Eight cool winter getaways

When winter winds start blowing in, most residents of cold climes start thinking of warm-weather vacations: the Caribbean, South Florida, Mexico, Hawaii.

But some people take another tack. They deliberately head for places one might not normally think of going to in wintertime. Places with attractions that can only be seen at that time of year, places with special appeal despite the climate, places perhaps even colder than home, but not necessarily so.

We're not talking about skiers and snowmobilers, for whom winter is their milieu, but about those looking for a different kind of winter experience.

Here are eight winter destinations you might not have thought of before.

1. ALASKA

Oh, yes, it's cold! But winter is the only season when you can see the shimmering sheets of color in the northern sky that are the aurora borealis, and Alaska does a pretty brisk tour business with that. There are special heated observation domes for watching the auroras, some with heated pools. A variety of aurora viewing packages are available from several locales. Chena Hot Springs, 60 miles north of Fairbanks, is a popular viewing site -- it even has an "aurorium" (chenahotsprings.com).

INFO Alaska Travel Industry Association, 800-862-5375, travelalaska.com

2. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

Winter presents a completely different picture here than in summertime. For one thing, there are far fewer people and -- of course -- snow is everywhere. You can drive into the park only at the north end; entry from anywhere else is by snowmobile, which is also how you must get around within the park.

Yellowstone in winter is a wonderland: Steaming creeks curling through a snow-white landscape, frozen waterfalls, spouting geysers and bubbling mud pots ringed by ice, bison grazing through geyser-melted snow around Old Faithful. Bears are hibernating, but winter is the best time to see wolves as well as trumpeter swans, which migrate in winter to Yellowstone from the Arctic. Only two Yellowstone hotels are open in winter, the Old Faithful Snow Lodge (reachable by snow vehicle, rates from $96, www.xanterra.com) and the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel (reachable by car, rates from $120, xanterra.com). Snowcoach tours are available both into and within the park.

INFO 307-344-7381, nps.gov/yell

3. QUEBEC CITY

A Canadian winter can be severe, but in the depth of that season, this lovely walled city stages a wonderful event, the biggest winter carnival in the world. In 2012, Carnaval de Quebec starts Jan. 27 and runs through Feb. 12. Bonhomme, a sort of snowman figure, is the mascot of this two-week extravaganza, which includes such activities as marvelous snow sculptures, parades, dance parties, sleigh and dogsled rides, an Ice Palace, and a couple of crazy events like snow bathing. There's also a special carnival drink called caribou, made of vodka and red wine, that'll keep you warm -- if not very steady on your feet.

The city's famed Hôtel de Glace is a destination itself. Constructed completely from ice and snow, visitors can tour myriad buildings ($13.50-$17.50 admission), have a drink (served in an ice glass) at the bar and take a spin on a huge slide carved from ice. The adventurous can spring for an overnight stay in a private igloo-like room with a giant ice block bed (sleeping bag provided, rates from about $400 a person, 877-505-0423).

INFO 418-626-3716, carnaval.qc.ca

4. ICELAND

This is a place of stark beauty and surprising warmth -- both of its people and the fact that winter is not as cold as you might expect. There's great beauty here -- geysers here and there, icicles as big as trucks, steaming volcanoes, warm lagoons amid a snowy landscape, swimming holes in natural bubbling springs. Nightlife is lively in Reykjavik, Iceland's capital, as bars and clubs stay open 18 hours a day. Surprisingly, winter temperatures here aren't much different from those in New York or Vienna. Icelanders are friendly, too, and since the country's currency tumbled as a result of the economic crisis, shoppers can find good deals.

INFO Iceland Tourist Board, 212-885-9700, icelandtouristboard.com

5. DEATH VALLEY

Winter in the mountains and high desert of the American West can be bone-chilling. But winter is actually the best time to visit California's Death Valley, the lowest place in the Northern Hemisphere, at 282 feet below sea level. In summer, this long, narrow valley is a furnace -- high temperatures normally run above 120 degrees. In winter, however, the average daily reading at Furnace Creek is a pleasant 67 degrees. There's plenty to see and do: Pure-white salt fields that cover much of the valley, colorful mineral deposits, remains of old borax mines, sand dunes and the Moorish-style Scotty's Castle

INFO 760-786-3200, nps.gov/deva

6. SAPPORO SNOW FESTIVAL, JAPAN

Castles made of snow, statues carved from ice, multistory buildings and monuments created in snow, outsized storybook characters in frozen poses. Millions of visitors from all over the world come to this annual festival in Sapporo on the Japanese island of Hokkaido. Hundreds of snow statues, structures and ice sculptures go on view in the festival, which is the largest of its kind in the world. Artists come from all over the world to participate in the International Snow Statue Contest. Dates for the 2012 fete are Feb. 6-12.

INFO Japan National Tourist Office, 212-757-5640, japantravelinfo.com

7. ANTARCTICA

The November-March season (our winter, its summer) is the only time to visit Antarctica. It's still cold, but bearable: Daily highs may rise above freezing. Visiting this snowbound continent is a once-in-a-lifetime treat. You'll see whales and penguins, skuas and petrels, icebergs as big as a town, stark landscapes of black rock and white snow. Most visitors go by cruise ship. Those with fewer than 500 passengers can put their passengers on Antarctica land from Zodiacs (rubber boats). Most of these sail from southern Argentina or southern Chile. Bigger cruise ships, which sail in Antarctic waters while on around-the-horn cruises, are not allowed to land passengers. There also are sightseeing overflights to the frozen continent from South America, Australia and New Zealand.

INFO International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators, iaato.org

8. ROCKIES, BY TRAIN

It's been called the most scenic rail trip in the country. Most people take the California Zephyr through Colorado's Rockies in summer, but winter offers a completely different experience -- twisting passage through narrow, snowy canyons, frozen rivers, snow-laden evergreens. On the six-hour day journey from Denver to Glenwood Springs, the train passes through several canyons, of which Gore Canyon is perhaps the most scenic. Fares start at $40. The trip westbound through the Sierra Nevadas requires an overnight on the train and a second day of travel. Is there a chance the train can get canceled, stuck or delayed en route because of heavy snow? Yes, but that doesn't happen often, and if you're going to get stuck in snow, a train is a lot better place to be than a car.

INFO 800-872-7245, amtrak.com