From haute and historic hotels to huts and hostels, from ski-in/ski-out ski lodges to luxury condos to camping, the Colorado Rockies region offers a wide range of lodging options for deep- and shallow-pocket travelers. While in ski season the prices jump sky-high, you can often get lucky and find a room for nearly half the price during spring, early summer, and fall. The below-listed starting prices are for the ski season, so you can happily factor in the difference. Frugal tourists beware: During peak season, accommodations in the swanky Northwest Colorado ski-resort towns of Breckenridge, Aspen, and Vail and the decidedly upscale Southwest Colorado ski town of Telluride, cannot easily be managed on a tight budget. If you are a skier or a snow-seeker and want to save money in this region, stay on the outskirts of these world-class resort towns. The town of Glenwood Springs, in Northwest Colorado, is a great place to stay if you want to save considerably, and Grand Junction, also in Northwest Colorado, is on the lower end of the Colorado Rockies' price spectrum. In Southwest Colorado, you can keep your money in your pocket by staying in towns like Durango, Leadville, Gunnison, and Crested Butte. Though mountain camping stops in the winter, camping at many lower-elevation state parks is available year-round (come prepared for the cold) - campgrounds are generally in more remote areas, driving distances from towns and ski-resorts.
Hotels, Ski Resorts, and Ski Lodges in the Colorado Rockies
Renovated historic hotels built with Gold Rush money, national chains, and luxury ski resorts are available throughout the Colorado Rockies region. The Northwest Colorado towns of Aspen, and Glenwood Springs, the Southwest Colorado communities of Durango and Telluride, as well as Leadville in South-Central Colorado, are all home to well-known renovated hotels, many of which date back to the late 1800s. For example, Hotel Colorado, in Northwest Colorado's Glenwood Springs, hosted Teddy Roosevelt, William Taft, and the Unsinkable Molly Brown (of Titanic shipwreck fame). Widely recognized as the most “in” hotel in Aspen is the beautiful and Victorian-decorated historic Hotel Jerome. Prices start at around $300, but can reach up to $2,000 a night. Occasionally the establishment offers a 10-night pampered package deal for $1 million (yikes!) including a luxury bedroom suite, private butler, on-call massage therapist, among countless other amenities. On Forbes' 2005 list of World's Most Expensive Ski Resorts is the secluded and luxurious Game Creek Chalet on Vail Mountain in Northwest Colorado, where rates start at around $3,000 per night. At an elevation of about 10,500 feet, the Game Creek is a four-bedroom, four-bath retreat (for a three-night minimum, for groups of eight people) and offers private ski instructors, hors d'oeuvres and meals prepared by a private chef, and an all-around luxury stay. Also on Forbes list is Vail's Sonnenalp Resort. The hotel features 90 luxury suites and rooms; the nightly price for a double occupancy room (breakfast included) starts at $500.
You can find plenty of luxury and mid-range, high-rise, and slope-side hotels in the Northwest Colorado communities of Breckenridge, Grand Junction, and Vail, as well as in the aforementioned communities. Lower-end luxury hotel prices usually start at about $150 a night, whereas high-end luxury lodges and ski resorts' rates start at $500. Glenwood Springs is a terrific money-saving option, where you can stay in an affordable hotel within driving (and busing) distance to Aspen and Vail.
The following list details where to find hotel, ski resort, and ski lodge accommodation in the towns of Northwest Colorado.
- Aspen: You can find hotels in downtown Aspen, on Main Street, on Aspen Street (near Whitaker Park), and on Galena Street, as well as at the base of Aspen Mountain's ski gondola.
- Breckenridge: You can find about two-dozen hotels in the town of Dillon, near Breckenridge, or on Park Avenue.
- Glenwood Springs: Historic and high-end hotels can be found on Pine Street and Seventh Street.
- Grand Junction: Several hotel options can be found on Horizon Drive.
- Vail: Try the area near the Vista Bahn Chairlift or on Lionshead Place.
In South-Central Colorado, you can find a hotel on Leadville's Harrison Avenue.
The following list details where to find hotel, ski resort, and ski lodge accommodation in the towns of Southwest Colorado.
- Crested Butte: Most hotels are within 300 yards from the ski lifts.
- Durango: You can find hotels on Main Avenue, 10th Street, and Second Avenue.
- Telluride: Try Cornet Street, W. Colorado Avenue, or Telluride Mountain Village, where you'll surely find an excellent ski lodge at which to stay.
Ski-in/Ski-Out Option
How would you like to start the day by skiing out your front or back door? Nearly every Colorado Rockies' ski resort community offers lodging with ski-in/ski-out access giving you the freedom to hit the slopes without waiting for shuttles or lugging your gear to lifts. Lodges, inns, hotels, rental condominiums, and rental townhouses throughout the region offer this convenient option. If you want to spend every waking minute skiing (rather than wasting precious minutes trying to get to and from the ski sites), this is the way to go. Wake up, don you're your ski gear and head for the slopes - and when you've put in a good day of work, just head on home.
Here are some details about the many areas in which to find ski-in/ski-out accommodations in the towns of Northwest Colorado.
- Aspen: Buttermilk Mountain, Central Aspen, Aspen's West End, and Snowmass Mountain
- Breckenridge: Keystone Resort, Copper Mountain, Peak 9, Lower Four O'Clock Road, and Lower Ski Hill Road
- Steamboat Springs: Steamboat Ski Area gondola, Ski Time Square, and the Torian Plum Plaza
- Vail/Beaver Creek: Lionshead Village, Beaver Creek Village, and Forest Road
The following represent some areas in which to find ski-in/ski-out accommodations in the towns of Southwest Colorado.
- Telluride: West End area (near Lift Area 7) and on Telluride Mountain Village
- Crested Butte: Mt. Crested Butte, Gothic Road
Luxury Rentals, Apartments, and Cabins in the Colorado Rockies
If you are ready to pay a pretty penny for Colorado Rockies' posh apartments, condominiums, and cabins, there really is no limit to the luxury and beauty your top-dollar can procure. You can rent by the day, week, month, or season; as many or as few rooms and bathrooms as you require. Vail, Breckenridge, Aspen, and Glenwood Springs in Northwest Colorado, and Telluride and Crested Butte in Southwest Colorado offer everything from quaint cabins to condominiums to sprawling mansions, generally beginning at $400 per person, per night during peak ski and summer seasons.
Vacation rentals are extremely popular lodging options in the Colorado Rockies, particularly during the ski season. By renting an apartment, condominium, or cabin, visitors gain the unique experience of feeling like a local while enjoying the luxuries and freedom of a tourist. These options are particularly popular among travelers vacationing in families or groups, as the common living spaces and equipped kitchens allow parties to spend quality time together sipping wine, sampling cheeses, or enjoying festive meals together “at home” after a long, fulfilling day on the slopes or trails. On-site laundry facilities give the convenience of home for extended stays.
Bed and Breakfasts, Inns, and Lodges in the Colorado Rockies
Cozy bed and breakfast establishments (B&Bs) in renovated and palatial Victorian homes often offer mountain views amidst pastoral countryside. Historic inns and old-fashioned or snazzy lodges are also easy to come by most everywhere in the region, and cost less than what you'd have to pay at hotels. In Steamboat Springs, for instance, you can stay in a rebuilt 19th-century church. Grand Junction and the Palisade area in Northwest Colorado offer idyllic orchard-home stays, while Glenwood Springs (also in Northwest Colorado), and Crested Butte and Ouray in Southwest Colorado, and Leadville in South-Central Colorado also have many good options. While you can stay in a lodge, you won't find many B&Bs in Vail or Durango. On the other hand, the many (and occasionally costly) B&Bs in Aspen, Breckenridge, and Telluride pick up the slack.
Dude Ranches in the Colorado Rockies
Hey dudes and dudettes: don't leave home without your boots and spurs, 'cuz the Colorado Rockies region has a range of ranch-style accommodations that will have you wrangling in no time. Northwest Colorado's Aspen and Steamboat Springs, along with Durango (Southwest Colorado), offer ranch experience accommodations from May-October. You can horseback ride and take part in the grooming, feeding, and shoveling chores that accompany a day in the life of a real-live rancher. Rates at dude ranches are comparable to those at hotels, and are quite reasonable considering that they usually include all meals, activities, and daily horse riding. Week-long stays at dude ranches are common, so be advised that advertised rates might reflect seven-day, rather than one-day prices. Many dude ranches are open year-round, though summer and winter activities vary. In the summer you can expect to enjoy fishing, mountain biking, rafting, and tennis, in addition to horseback riding. Dude ranch activities generally focus on snowmobiling, snowshoeing, dog sledding, cross-country skiing, as well as horseback riding in the winter.
Motels in the Colorado Rockies
Thrifty visitors can mosey on over to a motel as a sound money-saving tactic. Nearly every Colorado Rockies town has a couple of good options, usually lined up along the highways. In Northwest Colorado's Steamboat Springs you will find a couple of motels on Lincoln Avenue, while in Grand Junction, also in Northwest Colorado, motels line Horizon Street. In the South-Central Colorado town of Leadville, motel options are mainly on U.S. Highway 24. Ouray has quite a few inexpensive options along Third Avenue and U.S. 550, and Durango's “motel row” is on North Main Street, and U.S. Highway 550 in Southwest Colorado.
Youth Hostels in the Colorado Rockies
Breckenridge (Northwest Colorado), and the Southwest Colorado towns of Durango, and Crested Butte offer clean, adequate, and very affordable youth hostels. Accommodations are usually shared-room bunk bed arrangements (men and women stay separately) with shower facilities. The San Juan Hut System is a unique option for hikers and bikers in the Colorado Rockies region. Located along mining roads throughout the San Juan Mountains in Southwest Colorado, these huts are spaced 35-miles apart (the first hut is 35 miles from Telluride) and offer padded bunks, blankets, a wood-burning stove, and firewood.
Camping in the Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies region offers every kind of camping, amidst every type of scenery, you can imagine. There are more posh campgrounds with warm water, electric hookups, and shower and laundry facilities, as well as grounds with fewer amenities. Forest Service campgrounds abound throughout the region and White River National Forest, east of the Northwest Colorado town of Meeker, has several large campgrounds. You'll find tent and RV sites outside of Steamboat Springs at Fish Creek, also in Northwest Colorado. Many of the campsites near Vail can only be rented for a month, so it is best to investigate first. For a unique camping experience, go gold panning at Sugar Loafin' campground near South-Central Colorado's Leadville, stay on the pristine Blue Mesa Reservoir, near Gunnison, or enjoy the backcountry of Curecanti National Recreation Area and Black Canyon of the Gunnison River's South Rim and North Rim campgrounds, open May-October in Southwest Colorado. Most campsites don't charge too much, and you can even stay for free at the Ouray Rotary Park on U.S. Highway 550, south of Ouray in Southwest Colorado.
Camping season generally begins when the ski-season ends and the snow melts, and ends with the first heavy snow. Thus, mountain camping season usually runs from around Memorial Day weekend to just after Labor Day. That being said, many Colorado state parks (located at lower elevations) allow camping during the winter season on a first-come, first-served basis. Come well-equipped for fierce cold, and heavy snows - winter camping is not for beginners.
Hotels in Vail, Aspen, Telluride, Steamboat Springs and the Colorado Rockies
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