Now Herbert Ypma proves at last that there are alternatives to the tired formulae of the typical resort hotel, whatever your taste or destination. An authentic ranch on the Colorado high prairie or a Renaissance castle in the southern Tirol; a 400-year-old Austrian farmhouse or hard-edge snowboarder style - the possibilities are inspiring.

These Hip Hotels are all about winter action and sharp style. With ever more people catching on to the thrill and spectacle of the mountains, the choice of ski hotels has becoming mind-boggling - and overwhelmingly mediocre. Now Herbert Ypma proves at last that there are alternatives to the tired formulae of the typical resort hotel, whatever your taste or destination. An authentic ranch on the Colorado high prairie or a Renaissance castle in the southern Tirol; a 400-year-old Austrian farmhouse or hard-edge snowboarder style - the possibilities are inspiring.

The recently renovated Hbtel les Dromonts in the French Alps is a wonder of 1960s organic style in a building shaped like a fir cone. Or behold the mighty jagged peaks of Italy's Dolomite mountains from your balcony at Hotel Ancora in Cortina d'Ampezzo, one of the world's original ski resorts. Plump Jack in Squaw Valley, California, is a funky fantasy of burnished metal and heraldic style: an unlikely eclectic success. Or maybe you prefer the romantic haven of Sundance, Robert Redford's unspoilt retreat, where you can cosy up in your own mountain cottage after a day of Utah's legendary powder.

Hip Hotels: Ski adds a whole new dimension to the annual adventure in the snow.

AROSA

ASPEN

AVORIZA

BADGASTEIN

BANFF

CERVINIA-CHAMPPLUC

CHAMONIX

CORTINA

COURCHECER-VALMOREL

JACKSON HOLE

KLOSTERS

LAAX-FLIMS

LAKE PLACID

LECH

MEGEVE

SQUAW WALLEY

STEAMBOAT ST MORITZ SUNDANCE

TELLURIDE

TIGNES

TIROL

WHISTLER

ZERMATT-SAAS-FEE