Bansko sits at the foot of the Pirin Mountains in southwestern Bulgaria, a town of cobbled lanes and stone-walled houses that has quietly become the Balkans' busiest ski resort. By day the gondola hauls skiers up to runs that hold snow late into spring; by night the cobbles fill with the smell of woodsmoke and grilling meat drifting out of cellar taverns.

The town wears two faces and wears them well. The Old Town is all 18th- and 19th-century revival architecture, fortified houses, and a famously beautiful church, while the newer quarter near the lift is a sprawl of hotels, ski shops, and apres-ski bars. A jug of local wine, a plate of slow-cooked pork, and live folk music in a packed mehana is the classic Bansko night, and it costs a fraction of what you would pay in the Alps.

Beyond the slopes lies Pirin National Park, a UNESCO-listed wilderness of glacial lakes, granite peaks, and ancient pine. Bansko is increasingly a year-round base: snowshoeing and skiing in winter, hiking and mountain biking in summer, and a growing community of remote workers who come for the mountains and stay for the cheap espresso and fast internet.