift tickets for 2 for your entire say. Get the details here.
• 40% off. Stay at one of the Destination Hotels & Resorts properties, like the Vail Cascade or The Gant, and get up to 40% off some weeks. You just have to be a member of the Destination Delivers program (it’s free).
• 30% off. The Antlers at Vail is offering 30% off during the week of January 28 – February 5 with a 3-night minimum. And yes, this one also throws in a two-day lift ticket. Get the skinny here.
Rich Beattie is the executive digital editor at Travel + Leisure.
As a professed snow snob I scoffed when a group of friends
recently proposed a ski weekend in Killington, Vermont. It’s hard to get
excited about mountains that look more like the hills I used to sled down as a
kid in Salt Lake City than the exhilarating, death-defying declines that tattoo
the Rocky Mountains. When you grow up within an hour of seven world-class ski
resorts you tend to develop a cavalier attitude about the prospects of cleaving
down a worn, icy tilt and paying good money for it. So I opted to head for this
quaint northeastern burg sans my snowboard. Half the fun of a ski vacation
anyway is exploring the town, enjoying the fresh air, eating at great
restaurants, and plunging into the après ski scene.
This winter may be Lake Tahoe’s best yet, thanks to a slew of new restaurants, just-opened trails, and adventurous snowcat tours to back-country skiing. A bonus? You can access all 6,000 mountain acres from the 56-room PlumpJack, at the base of Squaw Valley, for less than $130 a night when you book with Vacationist. Or, for those who want to leave the snow behind, there's up to 33 percent off stays at St. Lucia’s Jade Mountain, where the weather is so warm that suites are built without a fourth wall—for unobstructed views of the sea.
Mayor Mike Bloomberg recently announced that New York City played host to a record 50 million visitors this past year. Seems like we can expect a few more in 2012: NYC & Company, the official tourism board for our fair Gotham, has rallied some extraordinary big-name luxury hotels to participate in their wintertime Third Night Promotion, where you get one free night for every three-night stay.
The list of ‘signature collection’ properties hosting this winter sale includes both elegant, storied hotels and see-and-be-seen hip newcomers. Choosing just one may be the biggest challenge of your stay:
As one who regularly watches these hotels for affordable offers, I can tell you that an opportunity to save 33% doesn’t come along very often. I can also guarantee that a visit to NYC this winter will be a memorable one. Whether you take the budget route of window-shopping, people-watching, and street food, or use those savings to indulge in some of the thrilling culture, cuisine, and commerce of the city—either way, you’ll leave already planning your next visit.
The 2011–12
season ushers in major improvements at these ski resorts.
Northstar California Resort, California The News: Thanks to a $30 million investment, the mountain welcomes additional trails, a
high-speed quad lift, a new 500-seat on-mountain restaurant—plus a 22-foot
halfpipe designed by Shaun White. 5001 Northstar Dr., Truckee; 800/466-6784; one-day pass from $85.
Big Sky, Montana The News: The
remodeled, slopeside Solace Spa & Salon expands its treatment rooms and
salon services, and Andesite Mountain adds 20-plus gladed acres. 1 Lone Mountain Trail, Big Sky; 800/548-4486; one-day pass $84.
A handful of on-mountain restaurants are reinventing the cafeteria concept.
Heavenly,
California: Tamarack Lodge Peak Pick: Seared peppercorn-encrusted ahi sandwich and house-made peach cobbler. Getting There: California Trail, a blue run offering views of Lake Tahoe from 3,000
feet up. Top of the
gondola; 775/586-7000; lunch for two $32–$40.
Niseko
Village, Japan: Goshiki Peak Pick: Hokkaido-crab miso soup and local lily bulb tempura. Getting There: Misoshiru (which means miso soup), a black diamond featuring Niseko’s
signature powder. The Green
Leaf; 81-136/443-311; lunch for two $52.
Sip on Haute Chocolate: St. Regis Aspen Resort Looking for something sophisticated to do post skiing? The latest offering at this newly redesigned resort is just your cup of tea, er, hot cocoa. The program features a flight of three kinds of hot chocolate, created by Vosges Haut-Chocolat exclusively for the resort (Australia lemon myrtle, lavender flowers, vanilla and white chocolate, anyone?)—plus gourmet grilled-cheese finger sandwiches. For those who still want a little booze après ski, go for the Spiked Flight.
Head to the “Beach”:
Ski Beach at Canyons Resort in Park City, UT This mountain hot spot—located between the base terminal of the new direct-connect gondola and the “Orange Bubble” enclosed heated-seat chair lift—comes complete with beach chairs, lifeguard stands, and fruity drinks (courtesy of The Farm restaurant). Sure, there’s no ocean, but if you use your imagination, that snow will start looking like sand in no time.
Whether you're looking to escape the unseasonably-warm-but-still-pretty-frigid winter weather of the north for a beachy getaway, or you actually want to get in some quality time with good ol' Jack Frost and hit the slopes, we've got the perfect solution to help plan your trip!
Joshua Pramis is the social media editor and resident tech aficionado. Follow him on Twitter: @joshuapramis
This winter may be Lake Tahoe’s best yet, thanks to a slew of new restaurants, just-opened trails, and adventurous snowcat tours to back-country skiing. A bonus? You can access all 6,000 mountain acres from the 56-room 
