Best of Winter: Hot 'n' Cold

Whether winter inspires you to chill out or has you running for the beach to bask in the sun, the Out Traveler has you covered. With the latest articles from our Winter 2008 issue, you can choose to spend a memorable vocation in one of the four featured Ice Hotels or get the perfect tan by giving one of our Perfect Ten beaches a try.

Generally open from December and early January, the Ice Hotels are, as their name would imply, completely sculpted out of snow and ice. Brr.

Each, like the Hotel de Glace, North America's only ice hotel, is equipped with a heated bathroom and a custom fireplace. And if you always dreamed of staying in an igloo, Lapland's Hotel Kakslautanen's Igloo Village is happy to oblige.

If you don't want to wait until the spring thaw to warm up, we've got the perfect solution. We've compiled a list of the most beautiful gay-popular beaches below the equator. Very nature oriented (naturally), they all boast impressive local animal life -- you can gaze upon koalas at Australia's Noosa National Park -- and lush vegetation, not to mention breathtaking views.

So what are you waiting for? Winter's no excuse for sitting still!

Whether winter inspires you to chill out or has you running for the beach to bask in the sun, the Out Traveler has you covered. With the latest articles from our Winter 2008 issue, you can choose to spend a memorable vocation in one of the four featured Ice Hotels or get the perfect tan by giving one of our Perfect Ten beaches a try.

Generally open from December and early January, the Ice Hotels are, as their name would imply, completely sculpted out of snow and ice. Brr.

Each, like the Hotel de Glace, North America's only ice hotel, is equipped with a heated bathroom and a custom fireplace. And if you always dreamed of staying in an igloo, Lapland's Hotel Kakslautanen's Igloo Village is happy to oblige.

If you don't want to wait until the spring thaw to warm up, we've got the perfect solution. We've compiled a list of the most beautiful gay-popular beaches below the equator. Very nature oriented (naturally), they all boast impressive local animal life -- you can gaze upon koalas at Australia's Noosa National Park -- and lush vegetation, not to mention breathtaking views.

So what are you waiting for? Winter's no excuse for sitting still!