10 Places Where The Jetset Are Skiing This Season
#1 Courchevel, France
The highest of Courchevel’s five villages, officially simply called Courchevel, is the prestigious place to stay in this French resort in at one end of the 600km Trois Vallées ski area. Still often known by its erstwhile moniker, 1850, not only is it the main lift hub, with gondolas heading up in three different directions, it is home to huge numbers of four-star, five-star, and Palace status hotels, luxury chalets and some pricey shops.
#2 Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
Italy’s chicest destination is an ancient mountain town in the Dolomite mountains surrounded by soaring cathedrals of sandstone. In Cortina, the business of skiing and snowboarding plays second fiddle to the social sport of seeing and being seen outside and inside the elegant boutiques and antique shops lining the pedestrianized main street, Corso Italia.
The center of the village is dominated by a green and white bell tower and a glittering confection of grand 19th-century mansions. Encroaching twilight is the signal for Cortina to come out and play – a colony of voluminous fur coats and designer ski wear gathers noisily in the Piazza Venezia at the start of the evening passeggiata. Then, much later, the party atmosphere is transferred to intimate wine bars, expensive restaurants, and a smattering of softly-lit nightclubs
#3 Verbier, Switzerland
Some Swiss resorts may match Verbier for luxurious chalets and hotels and vibrant après, but none quite have its cool cachet – and that’s large because none can rival its challenging high-altitude terrain. Anyone who can handle Verbier’s itinerary routes, never mind the couloirs, can consider themselves pretty darn good.
Along with black runs and unmarked off-piste runs to explore with a mountain guide, the itineraries (which, though loosely marked, are not formally controlled or patrolled) are where many experts spend their time. From the top of the ski area, Mont Fort at 3,330m, there is only one black run and serious off-piste to be tackled with a guide – but everyone should ride to the top for the views.
#4 Lech, Austria
Few resorts have a more exclusive image than Lech. Princess Diana was its most famous patron and other past visitors include the Jordanian royal family, the Dutch royal family, and Monaco’s Princess Caroline. But despite its blue-blooded guest list, Lech is far from showy.
The original cluster of inns has expanded in both quality and quantity, and there are three five-star superior hotels, along with some award-winning restaurants. The car-free satellite of Oberlech above the village, once the summer domain of shepherds and cowherds, has also grown almost into a resort in its own right, with huts replaced by expensive hotels. While many Austrian resorts are well known for lively après ski, Lech best suits more sophisticated, cocktail-sipping types.
#5 Megève, France
The epitome of aristo chic, Megève, a former farming village, was founded in 1916 by Baroness Noémie de Rothschild, who decided that France should have its own St Moritz. It succeeded in attracting the rich and famous – in the 1950s French singer, Sacha Distel was king, sharing bubbles with Yves Montand, Brigitte Bardot, and Jean Cocteau among others.
Today, it is home to nine five-star hotels and five Michelin-starred restaurants, as well as several of the world’s finest mountain spas. Glittering boutiques and galleries line the traffic-free medieval center and ancient cobbled streets, and mean, along with an outdoor ice rink, splendid church, and horse-drawn sleighs, that Megève suits those looking for an all-round winter holiday, not just pounding the slopes.
#6 St Moritz, Switzerland
Welcome to the world capital of winter glitz – walking the streets in high season, it would seem that Prada and Bogner are the sole manufacturers of ski wear and that mink fur coats are mandatory. St Moritz is divided into three villages, Dorf, Bad, and Celerina, around or near Lake St Moritz, with Dorf having the pick of shops, nightlife, and restaurants.
However, there’s more to St Moritz than bling. Its position close to the border with Italy and a ski area high point of 3,305m gives it a rare combination of both snow and sun reliability. It was also the first all-round winter-sports resort in the world and boasts a myriad of on and off-snow attractions from skating and bobsleigh to polo, horse racing, and cricket on the frozen lake.
#7 Aspen, USA
During the 1880s Aspen in Colorado enjoyed a brief silver-mining boom and then, after decades of neglect, its historic core was brought back to life thanks to the American skiing boom of the late 20th century. Glamorous and fashionable, it is delightful to stroll around in the evenings, window shopping in designer boutiques from Dior to Moncler, and enjoying the varied restaurants and bars, of which there are over 100.
Aspen has four separate ski areas – Buttermilk, Aspen Highlands, Snowmass, and Aspen Mountain. Aspen Mountain, with long cruising blue runs and short, steep blacks, is accessed from town by gondola, while the other three are reached by free shuttle buses. Buttermilk is the smallest and least challenging, Snowmass the most extensive with terrain for all, and Aspen Highlands has both easy intermediate slopes and the super steeps of Highlands Bowl.
#8 Kitzbühel, Austria
This medieval town with its heavily buttressed walls and delicately painted frescoes, set against the beautiful backdrop of the Wilder Kaiser mountains, is one of the most beautiful in Austria. Pretty, pedestrianized streets are lined with luxury hotels, smart fashion boutiques, and wickedly expensive cafés.
Judge by the fur-clad clientèle browsing shop windows, and Kitzbühel also might seem the ritziest resort in Austria. However, while there is a wonderful choice of four- and five-star hotels, even at the top end of the tree prices don’t reach stratospheric heights. It’s also one of those rare resorts that genuinely appeals to non-skiers, and has a buzzing nightlife scene.
#9 Courmayeur, Italy
This traditional mountaineering village sits at the foot of Mont Blanc at one end of the Mont Blanc tunnel, with Chamonix in France at the other end. The heart of Courmayeur is the pedestrianized Via Roma, lined with smart boutiques and enticing bars and restaurants, as well as delicatessens and shops selling antiques or homewares. Restaurants both in town and on the mountain are of a particularly high standard, and Courmayeur is one of the spiritual homes of the long, lazy lunch.
Courmayeur is less than two hours from both Geneva (116km) and Turin (150km), making it ideal for a short trip. Well‑heeled Italians from Milan and Turin arrive en masse on Friday evenings, thronging the designer boutiques and cocktail bars. Fortunately, since the ski area is a compact 36km, only a small number hit the slopes – they come for the party rather than the piste.
#10 Zermatt, Switzerland
There's a busy, prosperous feel to the center of Zermatt, with ambling fur-coated couples, designer shoppers, and Japanese or Chinese tour groups rubbing shoulders with purposeful mountaineering types. Switzerland’s most famous resort also brings together every scenic Alpine cliché, from the world’s most photogenic mountain, the Matterhorn, to streets lined with a jumble of blackened, weathered, wobbly-looking chalets.
Views from everywhere on Zermatt’s varied, extensive slopes are stunning, including from its outstanding mountain restaurants and spectacular gondola lift to the resort high point of Klein Matterhorn at almost 4,000m. Plentiful long, scenic red and blue runs will satisfy intermediates, while itinerary runs (avalanche controlled but not patrolled) and off‑piste challenges are the main attraction for experts, especially those willing to ski tour or heliski. For extra mileage, Zermatt is linked to the slopes of Cervinia in Italy.