Located at the west end of Durant Avenue, three (longish) blocks from the ski lifts, the Gant condos are 140 privately owned apartments with one, two, or three bedrooms, kitchens, dining rooms, and living rooms with fireplaces and balconies. Since the layouts are identical, the category of luxury is determined by the owner's taste: Fancier decor means higher rates. If you care less about the couch patterns than the view, pick a "Standard" second- or third-floor apartment, but be warned: Some bedrooms have only internal windows. Cable TV, tennis courts, two pools (outdoor, heated), and bike/ski storage are included.

The Jerome dates from the days of the Wild West—1889, to be exact, when the co-owner of Macy's, Jerome B. Wheeler, settled in town, determined to raise its tone. The hotel is still taking its style cues from that era, which is a good thing if you like cozy lounges with gas fires, crimson wallpaper, velvet couches, and crystal chandeliers. The 92 rooms all have king-size beds with down comforters, oversize closets, and marble tubs. The hotel has a ski concierge who will dry boots and organize lift passes; the saloonlike J-Bar is the single most beloved après joint in Aspen, thick with bold-faced visitors replacing ski calories with bourbon-spiked milkshakes called Aspen Crud. The outdoor hot tub with heated towel service is also a draw, but unlike the other two grande dames (Nell and St. Regis), the Jerome is set back a few blocks from the mountain.

You know you're staying someplace special when the granite-slabbed kitchen is equipped with martini glasses, Bordeaux and Chardonnay glasses, a Viking wine refrigerator, and a cappuccino maker. And the bathroom? A tub for two, plus a glassed-in rain shower with jets and a steam spigot. At the Hyatt Grand Aspen, they do everything right. When compared to Aspen's other premier properties—Little Nell, St. Regis and Hotel Jerome—the Hyatt stands out for its new, impeccable feel, classic decor and condo units that are, well, just like home—only much, much nicer. Each condo has a gas fireplace, a private balcony overlooking Ajax Mountain or the picture-perfect ice-skating rink, plasma TVs, and a concierge service that will do everything short of calling your mother. Which leaves you with more time to get through all that barware.

The Nell is so Aspen—i.e., it's a cute little (92-room) home-away-from-home chalet where everyone happens to be wearing Prada skiwear and there's a two-to-one staff-to-guest ratio. Those abundant staff members are convincingly caring, and the atmosphere really is warm at the town's only true ski-in, ski-out hotel. The ski concierge, Ray McNutt, will take you out at the crack of dawn to be first to sully the groomed slopes, too. The all-beige rooms have plenty of space to swing a dog (yours is welcome and has his own menu), plus king-size beds, gas log fires, huge closets, humidifiers, and big marble bathrooms. Restaurant Montagna, with chef Ryan Hardy, is among the best in the state, and the bar is a hot spot, especially with its fondue menu. The Nell's Ajax Tavern, just across from the gondola, has reopened for the 2008 season after a massive renovation, with a new menu befitting its contemporary French bistro atmosphere. (Old favorites, however, such as the Tavern's famous truffle fries, are still a must.)

Note: The Little Nell will be closed for renovations between September 7 and December 1, 2009.

Right next door to the Nell, the former Aspen Club Lodge became Kimpton's adorable 90-room chalet in 2002—possibly the only Aspen hotel with a sense of humor. The towering, kitschy foyer has knotty, varnished tree-trunk beams and madly elongated white wing chairs with six-foot backs. Next door is 39 Degrees, a 007-ish (Roger Moore era) lounge that in summer opens out onto a cool pool deck with fire pits and lounging couches. Bedrooms are painted sunshine-yellow to complement their '70s orange-stripped pine beams. The best rooms have little balconies with partial mountain views—none has their neighbor's full-mountain aspect. No ski concierge here, but there is on-site rental, boot-drying, and storage. There's also an "Altitude Adjustment" wine reception in the lobby every night.

The 179-room St. Regis opened in 1992 (then as a Ritz-Carlton). From the outside, the huge Colorado redbrick hulk is somehow reminiscent of a renovated Dickensian orphanage. Inside, an Alpine–Western school of decorating has resulted in exposed stone, blond wood, brown leather, black granite, Persian rugs, and bronze elks—and, ultimately, a somewhat generic-grand-hotel-chain feel. Yet the bedrooms, with their striped carpets and scarlet bedspreads, are plush, Wi-Fi accessible, and fully stocked with good linens, Bose stereos, and humidifiers. For a room with a fireplace, be sure to request the Red Mountain Wing. The Remède Spa (St. Regis's 15,000-square-foot prototype for its new brand) has the usual treatments, and also dispenses post-massage Champagne, truffles, and oxygen.