Where to Vacation in Colorado?
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Breckenridge or Vail...they are pretty close to each other too!0
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People in Colorado (not biased) are more fit than other states with outdoor activities, based on research. I like to go on Trail Ridge Rd for a drive & hike taking lots of pretty pics. Denver & the western mountains are getting slammed with a lot of snow right now. Most of the ski areas are pretty close to each other, whether it be Dillion area, Breckinridge, Loveland Pass, etc. Make sure you bring lots of warm clothing, but the dry air is a lot warmer than other places with higher humidity. If the sun is out, you definitely need to bring sunscreen. It will feel a lot warmer than other places in the country, being so much closer to the sun. Enjoy your stay!!
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Just a tip, if you are not used to the high altitude go easy on the booze. I have seen it take grown men down with very little!
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Make time to go tubing in Fraser. It's the best! Ditto on the booze advisory. I love watching flat landers go down on 2 craft beers.0
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Make time to go tubing in Fraser. It's the best! Ditto on the booze advisory. I love watching flat landers go down on 2 craft beers.
Shhh. You guys are ruining it!0 -
The airport, so you can get the heck out of there fast ! LOL0
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If you weren't already flying into Denver, I'd suggest Telluride, Ouray, or Silverton...because the San Juan Mountains in SW Colorado are the prettiest mountains in Colorado (in my opinion)...but it's about a 6 hour drive from Denver.
Steamboat Springs could be fun - they've got some great hot springs as well as skiing. That's a little under 3 hours from Denver.
And I do love Estes Park (I got married at the Stanley Hotel there), but there's no ski resorts there, so it's much more of a summer destination. Almost all of the shops and restaurants close early in the winter because of it. The Christmas lights are pretty though!0 -
Frisco is a great town, especially if you are looking at going skiing as there is buses to most of the major ski resorts around. There is also a lot to do with snowshoeing, cross country skiing, snowmobiling, horseback rides, outlet stores and such throughout the entire area.
Do take it easy on the booze though, for dang sure the first few days.0 -
Definitely South Park.0
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estes park (rocky mountain national park) nobody there in winter town is like a movie0
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I also love Estes Park, but I've only been in the summer/fall. Beautiful and right next to the national park.
And one of my friends who lives in Colorado goes snow shoeing, which sounds like so much fun, but again, I've never tried it.
And beer. ALL THE BREWERIES!!! (I think there are about 60 microbreweries in the state...)0 -
I do just want to re-iterate, if you like to stay out late and/or ski, don't go to Estes in the winter.
Restaurants literally close before 7:00, and even earlier on week days.
But it is pretty empty this time of year, so hotels are usually cheaper (as opposed to ski towns where they're much higher during this time of the year), and Rocky Mountain National Park and surrounding areas will be empty which can be fun for snowshoeing, sledding, etc.
Just depends on your life style. I like having it empty, so I've been to Estes several times in the winter. My only issue is the restaurants closing early (specifically Bob and Tony's pizza - my favorite!), I've had to get Domino's several times because it's been the only thing open.0 -
Definitely South Park.
That's cute. The actual town of South Park is no more than a gas station and some run down old buildings.
I forgot to mention Evergreen. It's 30 minutes up the hill from Denver and it's a lovely little town (my hometown so I'm biased). You can ice skate on the lake (which just made the list of top 10 beautiful rinks in the world). Unfortunately, there isn't much else to do...0 -
I have lived in Colorado since I was 8. I have lived in the mountains and the city and I LOVE to ski and play in the mountains. My recommendations, based on my own experiences and what you have mentioned you are looking for:
Estes Park is gorgeous but don't go there if you want to ski/board or stay out late. I prefer Estes in the summer because it really isn't a winter "hot spot" so to speak. I do a long girls weekend in Estes every spring and I love it up there, but wouldn't go near there if I was looking for skiing and a night spot. There isn't any big ski area near Estes and like someone up thread mentioned, they roll up the sidewalks early in the evening.
I loathe Vail. Yes, it's pretty BUT it's overcrowded, over-expensive and over-full of itself. The skiing is not any better than many other resorts and it's wall to wall people and *extremely* expensive.
Of Keystone, Breckenridge and Frisco, I'd stay in Breck. Fantastic little town with lots of good bars and restaurants and everything is within walking distance. The skiing is also really good. It's also close enough to Keystone and Copper that you can easily ski there if you want a little variety. The road between Breck and Keystone can be a little dicey if weather is bad, but absolutely fine in good weather. Frisco is right in the middle of everything with easy access to Keystone, Breck and Copper. It's just off the highway though and really, in my opinion, not very pretty. Keystone really doesn't have a town proper per say either. Breck is definitely the best place to stay of the three.
Winter Park/Fraser is also a great alternative. It can be more affordable than the Summit County places (Breck, Keystone), but there is a little less accessibility up there. There are no other resorts nearby, so if you go that direction, you are pretty locked in. Also, if you are afraid of driving In the mountains, Berthoud Pass is not an easy drive. It is a 3-lane (2 lanes uphill, 1 downhill) road, very steep and very twisty-curvy. In bad weather, it scares even me and I learned how to drive on jeep trails in the mountains!
If you want to splurge on a little more money and driving, go to Aspen. Aspen is my all-time favorite location in Colorado. The skiing is incredible, the town is beautiful and the people watching can't be beat. Aspen is also actually less expensive than Vail, I have found. It is a lot farther from Denver though. It's about a 4-hour drive from Denver and it's a 2-lane road for the last hour (Glenwood to Aspen). You can actually stay in some of the towns between Glenwood and Aspen for less money than in Aspen itself and still have easy access to ski in Aspen or head to Glenwood to play in the natural hot springs and soaking in the hot springs while it snows around you is pretty incredible.
If you weren't already flying to Denver, I'd also second the recommendation for Crested Butte that someone gave up thread. It's on the western slope though and you'd be better off flying into Gunnison if you wanted to go there.
Wherever you decide, you'll have a great time! Colorado is a beautiful place whether you come in the winter or summer. We are getting hammered with snow right now as well, so the skiing is fantastic!0 -
Thank you Niki!
We are a young couple, so I would like to go out a couple of nights. I can't seem to find a decent place within our budget in Breckenridge so I am leaning toward staying in Frisco or Keystone and driving to Breckenridge. What do you think about that? Is Keystone nicer than Frisco?I have lived in Colorado since I was 8. I have lived in the mountains and the city and I LOVE to ski and play in the mountains. My recommendations, based on my own experiences and what you have mentioned you are looking for:
Estes Park is gorgeous but don't go there if you want to ski/board or stay out late. I prefer Estes in the summer because it really isn't a winter "hot spot" so to speak. I do a long girls weekend in Estes every spring and I love it up there, but wouldn't go near there if I was looking for skiing and a night spot. There isn't any big ski area near Estes and like someone up thread mentioned, they roll up the sidewalks early in the evening.
I loathe Vail. Yes, it's pretty BUT it's overcrowded, over-expensive and over-full of itself. The skiing is not any better than many other resorts and it's wall to wall people and *extremely* expensive.
Of Keystone, Breckenridge and Frisco, I'd stay in Breck. Fantastic little town with lots of good bars and restaurants and everything is within walking distance. The skiing is also really good. It's also close enough to Keystone and Copper that you can easily ski there if you want a little variety. The road between Breck and Keystone can be a little dicey if weather is bad, but absolutely fine in good weather. Frisco is right in the middle of everything with easy access to Keystone, Breck and Copper. It's just off the highway though and really, in my opinion, not very pretty. Keystone really doesn't have a town proper per say either. Breck is definitely the best place to stay of the three.
Winter Park/Fraser is also a great alternative. It can be more affordable than the Summit County places (Breck, Keystone), but there is a little less accessibility up there. There are no other resorts nearby, so if you go that direction, you are pretty locked in. Also, if you are afraid of driving In the mountains, Berthoud Pass is not an easy drive. It is a 3-lane (2 lanes uphill, 1 downhill) road, very steep and very twisty-curvy. In bad weather, it scares even me and I learned how to drive on jeep trails in the mountains!
If you want to splurge on a little more money and driving, go to Aspen. Aspen is my all-time favorite location in Colorado. The skiing is incredible, the town is beautiful and the people watching can't be beat. Aspen is also actually less expensive than Vail, I have found. It is a lot farther from Denver though. It's about a 4-hour drive from Denver and it's a 2-lane road for the last hour (Glenwood to Aspen). You can actually stay in some of the towns between Glenwood and Aspen for less money than in Aspen itself and still have easy access to ski in Aspen or head to Glenwood to play in the natural hot springs and soaking in the hot springs while it snows around you is pretty incredible.
If you weren't already flying to Denver, I'd also second the recommendation for Crested Butte that someone gave up thread. It's on the western slope though and you'd be better off flying into Gunnison if you wanted to go there.
Wherever you decide, you'll have a great time! Colorado is a beautiful place whether you come in the winter or summer. We are getting hammered with snow right now as well, so the skiing is fantastic!0 -
Why don't you just stay in Denver then? None of the I-70 resorts are more than 1.5 hours away (except Vail/Aspen) especially if you go on weekdays... Cheaper to stay in Denver, plus you'll have more access to ALL of the amenities that CO offers.....a nightlife in Downtown Denver, 30 minutes to Boulder. An hour to Colorado Springs, Red Rocks and good hiking within a half hour along the Front Range, Snowshoeing up near Mt Bierstadt and Mt Evans (again, 30-40 minutes). When you are on "this side" (Denver side) of the Pass you have a lot more options. Plus, its Fairly unlikely you would even have to deal with snowdriving conditions if you stayed Downtown. Denver doesn't *usually* get that many snowstorms during the wiinter (they start stacking up in spring though!).
I think it was last January/february we had a LONG string of 60-70 degree weather! Possibly the year before, then again, thats pretty much every year. VERY Mild here, even during the winter (Except TODAY!!) 0 -
Be sure to visit the hot springs in Glenwood Springs too. It's on I-70 on the way to all the ski resorts.
Yampah Spa!!! The underground sauna caves are the best! An absolute must.0 -
And one of my friends who lives in Colorado goes snow shoeing, which sounds like so much fun, but again, I've never tried it.
Snowshoeing is a blast...warning though, it's challenging! Prepare to work up a sweat. I usually end up having to take off my coat.0 -
Why don't you just stay in Denver then? None of the I-70 resorts are more than 1.5 hours away (except Vail/Aspen) especially if you go on weekdays... Cheaper to stay in Denver, plus you'll have more access to ALL of the amenities that CO offers.....a nightlife in Downtown Denver, 30 minutes to Boulder. An hour to Colorado Springs, Red Rocks and good hiking within a half hour along the Front Range, Snowshoeing up near Mt Bierstadt and Mt Evans (again, 30-40 minutes). When you are on "this side" (Denver side) of the Pass you have a lot more options. Plus, its Fairly unlikely you would even have to deal with snowdriving conditions if you stayed Downtown. Denver doesn't *usually* get that many snowstorms during the wiinter (they start stacking up in spring though!).
I think it was last January/february we had a LONG string of 60-70 degree weather! Possibly the year before, then again, thats pretty much every year. VERY Mild here, even during the winter (Except TODAY!!)
I would suggest you don't stay in Denver if you plan to spend much time in the mountains. The traffic is HORRENDOUS between Denver and the resorts. It is the reason I avoid skiing on the weekends like the plague! They are also still doing construction at the twin tunnels in Idaho springs, which makes everything even more slow. It can take upwards of 3-4 hours on the weekends to get up to the mountains or back down during high traffic times - and that's in good weather. If you have bad weather, add even more time.0 -
[/quote]I would suggest you don't stay in Denver if you plan to spend much time in the mountains. The traffic is HORRENDOUS between Denver and the resorts. It is the reason I avoid skiing on the weekends like the plague!
Thats why I suggested it if she was going to ski on the week DAYS. They're going to be in CO for a week, after all. No reason to go up to the resorts on a weekend0
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