Holidays in the winter snow

A snowy winter in the White Mountains of Crete

(Image credit: Bob Gibbons / Alamy Stock Photo)

published 1 January 2025

Take to the slopes in lesser-known locations, in Europe and further afield.

Skiing in Crete

Think of Crete, and chances are that "idyllic beaches and charming seaside villages" will come to mind. Visit from late February to April, however, and you will not only get to enjoy those, but also some of the most "thrilling" skiing in Europe, said Louis Supple in The Guardian. The island has dozens of mountains of over 2,000 metres and, in winter, sirocco winds sweep in from Africa, picking up moisture over the Libyan Sea and blanketing their upper slopes in deep snow. And often, this is covered with a layer of crystals known as corn snow – which is great for skiers. Visitors are few (there are no ski lifts or marked pistes); the sky is frequently blue, the sea always in sight, and the scenery is simply "magical".

Crete's mountaineering club was founded in 1930, but it was not until the 1970s that a small group of locals started skiing here. With no ski resort (a project to create one got under way in 1977 but never reached fruition), you have to climb or cross-country ski up to the peaks, before racing down through the "untouched" terrain, a practice known as ski mountaineering. You only need some experience of off-piste skiing to tackle most slopes, but a guide is vital. I went with Akis Parousis, of the Hellenic Mountain Guides Association, and stayed at the Delina Mountain Resort, a hotel with "panoramic" views, "comfortable" rooms and a spa, sauna and hammam. It is close to the village of Anogia, at the foot of Mount Ida, the supposed birthplace of Zeus and the highest peak in Crete, at 2,456m.

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As a time to visit New York, winter has its advantages. Even after Christmas, something of the city's festive "twinkle and glow" remains – and then there are the January sales, discounted tickets on Broadway and, best of all, the relative lack of tourists. Combine a long weekend there with a few days' skiing in New England, and you have a "win-win", said Adrian Bridge in The Times – the "ultimate pick-me-up" for the darker, colder months. After my own twirl around Manhattan, I caught the train up to Burlington in Vermont (a "comfortable" seven-and-a-half-hour journey with "majestic" views of the Hudson River). The state's Green Mountains (in the Appalachian chain) don't offer the "dramatic panoramas" of the Alps, and the snow "can be a bit icy" – but they have a "raw beauty" of their own, and relatively uncrowded slopes. I enjoyed all three of the resorts I checked out. Killington, the "largest and best known", has 150 ski trails and plenty of bars blasting out rock classics from "the era of Led Zeppelin". The "genuinely quaint, old-style" town of Stowe sits beside Mount Mansfield, the state's highest peak, at 1,340m. Nearby, the Sugarbush was known as "Mascara Mountain" in the 1960s for its chi-chi clientele (including Yoko Ono and the Kennedy clan), and still exudes a "cool, laid-back vibe".

With relatively low snowfall owing to its dry climate, Svalbard is "not known as a destination for powderhounds". But this huge archipelago in the Arctic Ocean is a "glorious" place to ski even so, said Simon Usborne in the Financial Times. Its main island, Spitsbergen, is roughly the size of Switzerland, but has just 3,000 residents and receives fewer than 150,000 tourists a year. But with peaks rising to 1,713m, this Arctic wonderland now sees ski groups exploring by yacht. I chose a less romantic but more speedy vessel, MV Villa, a former naval expedition ship with six cabins. We moored in deep fjords where glaciers tumbled towards the "midnight-blue" sea. Crampons and ice axes were needed on the highest peak we climbed, and the possibility of polar bear encounters added an extra edge.

This art nouveau grande dame lay empty for years before its recent renovation. It's a breath of fresh air in stuffy St Moritz, said Davina Chelsea in Tatler, with huge windows commanding fabulous views and flooding its "stripped-back" interiors with light. I loved the "chic" Scandi chairs in my room, the "impeccable" beef tartare in the restaurant, and the airy spa and pool – the perfect respite from this little mountain town's relentless social whirl.

Adelboden is a "blissfully bucolic" village with good skiing and a "laid-back vibe", said Liam Hess in Vogue – and The Brecon, owned by a Welsh financier, is the perfect base from which to enjoy it. Interiors are "a study in muted mid-century chic", with pleasing touches (flagstone floors, lambswool blankets). The beds are enormous, as are the showers, and there's a good restaurant serving seasonal, local cuisine, and a spa with sauna, steam room and heated outdoor pool.

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