The Five Most Lavish Winter Resorts

Sure, skiing's expensive. But at some places, it's really expensive. Still, for a life-list indulgence, you can't go wrong at one of these deluxe destinations. More than just winter hideaways for the 1 percent, these are the places where the rest of us can lap up some serious 4-star pampering. Yes you may need to save for years, or cash in your kids' college education, but, hey, YOLO, right? Go ahead, treat yourself. You earned it.

Courchevel, France

Reputation: the world's most expensive ski town

Nice touches: 7 restaurants—in a town with just 2,000 year-round residents—have 11 Michelin stars between them, which is the most stars per capita of any town or city

Typical celebrity skier: any Russian billionaire

Favorite off-slope activity: buying the girlfriend a little something at the Dior or Fendi or Hermès or Chanel or Louis Vuitton stores

Where to stay: Les Suites de la Potinière, starting at $2,040/night, for a 600-square-foot suite (set breakfast, $48, and parking, $41 per day, not included)

Nearest airstrip for private jets: the terrifyingly short and steep Courchevel airport, 2 miles away

Wheathertoski.com historic snowpack analysis: “snow cover and quality are pretty good”

St. Mortiz, Switzerland

Reputation: the original ski resort

Nice touches: A handful of helicopter companies will shuttle clients to the tops of resorts so they can sleep in a little bit longer

Typical celebrity skier: Lakshmi-Mittal, the second richest man in India

Favorite off-slope activity: Training for the annual Polo World Cup on Snow

Stay at: Badrutt's Palace, starting at $540/night, for a 160-square-foot standard single room (including complimentary breakfast and transfers to locations around town in a Rolls Royce Phantom)

Nearest airstrip for private jets: Samedan airport, 4 miles away

Wheathertoski.com historic snowpack analysis: “the area as a whole is pretty snow-sure”

Deer Valley, Utah

Reputation: the place where concierges hand you tissues in the lift line

Nice touches: skiers can FedEx their skis straight to the resort, hosts help unload cars, guides offer free tours of the mountain

Typical celebrity skier: Steve Mahre

Favorite off-slope activity: reading

Stay at: Stein Eriksen Lodge, starting at $775/night, for a 375-square-foot Deluxe Room (ham and egg breakfast sandwich costs $20; no rollaways are allowed in rooms)

Nearest airstrip for private jets: Heber airport, 15 miles away

Wheathertoski.com historic snowpack analysis: “overall snow reliability is excellent”

Aspen, Colorado

Reputation: a downhome refuge for the rich and famous

Nice touches: the silver-service meals at the Aspen Mountain Club, a summit-top lodge with a $125,000 membership fee

Typical celebrity skier: Goldie Hawn

Favorite off-slope activity: exercising

Stay at: The Little Nell, starting at $1,020/night, for a 600-square-foot Town View Room (eggs benedict costs $18; complimentary snacks and non-alcoholic drinks from the mini bar)

Nearest airstrip for private jets: Aspen-Pitkin County Airport, 3 miles away (but the jet parking lot is often full during holidays)

Wheathertoski.com historic snowpack analysis: “overall snow reliability is excellent”

Yellowstone Club, Montana

Reputation: private powder™

Nice touches: rarely do even 100 Club members or their guests ski the 22 square miles of terrain at one time; a $100-million main lodge that used to feature a caviar bar

Typical celebrity skier: Barry Sternlicht, CEO of a private equity fund

Favorite off-slope activity: chuckling about how bad things looked when your net worth halved and the Club declared bankruptcy in 2008…before the stock market returned your riches and a private equity firm with close ties to a Club member bought it in 2009

Stay at: the mansion you built after paying the Club's $250,000 membership fee and proving that you had at least an additional $3 million in liquid assets (breakfast is on you, or is a complimentary Danish and coffee at the former caviar bar)

Nearest airstrip for private jets: Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport, 60 miles away

Wheathertoski.com historic snowpack analysis: N/A