Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Steamboat pairs a real downtown with a big ski mountain a short bus ride away, and the two still feel like separate places, which is the appeal: you can ski all day and eat somewhere that isn't a base lodge. The best soak is Strawberry Park Hot Springs in the hills north of town, rustic rock-lined pools that need a reservation and take cash only. Plan around the road. From November into May the county requires four-wheel or all-wheel drive with snow tires or chains to reach the springs, so many visitors book a shuttle instead. In summer the same hills turn into hiking and biking country with the river running through town.