Madeline Hotel and Residences
Photo Courtesy of Hotel Madeline Telluride
This holiday season, skip the presents and give a gift that keeps on giving instead — an experience. These five great Western and Midwestern resorts offer something for everyone, ensuring you get your fill of food, fun, snow, spa, beach and more.
Telluride, Colorado
Skip the Christmas crowds and ski like a local in Telluride, which is widely considered one of the country’s best spots for adventurous skiing. Learn the tips and tricks of the mountain with Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star Madeline Hotel and Residences’ new ski ambassadors, who offer guided mountain tours on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Once off the slopes, take advantage of the resort’s just-opened sky terrace, complete with a year-round deck with an oversized pool, two hot tubs, three fire pits and panoramic views of the powder.
Casino Del Sol Resort, Photo Courtesy of Casino Del Sol Resort
Tucson, Arizona
Tempt your taste buds at the 12th annual Tucson Tamal & Heritage Festival on December 3. Held at Casino Del Sol Resort’s AVA Amphitheater, the free event offers local arts and crafts, plus an array of the city’s best tamales.
Afterward, use the rest of your time in Tucson to explore all that the Four-Star property has to offer. Unwind with a desert-inspired treatment at the elegant Hiapsi Spa, try your luck on the casino floor or relax by the oversized pool.
Colorado Springs
Wouldn’t it be nice to relax and recover at a Five-Star resort this holiday? At The Broadmoor, you can spend the last days of 2016 in style in Colorado Springs, thanks to the resort’s Ultimate End of Year Celebration. Enjoy a five-night stay, Beach Boys concert tickets on December 27, round-trip transportation between the music venue and hotel, tickets to the Broadmoor’s Holiday Dinner Show and its New Year’s Dinner Gala and 25 percent off suite accommodations, in the event you’d like to sing “Help Me, Rhonda” and “Auld Lang Syne” in even more refined settings.
The Ranch at Rock Creek, Photo Courtesy of The Ranch at Rock Creek
Philipsburg, Montana
Go glamping at Montana’s only Five-Star resort, The Ranch at Rock Creek, this month. Take outdoorsy opulence to the max with the Indulgent Frontiersman package, available when you book a minimum of four nights between now and March 31.
Inspired by films like The Revenant, this all-inclusive deal lets you choose your own adventure. Pick two personalized experiences, such as a “saddle soak” treatment at the Granite Spa, a private horseback ride and target shooting with a picnic lunch, a half-day survivor skills class or a private ice fishing excursion with a campfire lunch.
South Bend, Indiana
Feel free to channel your “Fighting Irish” spirit with a visit to Notre Dame’s luxurious Morris Inn, but no love of football or basketball is required for this trip. This month, take full advantage of the hotel’s wine academy, which highlights wineries with ties to Notre Dame alumni through a five-course meal paired perfectly with each selection.
The December 12 event features Talbott Vineyards, a Salinas, California-based producer of fine pinot and chardonnay.
Of course, if you wanted to get in the celebratory spirit a few days early by cheering on the No. 1 ranked Notre Dame women’s basketball team as it battles No. 2 Connecticut on campus on December 7, no one would complain.
