TAKE A SNOW DAYIf snow is falling, that can mean only one thing: It's time to slip on a parka, strap on some ski boots, and hit the slopes! Lucky for you, lots of fun new things are opening - from spas to restaurants to ski runs - at many of the alpine resorts. - Jill Fergus

Terrain and Trails
Beaver Creek (www.beavercreek.com), in Colorado, known for its top-notch children's programs, now offers the eight-passenger Buckaroo Express Gondola, which serves a newly created area where tykes can learn downhill basics. Farther south, in Telluride (www.tellurideskiresort.com), experts can test their skills on eight new runs in the Black Iron Bowl, a challenging backcountry-style terrain that was previously inaccessible without the services of a guide. And at Utah's Park City Mountain Resort (www.parkcitymountain.com), Motherlode Meadows, a newly landscaped space between the Single Jack and Sunnyside trails, offers exciting gladed-runs for intermediate and advanced skiers.

Nature and Adventure Activities
At Heavenly (www.skiheavenly.com), in California, you can pretend you're an alpine Tarzan while you zoom down Adventure Peak's new Heavenly Flyer, an elevated zip-line cable ride that can reach up to 50 mph and has a vertical drop of 525 feet. Or try your hand at a wildlife safari at Spring Creek Ranch (www.springcreekranch.com) in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Naturalist Kurt Johnson leads groups into Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks to see elk, bison, and more. Advanced skiers and boarders should head to California's Squaw Valley (www.squaw.com), which now offers a number of backcountry tours in formerly restricted areas.