Maybe you鈥檙e a skier hunting powder at the resorts on your megapass or want to escape the snow altogether in the high desert. Either way, all you need to do is grab your keys, scope a map, and start driving.
Highway 395
Squaw Valley to Mammoth Lakes, California
Got an Ikon Pass? Then you have unrestricted access to some of California鈥檚 best ski resorts. Start at for steep skiing off legendary lifts like Squaw鈥檚 KT-22 and Granite Chief. Book a night or two at (from $129), and don鈥檛 miss pizzas at the newly opened 听just down the street. Then swing southeast to听Highway 395, which runs along the east side of the Sierra Nevada. You鈥檒l pass endless , the gold-mining ghost town of , and killer gas-station fish tacos at the in Lee Vining. Finish the trip at and neighboring , the latter of which is small but offers听world-class backcountry access with . The 听near the base of June Mountain has a great indoor hot tub and heated pool (from $199).
Blue Ridge Parkway
Charlottesville, Virginia, to Asheville, North Carolina
You鈥檒l score stunning views of the Blue Ridge Mountains on this 469-mile stretch of two-lane blacktop through the southern Appalachians. Start in Charlottesville, where the offers self-check-in to four sleekly designed suites right downtown (from $230). Along the drive, don鈥檛 miss the folk music at听the historic in Floyd, Virginia, or the chance to peer into the Linville Gorge, the Grand Canyon of North Carolina,听near Morganton.听End your trip in Asheville, where you can fuel up at , hike or bike the new听8.6-mile听multi-use Weed Patch Mountain Trail to Chimney Rock State Park, and drink craft beer at some of the town鈥檚 nearly 50 breweries. Sleep in a dome tent, an Airstream trailer, or a treehouse at (from $80)鈥攚inter here brings fewer听crowds and more mountain views, since the trees have lost their leaves.
Interstate 70
Denver to Crested Butte, Colorado
With an Epic Pass, a Colorado winter road trip is a must. Start in Denver and point your wheels west on Interstate 70, stopping at any number of the Vail-owned ski resorts along the way: Keystone, Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek. (And don鈥檛 miss the at Arapahoe Basin, also on the Epic Pass, just a short detour off the interstate on Loveland Pass Road.) (from $189), located steps from the lifts at Vail Resort, has a new float tank in its听spa to help ease sore muscles after a day on the hill. Then veer off I-70 and take U.S. Route 24, better known as the Tenth听Mountain Division Memorial Highway,听south to Leadville, making your way over Monarch Pass on U.S. Route 50 until you reach Crested Butte, a new addition to the Epic Pass this year and about four hours south of Vail. , on downtown鈥檚 Elk Avenue, has a pub, live music, and three loft suites you can book for the night (from $350).
Route 66
Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Flagstaff, Arizona
You could spend weeks driving the entire 2,400-mile Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles, but trust us, it鈥檚 this section of high desert that you鈥檙e thinking of when you dream of the Mother Road. In Albuquerque, book a room at (from $137), a historic听motor lodge that was totally renovated in 2018, and听be sure to听visit the rescued owls, foxes, and moose at the 听and grab milkshakes at 听while you’re in town.听Then strike out for听Arizona, camping听at the world’s best preserved meteorite听听just across the boarder听in Winslow.听After arriving in Flagstaff, enjoy听views of the Grand Canyon with skis on your feet as you ride the lift at听. You can听cross-country ski or snowshoe to your rental yurt or cabin at the nearby听 (from $50), or head west and pass some time at听.
Powder Highway
Fernie to Golden to Nelson, British Columbia
A network of highways through British Columbia鈥檚 Kootenay region make up the famed . This snowy stretch of tarmac connects eight world-class mountains, including Revelstoke, Kicking Horse, Fernie, Whitewater, and Red Mountain, plus plenty of cat- and heli-skiing operations. has new for this winter, including lodging, lift tickets, and transportation (from $2,304 for six days). Some highlights of the route? At Kicking Horse, you can sleep atop the mountain and earn first tracks before everyone else by staying at (from $677). boasts some of the best cat-skiing terrain in North America and an 11,000-square-foot lodge to crash in overnight.