Johnny Motley

The short days and grim weather of a Northeastern winter can try even the hardiest souls, especially in big cities where snow yields to gray slush and social lives seem to freeze over as intractably as the sidewalks. But with the right mindset, the hibernal delights of the upcoming months—romantic evenings snuggled up by the fire, ethereal mornings coated in fresh snow, and cozy treats like dark beer and mugs of hot cocoa—more than compensate for the season’s challenges. Barring a tropical vacation, the surest remedy for the winter doldrums is to bundle up and lean into the chilly months in all their splendor. What better way to relish wintery wonders than a weekend in a quaint village in upstate New York or New England? Steeped in history and small-town charm, these snug hamlets are at their loveliest when cloaked in white and infused with festive cheer. Within a quick drive or train ride from New York or Boston, these 10 Northeastern towns warm the heart's cockles even during the coldest, darkest weeks of the year. RECOMMENDED: The best winter vacations in America

Sure, large cities like Boston, New York or Chicago, spattered with universities and throngs of students, are technically college towns. But the archetypical American college town, enshrined in our imaginations from countless coming-of-age films, is something else entirely: an idyllic burg with a university as its beating heart, a locale where the very air ripples with the buzz of academia and youthful exuberance. In the classic collegiate hamlet, sports are akin to religion, tailgating is elevated to an art, and counter-cultural flair enlivens leafy quads and ivy-decked halls. The halcyon undergraduate years might be in the rearview mirror for many of us—with dollar tequila shots, sweaty dance floors and dorm-room philosophizing best left as fond memories—but a good college town is a blast to visit at any age. Brimming with regional charm, art and music and Americana, U.S. college towns are—more often than not—hotbeds of culture, gastronomy and nightlife. Ranging from the Deep South and New England to the Alaskan coast and the Great Plains, below are 10 distinctive takes on America's best college towns.