Imagine seeing the vast expanses of Glacier National Park or the Grand Canyon from a different vantage point than everyone else. Instead of hiking the most popular trail, you’re traversing the park by dogsled or pedaling a fat-tire bike across the snow. Instead of driving the same scenic route as other cars, you’re floating or flying above it all in a hot-air balloon or helicopter. Here’s how to make that happen.
Travel by Train
Skip driving and hop aboard a train. This year the company will introduce a new route on a glass-domed train between Denver and Moab, Utah. The two-night journey will begin near Rocky Montain National ParkԻ overnight at Glenwood Springs, Colorado, before arriving near Ի National Parks (from $1,250).To see , book a (from $1,059) with .You’ll disembark at Montana’s East Glacier Park station, then spend three nights at the historic , built by the Great Northern Railway. offers many trips to national parks, including a (from $1,325) that starts in Chicago and ends at the , with lodging at the Ի.
Go by Dogsled
At Alaska’s , stay in a log cabin at (from $189) and you can sign up for the lodge’s (from $140), the only approved dog-mushing operator within the park. You’ll travel across the snowy tundra toward the north face of 20,310-foot Denali. In Wyoming, leads daylong dogsled tours (from $250) through or for overnight stays at a backcountry yurt. Longtime Montana-based musher leads tours (from $150) on the edge of , where a team of huskies race you down a path through Stillwater State Forest.
Downhill-Ski Inside a National Park
Plenty of national parks have backcountry terrain in the wintertime where you can earn your turns (though be sure to check for avalanche warnings), but did you know you can ride a chairlift inside three national parks in the U.S.? (tickets from $45), located inside Washington’s , isn’t huge—just two rope tows and a Poma lift—but the place gets an average 400 inches of snow each year. In California, Yosemite National Park’s is closed this winter due to COVID-19, but normally the area operates five lifts (tickets from $30). You can also ski in Ohio’s at Vail Resorts’ , which are just five minutes apart (tickets from $49, advance reservations required).
Fly in a Hot-Air Balloon
You can float over Utah’s CanyonlandsԻ Arches National Parks in a hot-air balloon with (from $299). You’ll take off at sunrise from a launch pad just outside Moab. (from $300), out of Winter Park, Colorado, flies hot-air balloons year-round into the skies above for early-morning views of 14,259-foot Longs Peak.
Pedal a Bike
Mountain biking isn’t permitted in all national parks, so check access, trails, and conditions before you go off-road. In the wintertime, fat-tire bikes are allowed at select parks, including on ungroomed trails within . , in Bar Harbor, Maine, has a small fleet of fat bikes for rent (from $40) during the snowy months. For guided trips, leads half- or full-day guided winter fat-bike tours (from $280 for two people, including bike rental) into .
Explore from Underground
in Kentucky offers year-round and seasonal (from $20) of its vast underground caverns for small groups. Not into dark, cramped spaces? You can also hike above-ground trails within the park, with signage indicating the natural history of the cave passages below your feet. At in Nevada, the limestone can be toured with a guide (from $12). Book tours at both parks in advance to reserve a spot.
Get High in a Plane or Helicopter
For a splurge, luxury-tour operator is offering a new winter by private charter plane (from $29,900 per person for ten days) for small groups of 4 to 12 people. You’ll jet to up to six national parks, including Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and Bryce Canyon, staying at high-end properties and enjoying guided adventures that range from snowshoeing to wolf tracking along the way.