Illinois Tourism & Travel

Crazy About Travel

Top Snowy Vacation Destinations Within a Short Drive of L.A.

With the holiday season approaching, there are so many great places to take the family and enjoy a relaxing snowy vacation. Living in L.A., a white Christmas is far from possible, but there are many places within just a short drive that will fulfill that wish. L.A. is such an amazing place to live because you get amazing weather and can choose between the beach, mountains, lakes, city and snow! You get everything all in one place and I love to have the option to visit all locations since they are all so close by. This year, my family and I decided to head to the snow over Christmas and enjoy quality family time in a winter wonderland. I can’t wait to wake up Christmas morning with the people I love and beautiful scenery with fun things to do.

There are a few places I love to visit and I highly recommend that are easily accessible and a great place to take the family. The first place is Mammoth, where my family and I will be this Christmas. Mammoth is just a four-hour drive from L.A. which is so convenient. Mammoth has so many fun resources such as skiing and snowboarding, ice skating, tubing, and sledding. At Mammoth mountain, there are so many activities and events for the whole family. There are great restaurants, free events, a mountain playground, snowboarding/skiing lessons for the kids, adventure zones, and so much more!

A couple of other amazing places to visit nearby are Big Bear Lake and Lake Arrowhead. Both locations are so beautiful and will allow for such a great experience! In Big Bear, you can visit Big Bear Snow Play or Alpine Slide at Magic for snow tubing and other fun events. (bigbearmountainresort.com) (bigbearvacations.com)

Lake Arrowhead also has an abundance of fun activities such as ice skating at Santa’s Village and SkyPark at Santa’s village which will for sure be a hit for the little ones. (lakearrowheadresort.com) (skyparkcamprv.com)

Whether you stay in a cozy cabin or an incredible resort at these locations, they will not fail to amaze you. We are so lucky to be so close to snow and really enjoy a winter wonderland! There are so many other fun places to check out that will give a similar experience. To briefly name a few more, you can also enjoy snow at Frazier Mountain, Idyllwild, Green Valley Lake, Mount Baldy and Wrightwood. All these places provide a wonderful experience for families of all ages. My kids love the snow and although we don’t get it where we live, I am so happy to take them on fun vacations spots so close to home!


Find Jessica Hall on IG  @jessicahall