 Poster: A snowHead
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Booked flights to Denver last weekend, 23rd January for 7 days in the Avios (Airmiles) sale and have spent the last week looking in to where to stay and which resorts to ski etc.
We will have 6 ski-ing days and have pretty much narrowed it down to:
Option 1: Stay in Breckenridge, hire a 4x4 and ski the surrounding resorts; Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone etc.
Option 2: Stay in Aspen and ski the 4 mountains there.
Option 3 (Curveball): Start with option 1 due to proximity to Denver (1.5hr drive vs 4hr drive after after a long flight), spend a few nights in Aspen toward the end of the week.
We are both confident intermediate skiers, stayed in Banff two years ago and drove daily to Sunshine or Lake Louise and loved every minute of it.
Would appreciate any help you guys could offer and the above options are far from set in stone, I'm open to any suggestions.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Sun 20-07-14 17:23; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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For option 1, if you've got a hire car then the town of Frisco is also convenient for the Summit ski areas ( which includes Breckenridge) and is likely to have cheaper accommodation. There's also a free shuttle bus service between Frisco and Breckenridge if you don' t fancy driving yourself every day.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Never been to Aspen, so FWIW. Aspen is a place to which I'd love to go. Reputation and reviews are generally very positive. Snowmass has a reputation as being a great intermediate mountain. The base is lower than Breckenridge, it's further from Denver so generally reputed to be less busy. That would be my choice of cost isn't too much of a factor. It's also reputed to be very pricey. Breck is a very neat town. Main street is lined with Victorian era buildings. Lots of dining, drinking, and shopping options. We've never stayed in Breck but have stayed in the area and skied several of the nearby mountains. We're thinking of going to Breck this March. Much of the intermediate terrain at Breck is pretty easy and much of the expert terrain is really expert terrain. Breck is reputed to be the busiest resort in Colorado though shouldn't bee too bad in late January. Base is very high, around 9600 feet, so altitude issues are a consideration. You'll probably need to pay to park in Vail or Beaver Creek. Vail has tons and tons of skiing and you can go off the backside to Blue Sky basin. Beaver Creek has steeper groomers. My wife and I don't like the town of Vail much. It's purpose built, the highway runs right through town, just doesn't appeal to our proletarian roots. The skiing at Arapahoe Basin is really good, IMO. Though it's a place to go on a Bluebird day and is known for spring skiing. The base at A-Basin is well over 10,000 feet. If money is an object and you have a car and want to stay in that area, take a look at Frisco. Downtown is like a mini Breckenridge. Very attractive and well located if using a car. It's 6-miles from Copper and well connected to Copper by bus. It's probably 9 miles to Breck, 12-15 to Keystone, and closer to Vail and Beaver Creek than Breck. Nothing wrong with option 3 though unless you really want to try different areas every day I'd probably opt for staying in one place for 6 ski days. It'll take some time just to get to know how to get around Breck or Vail efficiently. For me, option 3 would be too ambitious. But that may just be my preference.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Another option to consider is:
Monarch, Crested Butte, Telluride, Durango Mountain Resort & Wolf Creek in Southern Colorado.
Very different weather pattern from the Summit County resorts and Aspen.
In general much quieter too.
This would involve renting a vehicle at Denver airport and it's about a 3hr drive.
I've never had a problem finding accommodation on the fly in Colorado, so if you feel compfortable leaving the plan until the last minute you can head to the area with the best snow.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Thanks for all the replies, given me plenty of food for thought.
RISkier, Wow, great post, thanks for your thoughts, will definitely throw staying in Frisco into the Mix.
Mike Pow, Telluride etc. is a great suggestion, I had initially discounted it as I thought it would be too far from Denver but I'll have another look into it.
It's a shame we couldn't make it a 2 week trip but I can't due to work commitments. It definitely seems like a 2nd trip could be on the horizon some time whatever we decide to go for.
If we did opt for Aspen, which is probably leading by a nose is there plenty of skiing for a week? I wouldn't go as far as to say we want to ski a different resort each day but we may fancy the odd day trip elsewhere for a change if we did hire a car.
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I've stayed in Glenwood Springs and done day trips to A-Basin and Loveland without any trouble. It's where many of the workers from Aspen live. It would depend on how much you mind driving, and what the weather is like. I-70 does occasionally close due to snow, but that's mainly overnight/early morning and is usually cleared quite quickly. Also, route 82 south of Aspen is closed during the winter anyway.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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LT, we did aspen in January for 10 days plenty of skiing across all the mountains and it's easy to taken the free bus between them, stated in Aspen. It wasn't crowded and all the Americans seemed to finish at 2.30 making the mountain even less crowded! I would go back again as there where bits we didn't ski and we liked the area. Like you we had the flights booked but no accommodation, in the end rather than doing the hotel, transfers, ski pass our selfs we booked through Ski Independence and got a great deal.
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Thanks again all of you for your time in replying. All good information.
I take it there is no point hiring a car if staying in Aspen and getting a transfer from Denver Airport is the best option?
Bones, that seems an interesting option, if sounding slightly dangerous! 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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LT, not really dangerous but interesting and fun, you park at a nearby bus turning point, catch the local ride into Vail. You can ski backcountry to where you left the car so long as theres enough snow 
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Mike Pow, will take a look a Sunlight, thanks.
Cracking bit of inside information Bones, but I wouldn't say we're up to backcountry skiing just yet. Although I wouldn't mind learning to ski powder better while we're out there
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You know it makes sense.
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Aspen is great but there's lots of advanced ish terrain. For the time you've got you could stay in Frisco and hit Keystone through Beaver Creek. NB there is free parking most days at Vail but it's a bit of a ballache and requires a bit of knowledge and/or patience with the bus system. Top tip park at Cascade village carpark for easiest access pay parking. Beaver Creek is a top tip for intermediates. Way less busy than Breckenridge though I guess with world champs they won't be letting punters on massive bump lines down Birds of Prey.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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+1 for Dave of the Marmottes idea. Thats exactly what we did. We stayed in the Snow Shoe motel in Frisco, it was self catered apartment with 2 rooms (Could sleep 4 people), also had a whirlpool bath etc. For 10 days it cost us about £1000. There was easy access to all resorts by way of the free bus service which stopped directly outside of the motel.
The motel did provide breakfast, but there was an amazing cafe across the road that does the meanest egg, streaky bacon and sausage bagel.. I'm already drooling!
Also I highly recommend you get round to Arapahoe..
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Poster: A snowHead
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Are starting to swing towards staying in Breck/Frisco as we quite fancy skiing a variety of resorts while we are out there.
Kelv1n, £1000 for 10 nights is a great price those bagels could seal the deal 
We'd be fine on any black groomers out there and we'd possibly take a few lessons to improve on moguls and powder skiing.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Just in case You haven't decided, first time we went to Vail we stayed here :- http://apolloparkvail.com/ location is pretty good and if You have a car you can go back up the I70 corridoor and do those hills (breck etc), pop down the road into Beaver or a couple of hours drive to Aspen (slightly longer if the pass is closed).
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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No, haven't decided yet ansta1, I keep changing my mind from one day to the next! Thanks for the link, I'll check it out.
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LT, give them a call https://snowshoemotel.com/, even if you decide not to stay there let us know how it goes as there is a slim chance I could be back go back season and would like to know the prices you get told 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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No worries Kelv1n, I'll drop them an email and see what their rates are.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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We got an onward flight to Aspen which was convenient. Enough skiing for a week with the 4 hills, no car required.
Alternatively we have hired a car at Denver which is relatively cheap & stayed in Frisco or Dillon. 6 days is not great for a lift pass deal, do some checking it may shape your choice. You may be able to get a lift pass deal linked to your accommodation. You should have a great time whichever option you choose.
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LT, I think you'll have great time in Breck. We've not actually stayed in Breck but down the road in Frisco. We've skied Breck several times, walked around downtown, had dinner, etc. Very cool town, IMO. We found free parking at Keystone, it was near Keystone West which is on the right side of the mountain looking up. Kind of an old time lodge over there where we booted up. I'm assuming it's still there. Parking at a lot of the large CO resorts is a challenge. Indeed at Vail or Beaver Creek it's hard to even find somewhere to boot up. I know we don't know what the locals know but we found driving to and parking at Beaver Creek from Frisco kind of a pain. I think there is more convenient paid parking. If the weather is good and you want an retro experience, drive up to Arapahoe Basin. It's just a little ways from Keystone. It's a ski area and lacks all of glitz, glitter, and clutter of a resort. We really enjoyed skiing at A-Basin. It does have some serious terrain and it's definitely a place I'd only go to when the weather is nice. It's very high and very exposed, but it's the kind of place my wife and I really like. There's a lot of skiing at Breck. It's a bit challenging to get around till you figure out the best ways between peaks. There are some steeper groomers on Peak 10. I'd suggest either signing up for a lesson or taking one of their mountain tours. Hope you have a great trip.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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There was plenty of free parking at Keystone http://www.keystoneresort.com/ski-and-snowboard/hours-of-operation.aspx#parking#Top if you don't mind walking an extra 50 yards. You can even borrow a tote truck to carry your skis.
At Breckenridge we only paid $5 a day for parking rather than take the shuttle to the free lot.
Parking at Vail is expensive, we parked at the house of a friend in the suburbs and took the free bus in.
Parking was free at Beaver Creek base entrance, a shuttle gets you to the lifts.
You can park for free at "the beach" at A-Basin and join in the impromptu parties & barbecues. Take your own guitar & meat. You might also consider skiing at Copper or Loveland or even Winter Park and are an easy drive from Breck. I think you need to give Aspen more time to appreciate it, not just the 4 ski hills but the town itself is special.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Sat 26-07-14 14:49; edited 1 time in total
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LT, lived in Frisco for the last half of last season. Busy at the mo. I'll post more this evening. You've lots of options and MANY ways to spend or save a fortune. For a 6 day trip I'd avoid a grand tour and you'll find more than enough for a week at any single mountain as the areas are not just the groomed pistes.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Parking is dead easy at Beaver Creek. Bear lot then bus to BC landing 10 yds from a lift. Vail just pay in the garage at Cascade it's about the shortest walk to a lift. Note both of these involve dodging the main base areas but if you have a fondness for tramping through shopping malls in your ski boots I'd recommend Bicester Village or the Trafford Centre.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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LT, at Copper & Breck, if you get into the paid parking before 07:00 you miss the ticket box . . . Go get breakfast 
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You know it makes sense.
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"The Beach" is a Spring thing.
The locals will be too busy hiking and skiing pow when you're out there.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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LT, not sure it's been mentioned yet but investigate your lift pass options early, there are cheap season ticket deals but you have to buy them early around November/December time. We missed the cut off and even with a TO discount ended up paying over the odds for ours and had to have paper tickets rather than hands free cards.
+ another for the A Basin, loved it up there 
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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LT, listen to sarah, re, season pass. I paid 500$ for my 5 mountain pass last november, paid on line and collected in resort. Day passes, even discounted were 100+. Oh, and forget skiing at weekends and peak vacations. Lots of drunk kids, over-protective parents and slopes like a kicked ant hill.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| LT wrote: |
| 'Sweet home Alabama" |
will do nicely.
| Mike Pow wrote: |
| "The Beach" is a Spring thing |
Not this year but we have had plenty of sunny days in Jan & "the beach" was rocking.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Perhaps buy an Epic Local or Summit Value season pass and use the 6 ski with a friend days to buy discounted day passes ? Buy now as the price rises as the season approaches.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Quote: |
LT wrote:
'Sweet home Alabama"
will do nicely.
Mike Pow wrote:
"The Beach" is a Spring thing
Not this year but we have had plenty of sunny days in Jan & "the beach" was rocking.
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Excellent on both counts!
Will certainly pick up an Epic Local Pass in November as the blackout dates won't affect us.
Great point regarding the 6 ski with a friend days, I hadn't even considered it.
Masque, we definitely will be skiing as far from Denver as we can get over the weekend.
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