Seven affordable winter adventures for all types of travelers
— -- Winter isn't just a good time to plan next spring and summer's adventures, it's also a great time to get outdoors and try a whole other set of activities. Whether you're a bona fide snow bunny or prefer to just dabble in winter sports in between sitting by the fireplace and gorging on comfort food, you can find winter adventure packages that suit your interests and your tolerance for below-freezing temperatures. I've searched the Web and found seven great tours suitable for different types of active winter travelers—and they're all pretty good deals, too.
Wolf watching and winter sports in Yellowstone Provider:Yellowstone Association Length:Four nights Price:from $659
Each year, close to three million people visit Yellowstone National Park, mainly during the summer. By early November, most of the park's roads and facilities close for the season and visitation drops way off. However, the park's top attractions—abundant wildlife and geothermal hot springs—don't adhere to manmade timetables.
That's why the Yellowstone Association, a non-profit organization that runs educational programs within the park, offers "lodging and learning" programs during winter, including the four-night Winter Rendezvous package, a program designed to give travelers multiple ways to experience Yellowstone's offseason. Guests booking the package will get exclusive use of the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, the only in-park accommodations accessible by car in the winter. Each day of the session, you'll be able to choose one of several guided field trips, with options ranging from wolf tracking and cross-country ski lessons to more strenuous snowshoeing and skiing treks.
"I had never cross-country skied before and fell in love with it," says Atlanta resident Donna Burbank, who attended the program this past winter with her husband. "It was incredible to be skiing on a road that in the summer would normally be jammed with cars. And the wolves! The snow was a perfect backdrop for seeing wolves and all kinds of wildlife that normally would have stayed away because of all the people."
After the excursions, you'll gather with other participants for a buffet dinner followed by trip reports and an educational presentation by a wildlife biologist, park historian, or other Yellowstone expert. "It's a really fun atmosphere in the evenings, with lots of interaction between the guests and the instructors," says Yellowstone Association Director of Education Jeff Brown. "Everyone loves to share what they've seen and done during the day, which creates a strong sense of camaraderie."
Trip planning
Program start dates are March 4 and 8. Rates are based on double occupancy in rooms with a shared bathroom; rooms with an ensuite bath start at $739. Prices include accommodations, buffet breakfast and dinners, box lunches, guides and guest speakers, in-park transportation, and daily activities. Alcohol, gratuities, and transportation to Yellowstone are not included. The lodge is about a 90-mile drive south from the airport in Bozeman, Montana.
Mont Blanc winter sport smorgasbord Provider:Exodus Travels Length:Seven nights Price:from $1,560
Snowshoeing, dogsledding, skiing, or ice-skating? Why settle for one when you can have a smorgasbord? U.K-based Exodus Travels' "Winter Activity Week" tours gives you a taste of all those sports and more set against the backdrop of some of Europe's most spectacular mountain scenery.
Exodus runs multi-sport winter tours in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, and Slovenia, but its program centered around Mont Blanc (which straddles the borders of France, Italy, and Switzerland) offers the most variety and the lively atmosphere of Alpine resort town Chamonix in France. After transferring from Geneva, Switzerland, you'll settle in at the Chalet Savoy in the village of Les Houches near Chamonix, which will be your base for six full days of winter activities. Most days, you'll go on one or more guided excursions, including cross-country skiing in the Italian Ferret Valley, dogsledding in the Chamonix Valley, snowshoeing around Le Prarion, and skate-skiing and Nordic walking in the Italian Aosta.
There's a free day in the middle of the trip for pursuing other activities. You could go downhill skiing or visit an indoor climbing wall as Les Houches, or try ice climbing, glacier walking, or even tandem paragliding in Chamonix. Riding Europe's highest cable car from Chamonix to the summit of Aiguille du Midi, with its up-close view of Mont Blanc, is a definite must-do.
Most meals, including picnic lunches, will be provided by the chalet, although it's worth it to try some French-Swiss fusion cuisine in Chamonix—think Swiss cheese fondue with French bread.
