Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort

8 hrs 30 min from L.A.

Palisades Tahoe, formerly Squaw Valley Ski Resort, on the northern side of Lake Tahoe, is one of the largest ski areas in the country. It’s comprised of two mountains: Olympic Valley and Alpine Meadows. The mountains are a 10-minute drive from each other, but Palisades provides free shuttles between the two all day, and a lift ticket will work at both. The resorts offer 6,000 skiable acres across the two mountains, 34 lifts and dozens of trails, and attract approximately 600,000 skiers a year. Palisades isn’t far from the infamous Donner Pass, so it gets a heavy dump of snowfall almost every year, often exceeding 400 inches per winter. If carving through all that fresh powder isn’t enticing, take the scenic aerial tramway up 2,000 feet to High Camp, at an elevation of 8,200 feet, where visitors can drink, dine, shop and even ice skate.

Lift tickets $146–$275