Luxury Hotels: This winter, Colorado welcomes another Four Seasons to its snowy landscape. The Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail opened with a quiet ribbon-cutting ceremony on December 10th. This is a relatively boutique property with 121 guest units, 19 fractional-ownership residences and 16 private residences—but it boasts some of the biggest guest rooms in Vail Valley. The smallest is 580 square feet; the largest spans 3500 square feet. All of them have fireplaces—crucial for coziness during Vail’s cold and snowy winter nights. The property is in Vail Village, a 5-minute walk to the Vista Bahn lift.

The Four Seasons’ dedicated ski concierge is at the base of Vista Bahn lift, offering hotel guests and residents a convenient one-stop to pick up rental skis and boots, snack on complimentary muffins and hot coffee, and do a little après-ski shopping. High-end retailer Gorsuch, already a familiar name in Vail, partnered with the Four Seasons to open a boutique shop onsite.

There are three restaurants on the resort. Breakfast and dinner are served in the main restaurant, Flame. Fireside Bar & Lounge, pictured above, is a comfortable lodge-style spot for mid-day and après drinks and nibbles. (“Haut Chocolate” is the recommended après-ski warmer.) There’s another casual-dining option–the poolside grill—although, much like the outdoor pool, it may not pick up in popularity until snowstorm seasons ends.

Private residences are the ultimate in understated mountain luxury. Ranging from 1 to 5 bedrooms in size, each home is outfitted in hickory hardwood, slab granite and stone, with the quintessential mountain stone fireplace in the living room and heated floors in the bathrooms. Kitchens are great for private entertaining: Sub Zero and Wolf appliances beckon amidst gleaming surfaces and custom-built cabinets.