Sleigh Rides

Several companies offer romantic dinner and horse-drawn sleigh rides in the Jackson Hole [1] area mid-December-March. Make reservations well in advance for these popular trips. If you don’t have the cash for one of these, take a daytime sleigh ride at the National Elk Refuge [2].

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (307/733-2674, www.tetonvillagetrailrides.com [3], $80 adults, $70 children under 11, and free for infants) picks up Teton Village guests for a romantic 30-minute ride to Cascade Restaurant at Teton Mountain Lodge, where they are offered a variety of dinner options. Reservations are recommended.

If you’re just looking for a Teton Village sleigh ride, there is a 12-person sleigh ($35 adults, $25 kids) or a private ride on a romantic “Cinderella” sleigh ($100 for up to four people). Both options last approximately 30-40 minutes.

Spring Creek Ranch (307/733-8833 or 800/443-6139, www.springcreekranch.com [4]) has 45-minute afternoon sleigh rides ($39 per person) at the top of Gros Ventre Butte. It also has packages ($89 per person for adults, $59 kids) that combine a sleigh ride with a meal at the Granary Restaurant. This is one of Jackson’s finer restaurants, so bring your dress clothes and make reservations.

Mill Iron Ranch (307/733-6390 or 888/808-6390, www.millironranch.net [5], $85 adults, $60 kids) is a friendly family-run operation with evening sleigh rides in a down-home setting 10 miles south of Jackson in Horse Creek Canyon. Guests get a 45-minute ride that takes them past an elk herd to the lodge for a big T-bone steak dinner. In scenic Horse Creek Canyon, this is the most authentic of the local sleigh rides. Call for reservations.

Dinner sleigh rides are also offered at Grand Targhee Ski Resort [6] (in Alta, 307/353-2300 or 800/827-4433, www.grandtarghee.com [7], $40 adults, $15 kids), where a horse-drawn sleigh transports you to a remote yurt for a Western-style meal.