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Explore Catalonia’s largest lake in Banyoles. Walk or jog around the rim, snap shots of friendly waterfowl, or jump in for a swim. Visitors can also kayo, canoe,or fish. Afterwards, dry off and take a turn around the city’s charming old town.

When you’re ready to call it a day on the slopes, take Park City Mountain Resort’s Quittin’ Time run down to High West, the world’s only ski-in gastro-distillery. Tour the space, then try the 36th Vote Barreled Manhattan, made from a pre-Prohibition cocktail recipe that calls for aging the drink for 90 days in white oak barrels. The food goes down pretty easily, too: A bowl of elk chili will warm you right down to the toes of your ski socks. For lighter fare, the popcorn tossed with bacon, caramel, and cashews is sweet, salty, and a nice counterpoint to a glass of double rye.

Fans of the Montage brand’s Laguna Beach and Beverly Hills flagships will love this mountain version, a ski-in, ski-out hotel wedged into the head of Empire Canyon. The sprawling, Craftsman-style manor debuted in 2010, solidifying Deer Valley’s standing as one of North America’s most luxurious ski resorts. Service shines, starting with the “Mountain Host,” who greets guests in the majestic lobby rotunda. Up the grand staircase, the full-service Vista Lounge acts as a communal living room, with vaulted ceilings, exposed wood beams, floor-to-ceiling windows, and leather furnishings gathered around limestone fireplaces. To further entertain guests, there’s also a museum-quality collection of Western art, including Carl Runguis panoramas, John James Audubon prints, and Frederic Remington portraits.

The hotel’s X-shaped footprint means nearly every room has small deck with mountain or valley views. Averaging around 600 square feet, large guestrooms are airy and inviting with lofted ceilings and soothing natural hues. Remote-controlled gas fireplaces are the centerpiece of each room, though the bath suite with heated limestone floors, marble vanity, rain shower, and soaking tub could occupy your entire evening.

Just off the Cloud Nine lift on Aspen Highlands, you’ll find a Swiss-looking log cabin with a large patio and pristine views of the Maroon Creek Valley. When you walk in, the pungent smell of cheese may overwhelm you, but don’t be deterred. The delicious fondue is worth it. The best time to go is after a full day of skiing; make a late-lunch reservation because that’s when all the action starts. As it gets later, the crowd starts getting a little rowdy and dance parties have been know to break out, with people taking to the tabletops. Ski patrollers sometimes has to shut it down during their last sweep of the mountain, but don’t fret: If you don’t feel comfortable skiing down, they’ll graciously give you a ride.

Willis Tower—originally known as the Sears Tower—was the world’s tallest building for 23 years until it was unseated in 1996 by the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur. The 110-story skyscraper is still mighty impressive. Its “bundled tube” design by architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill was originally inspired by a handful of cigarettes and the innovative bundling changed the construction of supertall, wind-resistant buildings thereafter. The tower’s height is even more thrilling when measured from the 103rd-floor windows of the Skydeck observatory and the Ledge, a glass-enclosed box which juts more than four feet out from the side of the building so that visitors can (gingerly) walk out and stand 1,353 feet above the street.

The Peak 2 Peak Gondola that connects Whistler and Blackcomb mountains was considered a glitzy and expensive PR move when it opened in 2007. Today the 1.9-mile span, the longest unsupported span in the world, ferries hikers, bikers, and of course, skiers and snowboarders to the slopes they seek. Best of all, the Peak 2 Peak provides access to alpine wilderness usually reserved exclusively for the athletically inclined. (This is the adventure I take my 83-year-old mother on in Whistler, and she is blown away, as is her 8-year-old grandson.) Flying through the air, 1,431 feet up with hardly a support tower in sight, is a thrill. The 11-minute ride soars above snow walls, wildflower meadows, Fitzsimmons Creek, and several trails down, around, and behind the Whistler peaks.

Why we love it: An upscale stay in Victor with special fun for families

The Highlights:
- Proximity to Headwaters Club and its golf course
- Spacious log cabins that can accommodate large groups
- Tons of activities in every season

The Review:
Jackson Hole, on the Teton Range’s east side, hogs most of the high-end traffic, but this westside resort offers an appealing alternative, with big, open skies and out-the-door golf on a Byron Nelson–designed course at Headwaters Club. Guests here can also look forward to a 5,000-square-foot spa with a fireplace-equipped relaxation room, an on-site restaurant serving grill fare, and an outdoor heated pool with two hot tubs and a geyser play area for children.

Accommodations are spacious and appealing to families. Luxury suites feature fully equipped kitchens, dining areas, and living rooms with gas fireplaces, while freestanding log cabins—available in three-, four-, and five-bedroom configurations—afford groups some extra privacy. When not relaxing in your room, take advantage of the resort’s extensive activities, including hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, and hot-air ballooning in summer and heli-skiing and snowmobiling in winter.

Why we love it: A hip hotel known for its art, après-ski scene, and A-plus rooms

The Highlights:
- Homey yet luxurious guest rooms
- A lively après-ski scene
- An outdoor pool and two hot tubs

The Review:
Stepping into the Limelight’s lobby, you’ll feel as if you’re entering a hip bar and lounge rather than the hotel’s staging zone. During après-ski, local musicians play here, entertaining a relatively young crowd of 20-, 30-, and 40-somethings who gather on sleek banquettes surrounding the central flagstone fireplace. Overhead, an assembly of rustic wood and neon lights turns the ceiling into an art installation. For more art, explore the hotel’s ground floor, where the 23 major artworks were commissioned from such artists as Ed Ruscha and Raymond Pettibon, who riffed on the theme of topography (a fitting subject, given that many of the hotel’s 99 rooms and suites feature views of 9,151-foot Bald Mountain).

A sprawling, Euro-style breakfast buffet (the yogurt bar alone should win awards) is served in The Lounge, which doubles as the hotel’s main venue for après and dinner. Snack on pizza with the option of gluten-free crust, or follow a kale salad with bison meatballs and house-made ricotta gnudi sauced with wild mushrooms. The on-site ski and bike shop, Four Mountain Sports, lets guests get outfitted without schlepping all over town. Just don’t forget to pack a swimsuit—surrounded by pine-covered peaks, the hotel’s pool and two hot tubs are happening spots after skiing and hiking among the surrounding peaks.

Are you kidding me? 150 feet deep AND the opening to miles of underground caverns? And you want me to jump in? If it isn’t the 30 foot drop that gets you, its the inky blackness below or the who-knows-what that’s living down there. You see, the rainbows that shimmer in the water- falls, and the roots and vines that hang like some bridal veil, and the sunlight that flickers about the place are all just trying to pull you in--into the black nothing that lurks beneath. Never-the-less, if you are brave enough to take the plunge, you will be rewarded with velvety sweet water that feels like lotion on your skin and baby catfish that tickle your toes and, best of all, the exhilaration of knowing you swam in the very entrance to Xibalba, the Mayan underworld. So descend into the cavern and climb the chiseled staircase to the dive platform and make sure when you jump, you hold your breath, cause its a long way down.

There are two ways to arrive at this exclusive Deer Valley perch—ski in from the slopes, or hop on the Swiss-crafted funicular and climb the 250-vertical-foot ridge. The 12-acre, 181-room St. Regis is literally and figuratively in rarefied air, bringing swanky suites, signature butler service, and celebrity chef–driven dining to the high Wasatch Mountain range. Après-ski is a treat at the ski “beach,” which features loungers, an outdoor fire garden, and a menu by Jean-Georges Vongerichten. From there, guests can enjoy a slope-side dip in the steamy pool, or descend a spiral staircase into the 14,000-square-foot Remède Spa for a massage. Come dinnertime, book a window-side table at the J&G Grill.

Natural elements in the lobby and library—stone fireplace, exposed wood, leather furnishings—complement the mountain setting without devolving into log-cabin kitsch. The contemporary aesthetic continues in the spacious guestrooms and suites with dark-wood furniture, state-of-the-art electronics, toasty gas fireplaces, and massive marble bathrooms.

On the northern edge of Tucson, you can drive through a condensed version of western North America’s ecosystem in about half an hour. On the way up the Mount Lemmon Highway (also known as “Catalina Highway” or “Sky Island Scenic Byway”), you traverse almost all of the different life zones you would encounter if you were to actually drive from Mexico to Canada: starting with the saguaro-studded Sonoran desert, up through grassland, junipers and oaks, pines, and finally a mixed-conifer forest with stands of aspen. You begin at about 2500 ft. and end up at almost 9100 ft. above sea level (about 760 to 2770 meters). In the summer, especially, southern Arizonans love this road: “thirty miles, thirty degrees cooler,” as the saying goes. When it’s 105 degrees down in the city, it’s a perfect 75 up on the mountain. In the winter, you can go skiing in the southernmost ski resort in the U.S.

If you’re looking for a little adventure, DownTown Racing boasts India’s longest and most sophisticated go-kart track. With bungee jumping, ziplines, ATVs, quad bikes, and paintball, this place is great for groups and adrenaline junkies. The facility also has an arcade and games section for those hunting virtual adventures.

While many walked through the streets of the small town, I decided to head along the river and came across this beautiful view of Lake Brienz.

Larvotto is a small stretch of pebbles along the shore, and the country’s only beach. Gathered at Monaco’s extreme eastern border, it is the ideal spot to appreciate the Mediterranean. Paddle boards and kayaks are available for rent, while SkiVol offers inner tubing, water skiing or parasailing. It is a great place to snorkel, but insiders continue walking the Sentier Littoral into Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France, following the pedestrian tunnel under the exclusive 1930’s Monte Carlo Beach Hotel to the tiny public beach and cement jetty, where there are no amenities, but plenty of peace and quiet. Photo : Sylvia Sabes

Driving up Independence Pass is a beautiful way to spend the afternoon and along the way to the top of this 12,096’ pass you can stop at highlights. For the thrill seekers, near the Grottos there is a series of waterfalls that flow into a crystal clear pool of mountain river water called the Devil’s Punch Bowl. People jump from 20 foot cliffs into borderline hypothermic cold water that takes your breath away when you hit it. Make sure you jump out far enough so you don’t hit the jutting rock bed on the way down. Some might think it is crazy but it is the ultimate adrenaline rush.