If you want to bond with nature and feel the Christmas spirit at its zenith, few places do it better than ski haunts in New York State.
Decorations abound in the hundreds of inns, hotels and motels in and around ski areas.
It's all real and wonderful. For example, take an evening stroll down Lake Placid's glittering main street, or catch a group caroling on a sidewalk in Old Forge. Sip hot cider before Garnet Hill Lodge's massive fireplace at North River. Sit slopeside at night at Belleayre when the winter sky twinkles with stars. See live reindeer at Lapland XC at Northville.