Best Winter Lodges

Across the U.S. and Canada, classic winter lodges that make for luxurious, snowy escapes from the 21st century.

Look out your log cabin window at the snow-covered grounds of the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge in Alberta, Canada, and there’s a reasonably good chance that an elk will be looking back at you. This 1920s Canadian Rockies property has ice skating, cross-country trails, and nearby downhill skiing, but it’s the herd of elk wandering the grounds that tells you that you’re in a winter lodge built to celebrate nature.

Like this classic, the best winter lodges offer an immersive nature experience combined with award-winning cuisine, spas, and activities. They may have one foot in 21st century, but the other is firmly in the 19th, enabling a guest to slow down and appreciate the many moods of winter against a backdrop of woods and mountains. Cozy guest rooms and public spaces are paramount, with features like log fires and comfortable chairs—the perfect place for settling in with a book (or a Kindle). After all, comfortably watching the snow fall is as important as skiing a double black diamond run.

Roughing it used to be the central appeal of winter lodges. You would bundle up and snowshoe or ski before returning to warm up before a roaring fire. These days, that roaring fire may be in a stone hearth in your secluded room. The Jasper Park lodge has suites and log cabins with fireplaces with comfy chairs and beds that look out onto the snowy, pine-covered landscape.

But a great winter lodge doesn’t necessarily mean steeping yourself in history. The Whiteface Lodge in Lake Placid, NY, was built just four years ago. Still, the owners wanted to evoke the feel of a classic, constructing it in a venerable Adirondack-lodge style but adding a huge spa with cutting-edge treatments. And the nearby Lake Placid Lodge, newly reconstructed after a fire in 2005, still evokes the rustic feel of its 19th-century Adirondack Great Camp roots. Yet it’s also infused with luxurious touches like private, lakeside cabins featuring antique and handmade furniture.

Of course, the best lodges wouldn’t overlook fine dining and extensive wine lists to warm up from winter’s chill. At The Resort at Paws Up in Montana, smoked trout potstickers might be followed by grilled elk loin or seared king salmon, enjoyed with a flight of Pinot Noirs. And in keeping with the locavore trend, the food is sourced in Montana and the Pacific Northwest. At the Tank & Trough, the resort’s casual eatery, the burger is a Montana Natural Bison-Angus blend, and wild Montana huckleberries find their way into many breakfast dishes.

Of course, ultimately these lodges are about truly getting away. Traditionally, many winter lodges were large, social properties. But an increasing number of small, luxury properties promote privacy, quietude, and romance. Places like Canoe Bay, a cluster of mid-century modern buildings surrounded by deep woods on 280 very private Wisconsin acres permits no children or pets. And the place happily admits that cell phone reception is “sketchy.”

But differences aside, all of these lodges have one trait in common: they not only embrace winter, they rejoice in the season. —Everett Potter

It’s rare to see Old Yankee gentility prevail these days, but at The Balsams, men still wear jackets to dinner. Set in the remote northern reaches of New Hampshire’s White Mountains, The Balsams is one of the last of the fabled 19th-century New England resorts. The 15,000-acre resort is paradise for winter sports lovers, with its own ski mountain and 60 miles of cross-country trails, as well as snowshoeing and skating. The 400 rooms are simply furnished, log fires burn in the public room hearths, and all meals are included. —Everett Potter

The world’s largest log structure, Chateau Montebello lies on the Ottawa River in Quebec, 90 minutes from Ottawa. A sprawling Adirondack-style lodge, it was built in the 1930’s as a private resort. Today, you can go dog sledding or snowshoeing in the adjacent 6,500-acre Kenauk preserve, hit the indoor curling rink, or do laps in the Olympic-size indoor swimming pool. Then unwind before the six-sided granite fireplace in the massive three-story lobby. —Everett Potter

Think of Canoe Bay in the Wisconsin woods as a mid-century modern winter getaway, with the luxurious touches you’d expect from a Relais & Chateaux property. There are just a handful of cottages and rooms (and a single villa) done in glass, oak, and cedar by a disciple of Frank Lloyd Wright. Cocoon yourself in rooms with double whirlpools, river-rock fireplaces, and views of Lake Wahdoon. If you’re the energetic type, go snowshoeing on the 280-acre property before an in-room massage. Breakfast is delivered to your door and dinner is by candlelight. —Everett Potter

The Whiteface Lodge in Lake Placid opened in 2005, but it evokes the vocabulary of the Adirondacks great camps: logs are everywhere, as are stone chimneys and antler chandeliers. There’s a soda fountain and a two-lane bowling alley. But the 92 suites come with 21st-century proportions: the smallest is 500 square feet, and all come with gas fireplaces, stainless-steel kitchen appliances, and enormous bathrooms. Snowshoeing and cross-country trails are nearby, as is Whiteface Mountain for alpine skiing. —Everett Potter

Deep in the Montana wilderness on 37,000 timbered acres overlooking the Blackfoot River Valley, this luxury ranch is outfitted for serious outdoor lovers. With 28 rustic-handsome vacation homes and 12 tricked-out tents for “glamping,” the compound supplies plenty of soft adventure activities, including snowmobiling, fly fishing, shooting, and horseback riding. Expect a meat-heavy menu and he-man portions at the resort’s main restaurant, and a full-service spa that even offers canine massage. —Adrien Glover

At the recently updated 5,000-acre ranch just 65 miles from Denver, kids can go candlepin bowling and play billiards while parents unwind in the new earth-toned Ranch Creek Spa, built from reclaimed pine and rockslide stones. Nordic ski trails cater to all levels—even the family dog can join—and movies play nightly in the intimate 37-seat theater. Doubles from $260. —Stacey Brugeman

Triple Creek is a service-driven, adults-only property located in Montana’s Bitterroot Mountains. The 600-acre landscape has 23 plush log cabins, each outfitted with cozy touches like wood-burning fireplaces, hot tubs, and locally woven woolens. Itineraries are tailored to guests’ interests and can include dinners at the chef’s table, wine tastings, and helicopter tours. Doubles from $650, all-inclusive. —Stacey Brugeman

Great Value While most adventure lodges are four-season-focused, Snake River was built with the winter season in mind. The property is located at the base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, with more than 2,500 acres of skiing terrain on two mountains; guests have access to a private, heated walkway that leads to the resort’s new tram. They can get a massage, try water treatments, or heal tired toes at the five-story Avanyu spa. Doubles from $225. —Stacey Brugeman

With nine restaurants, on-site shopping, a full-service spa, and a menu of activities that is exhausting just to look at (including ice-walking on a frozen river), the Fairmont Jasper Park is the equivalent of an adventure theme park. Of the 441 rooms, the historic cabins are worth the splurge, including a replica of the six-bedroom Outlook, which once housed Queen Elizabeth. Doubles from $399. —Stacey Brugeman

Set on an island that is fully encircled by mountain peaks, the 24-cabin lodge is as remote today as it was when it was built in 1902. Guests do not have easy access to TV’s or the Internet, and most rooms are outfitted with balconies overlooking the water. Wildlife spotting is the activity of choice, along with ice-skating and dinner picnics and marshmallow roasts by romantic lakeside fire pits. Doubles from $180. —Stacey Brugeman

Rustic luxe is the mantra at this chic Relais & Chateaux lodge, set on the shores of aptly named Lake Placid. With snow dusting the surrounding pines and a sheet of lonely ice stretched out in front of you, curl up in the quiet corners of the lodge, which was destroyed by a fire in 2005 but gorgeously rebuilt. Stay in a lodge room or suite, or disappear into one of the very private cabins and enjoy features like stone fireplaces, handmade birch beds, and lake views. During the day, go for a snowshoe or a ski, then return for a gourmet meal, followed by a lakeside bonfire and s’mores. Doubles from $325. —TravelandLeisure.com Staff