prak1

Hello Experts,

I am planning a family vacation with my wife and 2 kids (3 and 6 years old) and my parents between Aug 8 - Aug 15.. I am landing in Denver on Aug 8th night. I have reservation in Vail between Aug 9 - Aug 12..Planning to see the dance festival and do day trips around vail/beaver creek/avon.. looking for guidance/suggestion on what to do between Aug 12 - Aug 15th.. We are flying out on Aug 15th evening from denver airport.

We are thinking about Rocky Mountain national park for the last three days as of now.. and would appreciate any help in itinerary or links with good drive/easy hikes/trails/activity for kiddos.. With kids and parents, can't do any major hike but we do have option of leaving the kids with parents and going out on our own for half / 1 day..

Also, which place would you suggest to stay near RMNP .. I looked at the forum but got confused between estes park (being too touristy)/grand lake/winter park for lodging..

Appreciate your help.
Thanks
P

HappyTrvlr

Coming from Vail, Grand Lake makes more sense.

wave725

Grand Lake would be closer, but you're somewhat limited on family lodging unless you want to get a cabin for 3 days. You'll want to make the scenic drive across Trail Ridge Road anyway - so you could stay in Estes Park. If you stay just outside of the main part of town you can avoid a lot of the touristy stuff. We usually stay in a condo on Fall River Road.

The whole family would enjoy the drive across Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous paved road in the U.S. Plan on at least half a day for the drive so you can stop at some short hikes, stretch your legs and enjoy the sights.

This site breaks down the hiking trails by location in park and level of difficulty, so it can help find the short hikes with the kids and the half day hike with significant other:

http://www.rockymountainhikingtrails.com/

A trail the kidos might enjoy along Trail Ridge Road is the Tundra Communities Trail. It is a short hike, but at that elevation you'll still be breathless! It has rock formations that look like giant mushrooms:

http://www.rockymountainhikingtrails...ties-trail.htm

SaltysMom

I would suggest you put Colorado in the search box and see what suggestions come up. A post called "16 days in Utah and Colorado" should give you a ton of good ideas for hikes and things to do with younger kids. It was started by "alwaysafrica" and they wanted ideas on a similar trip and many people gave them some really good ideas.

SaltysMom

PS. I think Estes Park with small kids makes a lot of sense. Lots of fun things for them to do there - including watching Elk walk down the main streets!

WhereAreWe

Grand Lake is quieter but the hiking and views are nowhere near as spectacular as the Estes Park side. I would always pick the Estes Park side for several days.

There are a lot of easy hikes - Grand Lake side you can walk to Adams Falls, stop at the Holzwarth Historic site, walk the Coyote Valley trail, stop and walk around by Lake Irene. Estes Park side has Bear Lake, Sprague Lake, Lily Lake, walking around Moraine Park or Upper Beaver Meadows, the Pool....Alberta Falls and Cub Lake are relatively easy as well.

You can definitely avoid the more touristy aspects of Estes if you avoid downtown area. The big drawback to staying on that side and sightseeing in summer is having to use the shuttle system on Bear Lake Road with kids. You won't find parking at any of the trailheads on that road so you will need to use the shuttle during the day.

prak1

Thanks for the info guys..

-P