TheDish

We're thinking about taking a trip to the Colorado or Utah mountains this summer to escape the desert heat. We'll be taking 4 children ranging in age from 18 months to 12 years. We'll need a nice 2 bedroom condo with lots of activities around for the kids. I know that the older ones will enjoy hiking, etc, but do you have any suggestions for the little ones (i.e., neat train rides, gondolas, etc.)? Willing to go anywhere it will be cool in the summer that will be fairly easy to get to from Phoenix via America West Airlines.

Kristy

Breckenridge! Lots of families there year-round. Great kid friendly restaurants, concerts, hiking, parks, and my sons favorite...just throwing rocks in the creek!
www.white-cloud.com is a good site for home/condo rentals.
As fun as it sounds...be careful of the alpine slide there- everyone I know has come away with some sort of injury!
Swiss Haven is a great restaurant...say hi to Tim- the bartender (my brother!).

travellyn

Durango Mountain Resort is also a good option. It has a kid's outdoor program that my 2 children enjoyed last summer. The program might be fun for your older children. DMR came up with the program for children staying at the resort, but also offered it to local kids on a space available basis.

DMR has a free chairlift in the summer, an alpine slide, etc. The narrow gauge railroad (one-way) and the Bar D Wranglers are also fun for kids as young as 4. There are easy hikes nearby. My favorite hike with kids is the Spud Lake Trail. Mesa Verde is a little over an hour away.

BarbaraS

Dayle gave a great reply to a similar question about Park City, Utah. I'll top it for you.

Lexma90

Here's another vote for Breckenridge. In addition to the Alpine slide (we've never been injured on it), at that location there's also a mini-golf, a maze, a climbing wall & a bungy sort of thing.

Nearby Keystone and Vail both have gondolas. Vail, 45 minutes away, is a great day trip. There are other activities at the top of the gondola in Vail, as well as hiking.

There's narrow-gauge railroad about 40 min. from Breck, in Georgetown. It's very boring, but little kids like it. There's also a train in Leadville, only somewhat more interesting, but there's a good mining museum there too.

Good restaurants in Breck for kids include Mi Casa, Fiesta Jalisco, Rasta Pasta, Eric's Underground (pizza and video games) (we like Swiss Haven too). There's "Crepes a la Cart," which sells crepes from (guess) a cart. You can buy your lunch from many places, then eat it down by the river. Lots of places serve lunch outside (it's too cool to eat dinner outside unless you eat early).

There's a nice bike path through Breck that goes to Friso (9 miles away)(actually, you could take it all the way to Vail), but beware, there's a 500 foot elevation loss going down to Frisco, and you really feel it coming back up with a kid in tow!

Retired_teacher

The YMCA has two properties in Colorado that offer weekly cabin rentals at a reasonable rate. (If you are not a YMCA member, you must pay a low cost membership fee and join the Y in order to rent these facilities.) I believe that the one near Estes Park is called YMCA of the Rockies. It is the larger and nicer facility with more options and is located close to the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. The other facility, which I believe is called Snow Mountain Ranch, is located on the western side of RMNP. It is smaller and more rustic, but perhaps a better choice for your group. Twenty years ago we stayed there with another couple and five kids in a four bedroom cabin with a complete kitchen, large dining area, living room, and two full baths. The staff had daily optional activities planned for the kids; an option that allowed parents to get away for a few hours on almost a daily basis. Adult options including hiking, trail riding, and touring could be booked at the camp for an additional fee. The camp has a swimming pool and horseback riding is available on site. A cafeteria was available onsite if you prefered not to prepare meals in your cabin.