TELLURIDE, COLORADO
Standing on top of the world is a life-altering experience. Just ask any climber who's been up Everest—or any skier who's stayed at Tempter House in Telluride, Colorado. At 12,200 feet, it's closer to the sky than just about any home in North America. Hand-built of spruce beams and Brazilian wood, it balances on a knoll like the Grinch's house, overlooking Tempter Chute and all of twinkling Telluride. There are feather beds in the two bedrooms (four guests max), steam showers, Sub-Zero appliances, and 36-inch flat-screen TV. There's even an oxygen tank—more luxury than necessity, since you're hardly at Himalayan heights. The only way to get here during the day is by skis, but at night guests are provided with a Sherpa-like service—the Telluride ski patrollers are hired as snowmobile chauffeurs. $5,000 per night.

Tempter House
Tel: 970 728 7350
Fax: 970 728 0824
lrodgers@tellurideskiresort.com