Alyeska Resort

Alyeska is Alaska's premier ski resort, set in the town of Girdwood about 65 km southeast of Anchorage, where the Chugach Mountains plunge almost to the sea. Its coastal, maritime position produces enormous snowfall — often well over 15 m a season — and a genuinely wild, big-mountain atmosphere rare in North American resort skiing.

The mountain offers around 760 m of vertical, rising from a base near sea level to a summit around 1,200 m, with terrain that is famously steep and varied. The North Face and the high bowls hold demanding chutes and gladed lines for experts, while sheltered lower runs and a modern tram-served mid-mountain suit intermediates. Frequent storms mean powder days are common, though weather can also close the upper lifts.

Alyeska is also known for its short winter days and long night-skiing, and on clear evenings the aurora borealis can appear above the slopes — a distinctive draw of skiing this far north. The season runs roughly December to April, extending later on the upper mountain.

A large slope-side hotel and aerial tram anchor the base, giving a compact, self-contained resort experience surrounded by the Chugach wilderness and views toward Turnagain Arm.

Practical notes: the drive from Anchorage along Turnagain Arm is spectacular, and Alyeska's combination of deep maritime snow, serious steep terrain, and a remote Alaskan setting makes it unlike anywhere in the Lower 48. It rewards strong skiers who accept that weather, not the calendar, dictates the best days.