The Best Hotels in Europe for a Winter Trip Full of Hot Pools, Snow-Covered Slopes, and Fondue

An abundance of snow has already fallen across Europe this winter, trains can whisk you to the French Alps, and lift passes cost a fraction of what they do in the U.S. But you don’t need to be a ski enthusiast to revel in the winter wonderland vibes on the continent. A mix of new hotels and old favorites have made a vacation in Europe this winter downright irresistible with castle fireplaces, steamy thermal baths, woodsy snow walks, strudel baking courses, and champagne and melted cheese dishes. Whether you ski or après-ski, these 19 hotels on Afar’s Hotels We Love list dedicated to wintry European getaways give you a chance to embrace your winter era in Old World style.

Adler Historic Guesthouse

Courtesy of Adler Historic Guesthouse

This diminutive and historic 16th century hotel once hosted Emperor Maximilian I and Cosimo de’ Medici. Its 43 modernist rooms clad in blond wood are situated right in the cobbled town of Brixen, under the watch of Bressanone Cathedral’s belfries and the surrounding Dolomites.

Each room is a unique space, some featuring alcove windows overlooking the Eisack River, others with private garden terraces; the plaster corridors inside recall the building’s medieval past. Don’t miss the Tagesbar’s excellent coffee, pastries, and Aperol spritzes. A sleek rooftop thermal pool and sauna are ideal for soaks and sweats after exploring the 26 miles of piste at the nearby Plose ski resort.

Alpina Gstaad

Courtesy of the Alpina Gstaad

Situated on a hill a short walk from the too-pretty-to-be-real resort town of Gstaad, the Alpina Gstaad has 56 timber-walled rooms, suites, and residences, designed by contractors Chaletbau Matti in collaboration with regional craftspeople. Abstract paintings and marble and timber-clad bathrooms with large soaking tubs are juxtaposed with carved wooden ceilings and painted wooden cupboards inspired by the generations-old versions in Swiss Alpine homes. Gas fireplaces add an extra dose of comfort on cold nights.

The hotel is as inviting for travelers who enjoy a stylish après scene as much as they do outdoor pursuits. An enormous spa by the wellness-focused Six Senses hospitality group beckons whether you’ve been skiing, sledding, ice skating, or relaxing in-room with a book. Food aficionados have varied dining options, including contemporary Japanese and traditional Swiss. Read Afar’s full review of the Alpina Gstaad.

Althoff Grandhotel Schloss Bensberg

Photo by Jannis Hagels

This early 18th-century royal hunting lodge turned modern castle hotel sits atop a woodsy hill a 45-minutes tram ride from busy Cologne. The rambling 111-room whitewashed palace with five octagonal cupolas abuts a garden lined with pines and paths for walking through the snow, while its two Michelin-starred restaurant, Vendôme from chef Joachim Wissler, and a Four Elements Spa allow for serious splurging.

The castle walls are adorned with the owner’s art collection, including works by Joseph Beuys, Georg Baselitz, and Salvadore Dalí; the original ceiling plasterwork was designed for one of the last remaining members of the Medici family. Other sumptuous details include giant stone fireplaces, velvet sofas, clawfoot tubs, and distant views of Cologne cathedral.

Aman Le Mezelin

Courtesy of Aman

Expect heated boot racks, ski butlers, and a hammam with vaulted ceilings and limestone-clad walls at ski-in, ski-out Aman Le Mélézin, a 2.5-hour drive from Geneva or Lyon. (Buses from Geneva and Lyon airport take about the same amount of time.) The four-floor hotel has 31 rooms (23 have balconies) and sits on the Bellecôte piste, part of France’s mammoth Les Trois Vallées, the world’s largest ski area, with some 373 miles of pistes across 25,916 skiable acres.

This may be the place for postpiste pampering, but it’s also a cozy Alpine refuge where you can swim and soak in the two-floor spa, linger in the bilingual library, or sip champagne next to the terrace’s wood-burning heaters. Exclusive experiences include a first tracks program, which allows you to get a jump start on the slopes, fat-wheel bike riding, and a snowmobile ride at dusk to a chalet in Les Prés de la Croix, where you’re served a traditional Savoyard fondue dinner.

The Brecon

Courtesy of the Brecon

Set along a hill in Canton Bern’s Adelboden, host of the Ski World Cup, the 22-room Brecon opened in July of 2024. The hotel, which is wrapped with spacious wooden balconies, is a conversion from an old 1980s chalet, and is a welcome adults-only (18+), all-inclusive property, a rarity in costly Switzerland.

Welschman Grant Maunder and his American wife, Andrèa Maunder, refurbished the former Huldi Hotel and hired Dutch design team Nicemakers to give it a modern makeover—with geometric rugs, framed vintage Alpine maps, and pastel pottery designed by Andrèa herself. After a day on Adeloboden-Lenk’s 124 miles of piste, retreat to the spa’s steam room, sauna, and 93-degree thermal pool.

Das Edelweiss

Courtesy of Das Edelweiss

Deck after deck of wellness experiences are on offer at the sprawling Alpine-style Das Edelweiss, which emerged from a major renovation in summer 2024. It’s positioned at the foot of Grossarltal-Dorfgastein Ski Area, about 90 minutes by train from Salzburg, with 16 lifts, 494 acres, and more than 43 miles of ski runs with wide slopes and reliable snow.

Book one of the 17 junior or family suites, with knotty wood paneling and large terraces; they have extra space for groups with gear. The family wellness area includes more than a dozen pools, including a three-story waterslide and kids area, while a subdued adults-only spa has infrared saunas, fragrant steam rooms, and a 95-degree indoor-outdoor infinity pool with knockout views of the surrounding Alps.

Eriro

Courtesy of Eriro

This dreamy nine-suite chalet with wooden ceilings, gauzy curtains and roomy balconies sits on the border between the Baviarian and Tyrolean Alps. Atop the Ehrwalder Almbahn gondola 5,000 feet up, it’s accessed in Bond-style, via a short snowmobile ride. The adults-only (14+), all-inclusive hotel is home to a spacious spa area with two saunas, a hay lounge with infrared loungers, and three onsen-like pool pools, including a darkened meditation bath.

Stays include free access to the Ehrwalder Almen ski area and use of amenities like snowshoes, high-tech avalanche kits, and Swarovski Optik binoculars for spotting ibex, foxes, and wintering woodpeckers. Chef Alex Thoss’s locally sourced cuisine includes tender chamois with smoked celeriac puree and black cabbage buoyed by a mix of pickled and fermented herbs, pinecones, and vegetables.

Experimental Chalet

Courtesy of Experimental Chalet

The 113 bedrooms at Experimental Chalet in France’s winter sports haven of Val d’Isère feature decor touches like ecru bouclette textiles, rustic maple wood doors, pearly white marble baths, and large balconies overlooking the snow-covered Vanoise massif.

The Savoyard touches at dinner are well-earned after a day tromping or gliding through the snow. Fondue, raclette, tartiflette, and spruce hoops full of melted Vacherin Mont d’Or are fortifying dishes to help reheat your cold bones. If that doesn’t do the trick, head to the spa’s sauna, hammam, and indoor heated pool or four treatment rooms for Vitamin C masks, hot stone massages, and caviar facials.

Forestis

Courtesty of Forestis

A former tuberculosis sanatorium designed for Austrian royalty in Italy’s German-speaking Südtirol is now one of Europe’s most stylish ski retreats. The ski-in, ski-out Forestis has 62 wood-lined suites that sit atop Mount Plose’s Palmschoss chairlift. The resort overlooks numerous slopes where 26 miles of piste twist and turn under the watch of the jagged Dolomites.

At the property’s heart is a 21,528-square-foot spa made of pine, spruce, and larch. It uses the Celtic Tree astrology system and Celtic-based holistic treatments, which includes silent rooms for Wyda (Celtic yoga), five saunas, and salt baths. Snowshoeing, off-piste adventures, and sledding can also be arranged.

Hotel AC Baqueira Ski Resort, Autograph Collection

Photo courtesy of Marriott International

This Aran Valley ski-in, ski-out hotel on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees has all the winter fixings— sauna, whirlpool tubs, Turkish baths, spacious Chesterfield sofas, and indoor and outdoor fireplaces around which visitors can sip cava and enjoy Iberico jamon. Among the 100 dark-wood-toned guest rooms, the 700-square-foot Family Suites have bunk beds, ideal for families or groups of friends. The attic rooms, with their gabled roofs, wood paneling, and dormer windows, have the the most ski-chalet style.

Skiers and snowboarders can cruise around Baqueira’s 105 miles of skiable terrain, but if the slopes aren’t your bag, there are opportunities for dog-sledding, fat biking, and snowshoeing.

Hotel Glacier

Courtesy of Hotel Glacier

The pretty mountain village of Grindelwald is home to weathered wooden chalets, 72 waterfalls, and views of Eiger Mountain’s iconic north face. Easy access to Jungfrau ski region‘s 60-plus lifts and 155 miles of slopes across four ski resorts has long drawn skiers and boarders; if you don’t want to ski, there’s always flying through the air on the 52-mph First Flieger Zipline or trying your hand at velogemel snow bikes.

Some of the 28 rooms at the Hotel Glacier have balconies with private hot tubs while its restaurant serves Alpine French cuisine and a few vegetarian-friendly options like risotto with a 50-minute egg, Gruyère cheese foam, and crispy onions. The menu offers more than 600 Swiss and French wines, 160 of which are available by the glass. A log-lined sauna, heated outdoor whirlpool, steam room, and relaxation area with warm waterbeds are ideal after visiting Grindelwald’s sights.

Hotel Torre di San Martino

Courtesy of Hotel Torre di San Martino

The northern stretch of the Apennine mountains in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region are grazing grounds for Parmesan cheese-making cows and home to scenic alpine towns like Bobbio and Brugnello, often overlooked by international tourists as a winter destination. But the region is home to 15 ski resorts including Cimone/Montecreto and Schia, with 186 miles of pistes and around 50 lifts. Those who don’t want to downhill ski can go snowshoeing and cross-country skiing, plus bird-watching, cycling, and hiking in warmer weather.

Inside castle walls of medieval Borgo di Rivalta in the region’s Piacenza province, the Hotel Torre di San Martino, has been operating under the ownership of the noble Zanardi Landi family since the 13th century. The hotel’s 18 Old World guest rooms have coffered ceilings, canopy beds, and shuttered windows opening to the garden.

A small spa, stone fireplace in reception, and three restaurants, including a locanda serving local specialties like culatello, a cured meat from Parma, and tortellini in hot clear broth, add a little dolce vita to winter.

Related: Europe’s Summer Hot Spots Are Even Better in Winter

Juvet Landscape Hotel

Photo by Billie Cohen

Juvet Landscape Hotel, a collection of architecturally stunning cabins, has won design awards, earned magazine spreads, and been featured in TV (Succession) and movies (Ex Machina). Its forested sprawl includes seven “landscape rooms” on stilts (each with one or two walls of glass), two minimalist “bird houses” with a loft feel, and a writer’s lodge with two bedrooms and a kitchen.

If guests should ever tire of staring out the giant window from their beds, they can stare out more giant windows while relaxing in the bathhouse (which has a hot tub and steam sauna) or while dining on locally sourced dishes in a 100-year-old farm building. The surrounding area is full of other ways to experience nature too: hiking, climbing, skiing, water sports, fjord sightseeing (the UNESCO-designated Tafjord and Geirangerfjord are about an hour away). Note that the hotel is closed December to March.

L’Apogee, Courchevel

Courtesy of L’Apogee Courchevel

Truffles, truffles, and more truffles are on the menu at this super chic ski-in, ski-out French hotel set atop the Olympic ski jump in glitzy Courchevel. The hotel’s evening Beefbar restaurant serves wagyu and Kobe varieties in many iterations—in gyoza, say, or carbonara, or as a tartare accompanied by a potato mille-feuille. The all-day Apogee Club has a wide ranging menu—burgers, salads, risottos, pizzas, and Savoie cheese and charcuterie boards.

Part of the Oetker Collection, L’Apogee’s 53 spacious rooms and suites and two chalets feature wrap-around balconies with Alpine views, steam showers, and heated bathroom floors. Head to the friendly in-house ski shop to rent winter clothing and skis or hire a ski guide to show you the best areas in 373-mile Les 3 Vallées, the world’s largest ski resort. A spa with five treatment rooms also has saunas, a steam room, a thermal bath, and an indoor pool.

Les Mazots du Clos

Robin Quarrelle Photography/Les Mazots du Clos

Sitting 4,000 feet above the manicured terraces of chasselas vineyards in Switzerland’s lesser-known alpine resort of Villar-sur-Ollon, this family-owned seven-room hotel is the antidote to Switzerland’s stuffy palaces and crowded mega-resorts. Inviting wood-lined rooms feature sunny terraces overlooking the Rhône Valley and impressive views of the snow frosted Dents-du-Midi mountain range.

Les Mazots du Clos is not ski-in, ski-out, but it’s only a 10-minute walk to the Roc d’Orsay gondolas leading you to Les Diablerets slopes. The hotel’s buzzy restaurant, Saskia’s—named for one of the owners—serves up international cuisine like pappardelle with duck confit and pancetta crumble, fluffy Japanese milk buns, and crispy baby squid with pineapple salsa and aioli. Also on site: locally beloved live jazz every Saturday, a library that doubles as a lounge, and a spa guests can book privately, with whirlpool, steam room, and heated outdoor pool.

The Omnia

Courtesy of the Omnia

Understated and contemporary, with furniture from designers like Mies van der Rohe and Eero Saarinen, the 30-room Omnia will make you feel like you’re in a James Bond movie; the hotel is built into a mountain with a discreet cave-like entrance. The timber building of the Omnia is in a quiet back corner of Zermatt, offering easy access to the lifts along with some of the town’s best Matterhorn views. You can soar among the peaks on cable ride journey Matterhorn Alpine Crossing, which whisks guests from Switzerland to Italy at 11,482 feet above sea level. The Gornergrat Railway, which runs from Zermatt up to the 10,000-foot-high-summit of the Gornergrat, makes for another fun ride.

The Omnia’s spa has an indoor pool, thermal bath for aching muscles, and saunas and steam rooms. The restaurant is a highlight, with its hearty-but-healthy vegetable-forward dishes of local, seasonal ingredients—such as baked cauliflower with wild mushrooms, cedar kernels, and mountain thyme. Ask about the excellent wine menu, showcasing many high-altitude varietals from Italy and Switzerland.

Rosewood Schloss Fuschl

Photo by Jonathan Maloney / Inga Beckmann for What The Fox Studio

This 15th-century fairy-tale castle turned 98-room lakeside resort and spa opened in the summer of 2024 but its airy rooms with lake and forest views beg to be wintered in. Located 30 minutes’ drive (or45 minutes by bus) from Salzburg, the hotel’s main restaurant plates up hearty Austrian cuisine like crispy schnitzels and venison tartare. A tea salon named after its former resident princess, Elisabeth “Sisi” of Austria, creates elaborate pastries like chocolate-hazelnut truffle cake and rum bundts; learn to make an Austrian classic at home by taking the in-house strudel baking class.

The uber modern spa’s three saunas feature an Old World aufguss sauna experience that uses local essential oils and essence of local beer, while an outdoor thermal infinity pool perched over a woodsy ravine and a trail around Lake Fuschl so you can optimally burn off those extra calories. Read Afar’s full review of Rosewood Schloss Fuschl.

Six Senses Crans-Montana

Courtesy of Six Senses

While early 2026 was marked by a tragic fire in the Crans-Montana region, the area continues to welcome travelers, with hotels, lifts, and trail access operating normally. This Six Senses is a 78-room ski-in, ski-out complex above the main gondola in Crans-Montana in Switzerland’s French-speaking canton Valais. The chalet-style, terraced accommodations offer views of either the Matterhorn or Mont Blanc and exclusive early bird access to the piste twice a week.

The property’s 21,500-square-foot spa is no afterthought. Ten treatment rooms, a yoga studio, three thermal pools, including one with dedicated kids hours, steam rooms, and a hammam promise a sweet recovery after skiing. Especially intriguing is the Biohack Recovery Lounge, which uses smart tech to optimize the body’s natural healing processes. Think NormaTec compression boots for lactic acid legs, Hypervolt percussion massagers, and back wraps that soothe muscle tension after a day on the piste.

Hotel Union Øye

Courtesy of Hotel Union Øye

The 135-year-old Hotel Union Øye, a member of luxury hotel and restaurant group Relais & Chateaux, is located in Norway’s Sunnmøre region, renowned for its fjords, remote villages, waterfalls, and glaciers. The hotel,which has 38 rooms and suites across seven buildings, keeps the cold away with giant crackling fireplaces in Living Room and Game Room, a sunny palm room, and light-flooded conservatory that brings the wilderness indoors.

Activities include helicopter rides over the Sunnmøre Alps, cruising UNESCO World Heritage site the Geiranger fjord, rambling along snow-covered hiking trails, and sweating in the waterfront sauna followed by a (very) cold plunge, for those who dare. For more sybaritic pleasures, guests in the Queen and King suites can enjoy the Press for Champagne or Gin and Tonic buttons, respectively, which deliver a cocktail to your suite on demand.

This article was originally published in 2025 and updated on January 23, 2026, with current information. Billie Cohen and Sophie Friedman contributed to the reporting of this story.