I paid $2,700 for a weekend of snowboarding in Italy's Dolomites — and it was still cheaper than a similar trip to Aspen, Colorado

• I spent a weekend snowboarding in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy's most expensive ski town.

• The trip cost $2,700, including flights.

• Meanwhile, a weekend in the expensive town of Aspen would've cost even more.

Three weeks ago, I arrived in one of the most stunning and expensive places I've ever been snowboarding — Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy's priciest ski destination.

It's far from the only expensive ski town I've explored. Back home, I'm a drive away from another place with a ritzy reputation — Aspen, Colorado.

Together, these two towns are some of the most expensive ski destinations in the world.

Now that I've visited both, I've realized the costs don't compare. Even with a round-trip flight included, I still saved money snowboarding in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Let's start with the ski basics. Lift tickets in Aspen cost triple the ticket price in the Dolomites.

Italy's lift tickets were far cheaper than most of the ones I've seen in Colorado.

Skiers can access the Dolomites' dozen resorts, including Cortina d'Ampezzo, with a lift ticket that costs 70 euros, or about $73, a day.

In Colorado, lift tickets at popular resorts are often triple that price. At Aspen Snowmass, for example, lift tickets cost $244 a day.

Some independently-owned resorts in Colorado offer lower-priced lift tickets, like Cooper Mountain, where weekday access is just $45 and weekend access is $110. However, if you're looking for a town dotted with Michelin-starred restaurants, celebrity spotting, and luxury resorts in Colorado, you'll also be paying a higher price to get on the mountain.

Snowboarding in Cortina cost me $145 versus the $488 it would cost in Aspen.

Renting gear was also less costly in Italy.

Whether it's a snowboard or a pair of skis, Cortina d'Ampezzo had cheaper rentals than I've seen in Aspen.

In Cortina d'Ampezzo, rentals cost around $50. If booking in advance, options were even cheaper, with stores like Ski System Cortina offering a day rental of skis, poles, boots, and a helmet for $43 or $33 at Rightfeeling Ski Rent and Shop.

Finding rentals that cheap is hard in a place like Aspen. Christy Sports offers rentals in Aspen for $75 a day if you book in advance. In person, the cost is $90 for skis, boots, poles, and a helmet. Aspen Skis charges $60 a day online for a similar package.

Thankfully, I didn't have to pay either of these costs since I own a snowboard, and checking it on my international flights didn't have any added costs. However, if I did need to rent gear, I would've saved $54 by snowboarding in Italy.

Lodging costs vary widely, but Cortina was home to many more affordable options.

If we compare Cortina d'Ampezzo to its North American twin, Aspen, lodging is another category in which the Dolomites were cheaper.

I spent $777 for a two-night stay at Camina Suite and Spa, a four-star hotel in Cortina. Here, I had amenities like a free breakfast, sauna, and free parking.

There were plenty of more luxe hotel options to choose from. I could've spent more than $1,500 a night to stay in Cortina d'Ampezzo's nicest resorts like Hotel de Lën or Rosapetra Spa Resort.

Staying in Aspen's top resorts, like The Little Nell or St. Regis Aspen, would cost more than $2,500.

Meanwhile, Cortina d'Ampezzo is home to many more affordable options. In the heart of Cortina d'Ampezzo, more than 10 hotels offer rates lower than $300 a night. If you want to stay in Aspen proper, there are just two hotels with prices lower than $300 a night.

If I wanted a similar four-star experience in Aspen, I would've had to pay about $1,000 a night. By traveling to Italy, I had a luxury stay for about $1,223 less.

Another category where I saved money in Italy was food.

I was in utter shock when the Italian man behind the bar told me my lunch cost 12 euros. I ordered a sandwich and an Aperol spritz on the mountain and expected a cocktail alone to be more than that total.

In Colorado, I'm used to paying high prices for slopeside food. A burger and fries on the mountain or at the base tend to cost around $40 after tax and tip, and I haven't found a beer cheaper than $8 before tax.

Even beyond simple slopeside eats, high-end cuisine was still more affordable in Cortina compared to Aspen.

I could dine on a six-course Michelin-starred menu at Cortina's SanBrite for $156. In Aspen, a five-course menu at the one-star Bosq costs $195. Factor in tips (or the lack thereof), and SanBrite is a much better deal.

Between free breakfasts, cheap mountainside lunches, and affordable dinners, I spent about $150 on food for two days in Italy. Compared to Aspen, traveling to Italy saved me at least $200 in food costs.

Of course, the biggest Italy expense was getting there in the first place.

While every other aspect of a ski trip in Italy is much more affordable than Colorado, the biggest financial hurdle was getting there.

My round-trip ticket between Denver and Venice cost about $1,200. If I had booked further in advance and been more strategic about when I visited, a flight to Venice could've cost $700.

I also rented a car to get to the mountains, which added another $350 to my transportation costs.

Altogether, traveling all the way to Italy was slightly cheaper than a weekend in Aspen.

The total cost for my weekend skiing in Cortina was about $2,700. Meanwhile, a similar weekend in Aspen would cost about $2,960.

If I had planned my flights better, that cost could be closer to $2,000. Of course, there are ways to make both trips more reasonable — I splurged on meals and compared two of the world's most expensive ski towns.

But if you asked me if I'd rather spend a day skiing across Italy's Dolomites or in Aspen, I'd pick Italy any day.

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