Alaska, United States

Capital City: Juneau
Closest Airport: Anchorage International
Population: 626,932
Resort Area: Anchorage - Girdwood - Fairbanks - Juneau
Snow Season: November/December - March/April
Main Language: English
Currency: United States Dollar

There are two reasons why you might be considering skiing or snowboarding in Alaska. Either you fancy yourself as a bit of an Alexander Supertramp (minus the unhappy ending) or the last time you hit the slopes in France there were bits of rock and grass poking through and you made a pledge - "next year I'm going somewhere where it actually snows".

With 15 plus metres of snowfall a year, even the local wildlife has a hard job getting around in Alaska. Not that that's of any concern to you as you float over the top.

And if you want remote, well, there's a vastness about Alaska that can't help but put the office politics into perspective. It's not just the views either. On the slopes, this isn't a place where you constantly have to check over your shoulder before putting in a turn. Look back at the end of a run and you won't see hundreds of little black dots carving up your tracks.

Alyeska Resort, only 65 kms (40 miles) south, of Anchorage is Alaska's premier ski resort, with a wide range of terrain for all standards and snow in bucket loads. You've got a vertical descent of around 600 metres (just under 2,000 feet), a skiable area of around a thousand acres, great beginner runs, night skiing, a board park and wide open snow bowls. The night life isn't terrific (you need to head for Anchorage to really party), but that didn't stop this place recently being voted one of the world's top 25 resorts.

One step more remote is Moose Mountain, a fair bit further north near Fairbanks. The resort is a lot smaller than Alyeska and the vertical drop is less dramatic. That said, there are some challenging black runs here. A third option is Eaglecrest - near Juneau.