Best places to vacation in the winter?

snowy Utah city

Yosemite

The Swiss or French Alps
Iceland
Aspen
Telluride

Do you want cold weather suggestions or warm weather? I’m confused.

Yeah – I’m confused too; do you want cold weather outings? I would not go to Iceland in the winter because you only have about 4 hours of daylight.

If you do want cold, I would suggest Quebec City. There is a winter carnival with toboggan runs, ice sculptures and skating. Just outside of Quebec, there is an ice hotel where you can stay overnight or just have a drink at the bar.

Hoth

Alaska. Fly up there and cruise back.

@janbb @JLeslie Sorry about that. After reading my question, it does seem confusing. I am looking for cold weather outings and vacations.

Prague is a lovely city and I think it would be fine to visit in the winter. Are you looking for a more active or a more cultural vacation.

@janbb I like both!

So, a cooler climate with both cultural and and physically active activities, correct?

Some more questions for you:
– You are in the US, right? Do you want to stay in the country or are open to visiting another one? If open to another country, do you speak another language?
– Are you traveling alone?
– Is there a specific time of year being considered?
– A particular length of time?
– Any particular interests that would be nice to have included? (history, art, specific sports,

I am in the US. I am definitely open to other countries! I only know a minimal amount of Spanish. I would be traveling with my girlfriend. The time of year doesn’t matter as much, and the length of time depends on the proximity to home. I would say that the farther away(another country) the more time I would want to stay. If I left the US, I would at least want 1–2 weeks there. However, I would be alright with 3–4 days somewhere in the US. I’m not a big sports fan, but I love both history and art. I love going to museums. My girlfriend loves art!

European River Cruise with Christmas Markets

Harbin Ice Festival in China.

Thank you for the additional information as it really helps.

Visiting Italy is worth considering. It’s not a cheap place to visit, but the prices drop quite a bit in the winter months. Rome (and The Vatican City) is ideal for anyone interested in art and history. The SO and I spent a week there during January a couple of years ago. A reasonably priced hotel was selected that included breakfast and was within walking distance of all of the major attractions. Never took a taxi other than to and from the airport.

From Rome, one can take a tour to Pompei, take a train down to Venice, and many other options.

Italy came to my mind too. Lots of yummy food to warm you up and as the jelly above mentioned the Vatican has history and art and Florence is a beautiful city to walk through and also the art there. Many places in Italy of interest.

I would guess the very cold countries are the best to visit?? Not sure. They would be well equipped for the weather. Switzerland, Denmark, just thinking out loud. I’d have to research it.

What about NYS? I was there last summer, but it’s good in the winter too. I stayed at the Thayer hotel at West Point two nights (we arrived late, otherwise one would have been sufficient). The hotel is right on post. You are allowed to walk through the base, but I also recommend the bus tour. Go skiing in the Catskill Mountains just northwest of there, or up in Lake Placid where the Olympics were many years ago. Visit Hyde Park and take a tour of the Culinary Institute and eat at one of the restaurants there. Also, in Hyde Park the wonderful Roosevelt Museum and Eleanor’s home and the Vanderbilt home. Drive over to Stowe, VT for a history tour at the Von Trapp Lodge. Even if you don’t care about the Sound of music hearing the real story of how the Von Trapps left Austria and often the story is told by an actual Von Trapp is special. Also, in Stowe, is skiing, many other winter sports, Ben and Jerry’s factory and tour, and some good restaurants. NYC could be part of the trip. Nutcracker Suite at Lincoln Center, Macy’s Christmas Windows, and so many fabulous museums in NYC. However, I will say that I think all of what I named above is better in the summer. But, that’s me.

I have friends who really like Park City, Utah. I’ve never been there. I don’t know how much art and culture there is, but it’s supposed to be fun winter sports.

If you ever want a warm week FL has some great history and art. The Dali museum is fantastic in St. Petersburg. You must do the tour while there. The other art museum in St. Pete also very good and I recommend the tour there too. Plus, the Mahaffey they’re for the performing arts. The FL Symphony that performs there is very good. The Vinoy Hotel (now part of the Marriott group) has a wonderful history in St. Pete, and even if you don’t stay there take the time to visit their museum section on the main floor. Take a boat ride and see the dolphins play in the wake created by the boat.

In Tampa the Henry plant museum has a wonderful history and there is a nice audio tour.

1 hour from Tampa you can visit Florida Southern College (we are moving east of Tampa now) designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Also, take the tour. Downtown Lakeland is nice for walking and a meal. An hour from Lakeland is Winter Park, FL (you can wave to Mickey on the way) and the Morse Museum in Winter Park has one of the most Amazing collections of Tiffany ever. The chapel/alter is not to be missed, it takes my breath away every time I see it. Also the daffodil terrace. So many beautiful pieces of art. Moreover, the Main Street is lovely to walk down with many shops and restaurants.

If you drive another 1.5 hours east to St. augustine you can visit Ponce De Leon’s fountain of youth and see the Atlantic Ocean.

I’m sitting here freezing my arse off in Australia and when I saw your question I thought “oh someone like me!” Then I realised you want to go to a wintry place ehhhh…

Sandpoint, Idaho, USA.

I second @Kardamom‘s suggestion of European Christmas markets.
And if you like to ski, I recommend Whistler/Blackcomb in Canada, or Lake Tahoe, California.

Hawaii… It’s also whale season.

Thank you all so much for all of the suggestions! I’ve been looking them all up online and seeing what should be first on the list while making bookmarks. A lot of these places I’ve never thought about so seeing all the world has to offer excites me. The European suggestions really caught my attention!

Here are a few other options for consideration:

Paris It’s another city where the SO and I spent a week during winter. Again, we walked everywhere except to/from the airport. The area is chock-full of art, history, and culture. If there is any interest in WWII, Normandy is a train ride away. Nice isn’t too far away either by US standards. From there, it’s a quick train ride over to Monaco.

Athens Greece is extremely cheap. The winter weather there averages between the low to mid-50s F., while in summer it gets quite high, so if you plan to walk around like we did, the winter temps are better suited. Tons of art, history and culture. There are plenty of side trips available should you want to check out any of the Greek islands.

Berlin This is a city that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime.

London This is not a cheap city to visit, but it’s another where the prices drop during winter months. It’s also less crowded in the winter. There is so much to do there that a week’s visit is not nearly long enough.

Sedona AZ.

@Pied_Pfeffer Those are all awesome places! I really really want to go to Greece, but eventually I want to visit them all!

You should visit Lviv. It’s in Ukraine. Winter holidays here are really charming.