Winter Vacations

Après-ski, the time-tested tradition of grabbing a beer with your buds following a mountain session, is nearly as old as the sport of skiing itself. Back in the mid-1800s, a few snow bunnies in Telemark, Norway, discovered that a drink simply tasted better after taking a few turns down the slopes. Back then, it was grog or aquavit shared among friends at skiers’ homes. Today, no longer a humble house gathering, wintertime mountain merrymaking is a much more elevated affair. “I often say that up until about 15 years ago, all you needed for a successful ski vacation was a hotel, a chairlift, and a bar,” Dan Sherman, chief marketing officer of Ski.com and all-around après-ski expert, told Travel + Leisure. “Après-ski is as much a part of skiing culture as the actual skiing itself. In fact, some people go skiing just so they can après-ski.” Toasting post-shred — no matter the language, location, or libation — is universal. And it doesn’t matter if you’ve aced a black-diamond run, skidded down the bunny hill, or spent the afternoon curled up by the fire. Any and all such daytime activities warrant an invite to lift a glass and kick up your heels as the sun begins to kiss the mountaintops. But perhaps the best part is that après-ski activities can vary greatly by destination and region, meaning you can learn a new tradition with every hill you hit. However, Sherman notes that there are a few universal post-slope truths. “For me, an ideal après-ski scene includes wings, nachos, beer, and a live band,” he said. “However, there are plenty of options in destination ski towns that offer more of a gastronomy and mixology focus.” Want to see it for yourself? From refined to rowdy, we’ve rounded up 21 bars where you can celebrate from last call to first chair.

Jackson Hole has always been a little rough-and-tumble, the kind of place that’s more about fresh powder than see-and-be-seen après-ski glitz. But even as it has held tight to that independent, cowboy-country spirit, the area has quietly become one of America’s most stylish wintertime retreats.