Best ski resorts in South Korea

Muju Deogyusan rides higher than any ski peak in Korea. Set inside Deogyusan National Park, the gondola climbs toward Hyangjeokbong at 1614 m and unfurls views over forested ridges, Buddhist temples and the Sobaek range. It is the southerly resort with the most honest snow and the longest sight-lines on the country's map.

Yongpyong is the giant of Korean skiing, a fan of white runs spilling down Mt Balwangsan in the PyeongChang highlands. This is where the 2018 Winter Olympics ran their alpine slalom and giant slalom races, and the resort still wears that pedigree with quiet pride above the Dragon Plaza village.

High1 sits high above the old coal valleys of Jeongseon, in eastern Gangwon, with a base at 855 m that already feels like the top of a mountain elsewhere. The runs are wide, the views are dramatic, and the resort has the easy, slightly resort-town feel of a place built around a casino complex and a cable car.

Phoenix Pyeongchang is the freestyle face of Korean skiing, built on the north flank of Mont Blanc peak at 1050 m. This is where the 2018 Olympics ran freestyle, snowboard cross and snowboard halfpipe, and the park culture has stuck: jibs, rails and a serious pipe sit alongside long, friendly cruisers.

Alpensia is the calm, polished heart of the PyeongChang Olympic legacy. The ski jumps, the biathlon stadium and the sliding centre are right there on the skyline, but the resort itself is gentle: six lifts, nine kilometres of mostly easy trails and a relaxed, hotel-driven village vibe with a big focus on families.

Ninety minutes from Seoul, Welli Hilli Park feels like the smart commuter's pick: family lanes, a freestyle park with real teeth, and night sessions that pack out under the floodlights. The Sono Calm hotel and condos sit right on the snow, so kids ski out the lobby door while parents linger over coffee.

Vivaldi Park is South Korea's busiest ski resort, the one Seoul fills on Friday night and empties at Sunday lunchtime. The lights stay on until 3 in the morning, the freestyle park draws the K-pop crowd, and the on-mountain Sono Felice hotel and water park complex turns a ski trip into a full weekend out.

Forty minutes from Gangnam, Konjiam is the Seoul commuter resort that refuses to feel like one. A strict daily skier cap keeps the lift queues short, the grooming sharp and the snow under your edges actually skiable. Run by LG and partnered with Lotte Hotel, it is Korea's polished take on day-trip skiing.

Oak Valley in Wonju trades mass-market bustle for something quieter and more residential. Owned by Kolon Group with Hansol Hotels at the helm, it pairs upscale winter laps with a famous summer golf course. Expect manicured runs, panoramic lifts and the kind of after-ski where you actually hear the snow fall.

Eden Valley is South Korea's southernmost ski resort, set in Yangsan, just an hour from the beaches of Busan. With a base at only 220 m, the slopes lean entirely on heavy snowmaking and a tight ten-week season. Come for the novelty of skiing in the morning and dipping toes in the East Sea by sundown.