Skip the slopes, slip away to the spa

Here’s how to soak up the many advantages of being a nonskier

The soothing heat from the gentle rubbing of hot stones on my back elicits a long sigh and a serious release of muscle tension. Is this heaven? No, it’s River Stones Therapy, a hot-stone massage at the spa in the Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch.

I follow this bliss with a leisurely swim in warm water of the coed (bathing suits required), rock-lined grotto.

Skiers used to pop in for a sports massage after a day on the slopes, but now they’re staying in the spa for hours. Lazing in spa pools after a body scrub or indulging in a pedicure, massage or other pampering is an increasingly popular way to spend a half-day in ski country during winter.

Just ask Angie Primmer, director of the Spa at Cordillera in Edwards, CO. “We definitely get people up here scheduling a spa day instead of skiing,” she says. She also says nonskiers book spa treatments while companions are on the slopes.

“Another trend we are seeing,” she continues, “is more people are scheduling body treatments. They want something that is relaxing, but also helps improve the feel and look of their skin.”

The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch, in Beaver Creek, Colo., offers Mountain Spa Mornings, which include a snowshoe hike, yoga and a massage. Add a vanilla bourbon milk bath and a pedicure, then soak in the grotto pool, to make it a full day. Spa Mornings are $250 per person, plus 20 percent service charge (minimum two people; maximum, four). The Ritz-Carlton also offers overnight spa packages.

Keystone Resort, in Keystone, Colo., wants travelers to experience its newly renovated and expanded RockResorts spa. The Get Hooked couples package includes a guided winter fly-fishing tour, a couples massage and a night in a loft suite at the Keystone Lodge & Spa. Fishing equipment, yoga classes and wine tasting are included as part of Keystone’s free Adventure Passport lodging program.

A large mineral swimming pool with a cascading waterfall is the heart of the Willow Stream Spa at the Fairmont Banff Springs, in Banff Springs, Canada. Daily guided snowshoe hikes are offered through the hotel’s fitness facility, and it’s easy to link one to an extended visit to the spa, perhaps for a Willow Stream Facial to soothe the windburn from the hike, a Wildflower Body Polish or a Ritual of Two. During the two-hour ritual for couples, a therapist teaches how to give a spa treatment. Participants choose from muds, masks and baths to practice on each other. The ritual also includes side-by-side aromatherapy massages.

Tune in to your inner self while enjoying a Symphony at the Aria Spa & Club in the Vail Cascade Resort & Spa, in Vail, Colo. The six spa packages offer lively movements such as a private Pilates session, a yoga class or a guided snowshoe hike, followed by adagios such as a five-minute organic body wrap, a target massage or a mini antioxidant facial.


Cordillera, a RockResort on a mountaintop in Edwards, Colo., has overnight and day spa packages. The $330, three-hour program includes a Gentle Rain body scrub, a Mountain massage and a Radiance facial.

The $365, four-hour Relax and Restore includes a 25-minute Sole Connection, High Altitude Rescue body wrap, Twilight facial and spa lunch

North America’s top ski destinations have many excellent spas. If you’re heading to Jackson Hole, Wyo., consider the Bear Necessities and the Special Request packages at the Snake River Lodge & Spa

Spa Gift Certificate