The World's Best Ski Hotels
The best ski hotels in the world, according to Luxist's readers, include award-winning hotels in France, Switzerland, Austria, Colorado and Wyoming. One is Austria's most luxurious ski and spa lodge. Another is a landmark hotel in the center of legendary ski paradise St. Moritz, known for its unrivaled luxury, immaculate service and extravagant and exclusive Après Ski experience. The third is an intimate alpine retreat in the heart of the world's largest ski area in the French Alps while the the fourth is a "peaceful home" located on the edge of a mountain high above Jackson, Wyoming. The final resort is an exclusive enclave tucked away in the majestic Rocky Mountains of Colorado.
Amangani Hotel, Jackson, Wyoming
If it is action-packed days on the slopes and a convivial après-ski atmosphere you are in search of, look no further than this 40-suite resort. Amangani, which translates to "Peaceful Home", is the first Aman resort in the United States. Opened in October, 1998, Amangani is near the southern boundary of Grand Teton National Park.
Constructed with soft-hued Oklahoma sandstone, Douglas fir, cedar and Pacific redwood, the three-story resort is cut into the hillside on the western edge of the East Gros Ventre Butte. The area is encircled by elevated peaks and buttes, hence the world "hole" is used to describe this extensive alpine valley. It is a peaceful location at the southern end of the Greater Yellowstone Area, a vast expanse of mountain and meadow, sage flats, river bottoms, national forests and wildlife sanctuaries.
Amangani is a short ride away from some of the North America's most acclaimed ski runs at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, where ski and snowboarding enthusiasts enjoy 1,000 hectares of high-thrill skiing and snowboarding terrain featuring a lift-serviced vertical drop at 1,260 meters (4,139 feet). As Jackson Hole averages 1,016 cm (400 inches) of snow a year, it offers some of the best skiing conditions in the world. During winter months, snow piles up to four meters (10 feet) in the mountains. The entire valley turns white after mid-November and winter can stretch past early April.
This resort, which opened in December 2008, provides all the sophistication and comforts of a world-class hotel combined with the ambiance and elegance of a private residence. Each of its nineteen bedrooms and suites were individually designed and offer cozy, chic and extremely luxurious amenities. The resort's 14 deluxe double rooms and five suites and junior suites all offer views of the snowy slopes.
The resort offers two spas, including the Spa at Aurelio Lech which is a holistic day spa with exclusive treatments, a modern fitness center complete with the latest equipment and a personal coach, several indoor pools including an activity pool, an extensive thermal suite and a tranquil meditation center where guests relax in front of an open fire. The Ski Spa has a herbal sauna, aroma vapor bath, cooling-off pool, blossom bath, adventure showers, Jacuzzi, Techno-Gym equipment and treatment rooms. At 23 meters in length, one of the resort's two swimming pools is the largest and deepest swimming pool in Lech.
Badrutt's Palace, St. Moritz, Switzerland
Situated amidst breathtakingly beautiful and unspoiled scenery, Badrutt's Palace has long been hailed as a favorite of celebrities and royalty alike since its opening in 1896. One of the top lifestyle addresses in the world, the family-owned hotel is known for its unrivaled luxury, immaculate service and extravagant and exclusive Après Ski experience.
Located in one of the most challenging ski areas in the world, Badrutt's is renowned as a world class ski resort with extensive and immaculately kept slopes. Guests enjoy moonlit ski runs, skiing, snowboarding, tobogganing, vertical ice-wall climbing, torch-light skiing, among many other activities.
Over the past 10 years, the entire hotel was refurbished and modernized, including its guest rooms, suites, spa and wellness areas. There are 159 guestrooms and 38 suites with stunning views of the Swiss Alps and Lake St. Moritz. Luxurious suites include the two-bedroom Hans Badrutt Suite with a surface area of 280 square meters, wood-paneled library. The two-bedroom Helen Badrutt Suite is 250 square meters in size.
The hotel offers a world class spa and dining facilities. The renovated "Palace Wellness" spa offers therapeutic luxury treatments along with the latest in fitness equipment in addition to indoor and outdoor pools with breathtaking views of the Swiss Alps. Gourmet dining includes such well-known favorites as Nobu, which offers unique fusion cuisine combining traditional Japanese ingredients with Peruvian influences. The hotel also offers an exciting nightlife at the King's Club and exclusive shopping including Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Emilio Pucci, Loro Piana, Van Cleef & Arpels, Chopard and De Grisogono boutiques among others.
Le Mélézin, Courchevel, France
In the fashionable Alpine village of Courchevel 1850, this intimate alpine retreat lies in the heart of the world's largest ski area, the Trois Vallées in the French Alps. Ideally situated on the Bellecôte piste, the four-story lodge provides easy ski-in and ski-out access to Courchevel 1850, one of one of Europe's most fashionable and exclusive resorts. Le Mélézin is a short stroll from the epicenter of the resort which offers superb restaurants and shopping.
Le Mélézin opened in the heart of the Trois Vallées region as an Aman resort in 1992, offering 31 luxurious guest rooms and suites. The four-story resort combines a ski experience with the classic traditions of the finest French Chateaux with its classic design. Its patterned parquet flooring and panelling and spectacular 200 year old oak beams, add a weathered touch to the updated surroundings. Most of the rooms throughout the property offer spectacular views of the ski slopes and surrounding peaks.
Le Mélézin, which is an Aman Resort, offers the ultimate après-ski experience with guests relaxing in the spacious hammam (steam room) or the white capri stone pool with a jacuzzi on either side. The resort also offers a spa with three treatment/massage rooms and a Thai/Shiatsu room.
Ritz Carlton, Bachelor Gulch, Colorado
The property opened in 2002, is reminiscent of the architecture of the grand lodges of Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks. This unique style, known as parkitecture, features a variety of indigenous natural materials such as logs, timbers and stone. The hotel has 180 guestrooms including 40 suites (with 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms) and the 1,800 square foot "Ritz-Carlton Suite". No fewer than 95% of the guest rooms offer spectacular mountain or resort views and 77 have fireplaces.
Bachelor Gulch is the centerpiece of Beaver Creek's village-to-village ski experience. More intimate and removed than its Beaver Creek or Arrowhead neighbors, Bachelor Gulch proved to be the perfect setting for a family-oriented ski resort that combines privacy with authentic Rocky Mountain luxury. The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch is situated right at the base of the Bachelor Gulch chairlift, a high-speed quad chairlift, providing unparalleled ski-in, ski-out access. The daily Fire Pit Lighting Ceremony starts at 3:15 pm and is a favorite amongst guests and locals, with hot chocolate, cookie and s'mores.
Other nice amenities offered by the hotel is its Ski Concierge and Ski Nanny services. The Ski Concierge provides valet service to securely store and dry skis, boards and boots for overnight hotel guests. The Ski Concierge can also assist with booking lift tickets; private lessons and facilitate equipment rentals. The Ski Nanny program enables parents to enjoy their morning and hit the slopes for a day of skiing or spa, at their leisure. The Nanny will make sure the resort's young guests get on the ski school bus that takes them to Beaver Creek Village for group lessons.
The resort also boasts a 21,000-square-foot, Mobil Four-Star rated Bachelor Gulch Spa featuring 19 treatment rooms, a luxurious separate manicure/pedicure salon, and men's and women's locker rooms offering sauna/steam and water therapies. A unique feature to the Spa is the rock-lined Grotto with a lazy river hot tub. There's also a year-round heated pool and three hot tubs.
