Colorado is a winter wonderland where you can find some of the best skiing in the world. With its beautiful mountain landscapes and various ski resort options, it’s no wonder that it’s a top vacation destination for skiers and snowboarders.
Read this guide for information on the best places to ski in Colorado, along with recommendations on places to stay, other things to do, and ski passes to buy.
Aspen / Snowmass
Aspen is known around the world for it’s high-end ski resorts, restaurants and accommodations. The downtown area of Aspen is quite small, but the whole Aspen area expands to Snowmass Village which is about a 20 minute drive away. This whole area offers four ski resorts with a variety of runs for all levels:
- Aspen Mountain (also called Ajax): This is probably the most difficult of all four mountains. It has a runs ranging from blues to double black diamonds, but does not offer any green (beginner) runs. At the top, you can see amazing views of the town of Aspen as well as the Maroon Bells. This mountain also has downtown Aspen directly at its base, so it’s very easy to access, especially if you are staying in town.
- Aspen Highlands: This mountain also does not offer any green runs, but it is slightly easier than Aspen Mountain. This resort tends to groom more runs and has many runs that aren’t quite as steep. Highlands also has Cloud Nine, a restaurant / bar that is located mid-mountain and is famous for it’s 2:00 pm parties where people spray champagne on the crowd. It’s a one of a kind experience!
- Buttermilk: This mountain is the smallest of the four, and very beginner friendly. It’s located very close to Highlands and is much less tall and steep. It also tends to be a popular place for snowboarders.
- Snowmass: This mountain is the largest of the four and offers a wide variety of runs for experience levels. It’s a very family-friendly mountain and is great for kids to take lessons. For the more experience skiers and snowboarders, there are also much tougher runs! It has a lot of fun open tree runs that are amazing on powder days. This is my personal favorite mountain in the area.
Where to Stay
The main options for where to stay are in the town of Aspen or in Snowmass Village. Aspen tends to be much more expensive, especially the hotel options. But with the expense comes luxury. Some of the hotels in Aspen are world-renowned, such as the St. Regis and Hotel Jerome. Snowmass Villages offers more affordable (but still very nice) lodging options. Many of these are also ski-in/ski-out, so it’s very easy to access Snowmass Mountain, and drop the kiddos off at ski school.
Where to Buy Lift Tickets
There are a couple options for lift tickets / ski passes that allow you to access all four Aspen Snowmass resorts:
- You can buy lift tickets directly from Aspen Snowmass. If you are planning a vacation in advance, you can buy multi-day ski passes online at a discounted price compared to buying tickets at the window once at the mountain.
- You can buy an Ikon Full or Ikon Base Plus pass. The Ikon Pass is a collective that offers access to more than 50 destinations across the US. This is a great option if you plan on visiting more than just Aspen Snowmass in a season, as it will save you a lot of money. The Ikon Pass is a different price every year, but it tends to be around $900 – 1,000 for a season. Given that the window rate for a day at any of the resorts can go up to $250, the pass will save you money if you plan on skiing more than 5 days in a season.
Find more information on planning a trip to Aspen in my guide to Aspen.
How to Get There
There are two main options for getting to Aspen:
- You can either fly into Denver International Airport, rent a car, and drive to Aspen. This is about a 3 and 1/2 hour drive without traffic, but congestion and weather tends to cause a lot of traffic on the highway, especially on the weekends. So this can easily be a very long drive. I would also recommend renting a 4WD or AWD vehicle as the road can be very icy or snow-filled.
- You can also fly into the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport. This is a very small airport right outside of the town of Aspen. It tends to be more expensive to fly into, but some of the major airlines still offer flights into it, including United. Once there, you can easily get transportation into either Aspen or Snowmass, so there’s really no need to rent a car. The county also offers a very easy to use, free bus system that travels from Snowmass to Aspen and stops at several places in between.
Breckenridge
Breckenridge has a very similar feel to Aspen, with a charming main street area right at the base of the resort. There are many options for restaurants, bars and coffee shops in the downtown area as well as shopping. Breckenridge also has some of the best nightlife options of all the ski towns, with popular dance bars like The Gold Pan Saloon and Cecilia’s Nightclub.
Where to Stay
The best lodging options would be a ski-in/ski-out short-term rental or hotel on the mountain. These offer the easiest access to the resort while also remaining an easy to walk to Main Street. Some hotel options are Grand Colorado on Peak 8 and the Grand Timber Lodge. There are also some options on the other side of Main Street that aren’t ski-in/ski-out but are still a close walk to the mountain.
If you’d like a slightly more affordable option, you could look for rentals or hotels in the nearby towns of Frisco or Silverthorne. Both towns are beautiful in their own right and are a short drive to Breckenridge.
Where to Buy Lift Tickets
- You can buy lift tickets directly at the mountain, or buy ahead online to save some money!
- If you would like to ski more mountains than Breckenridge, you can buy a multi-day Epic Pass or the Epic Local Pass. This allows you multiple days at Epic resorts, which also includes the nearby mountains Keystone, Vail and Beaver Creek.
How to Get There
The easiest way to get to Breckenridge is to fly into Denver International Airport, rent a car, and drive there. This is about a 1.5 hour drive without traffic, but congestion and weather tends to cause a lot of traffic on the highway, especially on the weekends. So this can easily be a longer drive. I would also recommend renting a 4WD or AWD vehicle as the road can be very icy or snow-filled.
Telluride
Telluride is a picturesque town tucked in the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado. For being a small town, it offers many dining and shopping options around its main street, Colorado Ave.
Where to Stay
The ski resort has two main sides, one side starts in the town of Telluride and the other starts in the town of Mountain Village. Telluride is your classic, cute mountain town with a main street, restaurants, bars and lots of housing options. There are many short-term rental options and some hotels as well, including Hotel Columbia and the Hotel Telluride. Mountain Village is more of a ski base village with many short-term rentals, some hotels and some restaurants and shopping. There is a free gondola that allows you to get from one side to the other, so either town is a great option!
Where to Buy Lift Tickets
- You can buy lift tickets directly at the mountain, or buy ahead online to save some money!
- If you live near an Epic Pass mountain (or plan on visiting one) you can buy a multi-day Epic Pass or the full Epic Pass.
How to Get There
There are several options to get to Telluride:
- Fly into the Telluride Regional Airport. This is definitely the quickest and easiest option, as the airport is only a 15 minute drive from the town of Telluride. It’s a very small airport, though, so flights tend to be on the expensive side and typically have connections.
- Fly into the Montrose Regional Airport. This is a bit larger of an airport and therefore offers more flight options. However, it’s a bit farther away at about a 1.5 hour drive to the town of Telluride. Once here, you can rent a car and drive to Telluride, or you book a transfer through a company like Telluride Express.
Find more information on planning a trip to Telluride in my guide to Telluride.
