Family-friendly Discovery Basin resort is located in Deer Lodge National Forest in southwestern Montana, near Anaconda, and is known for its uncongested slopes and reasonable prices. There is some diverse terrain here for all levels, and snowboarders are also welcome to try out the powder bowls and mogul runs.

Facilities at the resort include a professional ski school, ski and snowboard rentals, and a shop. A café, bar and restaurant are located slope-side. The resort of Discovery Basin has a laid-back atmosphere, but for accommodation you’ll need to head for nearby Anaconda, Philipsburg or Butte, where there are numerous hotels and bed-and-breakfasts.

Discovery Basin ski resort boasts 40 trails spread over 154 hectares of terrain consisting of wide beginner runs, fantastic intermediate runs and excellent, challenging slopes – the longest of which is 3.2kms. Six lift systems, including three double and three triple chairs, feed all pistes across the 400-metre vertical and have an hourly capacity of 4,300 people.

For alternative skiing and snowboarding, but a good drive away, Big Sky resort has a huge vertical and 150 runs, with an array of intermediate and expert slopes; while Bridger Bowl, to the north of Bozeman, is renowned for its extreme skiing. At the ghost towns of Elkhorn, Granite and Coolidge, you can relive Montana's boom and bust past.

Discovery Basin’s ski season runs from late November to April, with free skiing on offer on opening day, Christmas day, and the last week of the season. The easiest way to get here is to fly to Bert Mooney Airport (southeast) from Salt Lake City, and take a shuttle bus or hire car to the resort.