Quotes of the Day

With the ski season off to a wonderfully snowy start, European resorts like Meribel, St. Moritz and Val d'Isère are already full to bursting. But if you're ready for some real off-the-beaten-piste action this year, consider our crop of less predictable ski destinations.

LEBANON: There are six resorts, of varying degrees of difficulty, on Mount Lebanon—all within a two-hour drive of Beirut. The best-equipped is Faraya-Mzaar, with 42 slopes, 15 lifts and almost unlimited off-piste potential.

MOROCCO: Oukeimeden boasts Africa's highest ski lift, at 3,261 m. Just 74 km from Marrakech, it has one chair and a few drag lifts—as well as donkeys to take you up to terrain not served by technology.

IRAN: In the Alborz Mountains north of Tehran, Dizin has a reputation for excellent snow and is often compared with the high alpine resorts of Europe. The views from all 23 slopes are spectacular.

KOREA: Muju, with its 30 runs, is three hours south of Seoul and hopes to host the 2014 Winter Olympics.

INDIA: In war-torn Kashmir, Gulmarg has the world's highest golf course, at 2,650 m, and one of the world's highest lifts, at 4,138 m. It may also be the cheapest: $6 a day covers lift rides and equipment rental, but not the chairlift hookah pictured here.

• Reema Ameer
• Where to go for some seriously off-piste skiing