winter hotels with the wow factor Post hotel & spa Bachelor Gulch Hotel Hotel Ranga
WORDS��ALIX�WALKER��SUSAN�RILEY���PHOTOGRAPHY��GETTY�IMAGES
POST�HOTEL�&�
SPA��LAKE�
LOUISE��
CANADA�
Deep in the heart of
Banff National Park and
a two-hour transfer
from Calgary airport,
most of those visiting
the picture postcard
that is Lake Louise
usually plump for
a stay in the Fairmont
Chateau Hotel.
And why not? It’s
a towering display of
opulence perched on
The edge of the lake,
with horse-drawn sleighs trotting
around the edge and an ice castle
sculpture in the middle.
However, those in the know (like
us) only pop in for a couple of hours
to sample the Rocky Mountain
view and a glass of champagne before
heading down the road to the Post
Hotel & Spa – a luxury chalet that’s an
altogether less touristy retreat.
With a toasty piano bar, gourmet
restaurant and wood panelled library,
we just wanted to hang around the
lobby all day in our socks. But there’s
SKATE AROUND THE MAJESTIC
ICE SCULPTURE CASTLE
ON LAKE LOUISE
too much to do for sitting in socks.
When we weren’t bumping into local
elk, we were snowmobiling, ice walking,
husky-sledding and snowshoeing at
night (don’t go if you’re tired – it really
wears you out).
Private buses take you from the
Post’s front door to the ski slopes
of Banff and Lake Louise so you
can have a lunchtime vin chaud before
returning to a 32,500 bottle-stocked
wine cellar. Our kind of holiday.
From £170 per night (posthotel.com)
BACHELOR�GULCH�
HOTEL��BEAVER�CREEK��
COLORADO��USA
If Santa Claus were to design a hotel,
it would look pretty much like the
Bachelor Gulch, a ski resort nestled in
the exclusive Beaver Creek Mountain,
30-minute’s drive from Aspen. Walking
into the lobby is like entering the
world’s most luxurious log cabin
– all oak panelling, roaring fires
and stags’ heads.
The rooms are seriously plush
with working fireplaces and hot
tubs. And forget a musty
There’s a swimming
pool at the bottom of
the slope so you can
soak and ski-watch
chocolate mint on your pillow,
every night there’s a different
surprise from a gingerbread
house to Molton & Brown
products. The ski-lift is just a
hop, skip and a jump away and
even the queue is a pleasant
experience, with BG staff
arriving with hot chocolate and
warm brownies just as your
HOTEL�RANGA��ICELAND�
The perfect base for some seriously
cosy winter relaxation, Ranga is
tucked away in a remote spot an
hour’s drive from Reykjavik airport.
Guests are greeted by a huge
stuffed polar bear, an ideal prop
for ‘hilarious’ holiday snaps for those
guests who’ve enjoyed a couple of
wines in the outdoor hot tubs.
Ranga is one of the few four-star
hotels in southern Iceland, and is
famous for its Christmas buffet.
Icelanders travel from far and wide
for a taste of 14 types of gravlax,
as well as puffin and whale. For the
less experimental, it also has the best
rice pudding we’ve ever tasted.
But the real appeal of Ranga is
its location. Iceland is a dramatically
beautiful place, full of geysers,
waterfalls and glacial fields. By day,
explore the famous Golden Circle,
walk the glaciers, skidoo or drive to
Jökulsárlón – an iceberg lake that is
an amazing sight at sunset. Ranga
also claims to be a perfect spot for
witnessing the Northern Lights. Sadly
we didn’t get to see them, but we
spent a lot of time drinking in the
hot tubs patiently waiting… before
heading back inside to find that bear.
From £150 a night (hotelranga.is)
fingers start to numb. For après-ski
relaxation the spa offers a host of
treatments and there’s a swimming
pool at the bottom of the slope
so you can soak and ski-watch
simultaneously. And if you needed
any more convincing, this is Justin
Timberlake’s favourite spot, which
can only add to the spectacular view.
From £366 per night (ritzcarlton.com)
COLORADO’S BACHELOR GULCH
HOTEL – LIKE THE WORLD'S MOST
LUXURIOUS LOG CABIN
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