Estes Park or Aspen,Co
 

After all of the advice from everyone we decided to pick either Aspen or Estes Park during our 4/5 night trip to CO. We wanted to go to Denver, Estes and Aspen but seems to be a bit much per all your recommendations.
We will be staying 1 or 2 nights in Denver to visit family, haven't decided yet.
Should we spend the other 2 or 3 nights in Aspen or Estes Park? Should we spend one night in Avon/Vail and then head to Aspen?
Is there alot to see on that route to Aspen?
Or should we just drive up to Estes and stay there? Were really torn between the two. We'd like to do some white water rafting also. Your advice is greatly appreciated.. Thanks so much

Donna,

If you only have 2 or 3 nights I would spend the time in Aspen. Don't bother with one night in Vail. I don't care for Estes Park. Although, I love Rocky Mountain Park, I don't like Estes Park - too crowded and touristy.

If you really want to see Rocky Mountain National Park, try to extend your mountain time to 4 nights. You can leave Denver in the morning and spend the day driving over Trail Ridge Road and stopping at points of interest. I would spend that night in Grand Lake and then head toward Aspen the next morning. This way you will get a taste of Estes and RMNP.

Isnt Estes and RMNP the same thing?

Estes Park is the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. It is a small congested town that you drive through to enter the park. I would never consider Estes and RMNP to be the same thing.

Check out the National Park Service website for info on RMNP.


www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm

-for 2 nights-i'd take estes park with it bordering rmnp its great to take some of the different drives in the park or hiking. whatever you do trail ridge road is a must see.
-for 3 nights i'd do 1 night in estes park then drive the trail ridge then make your way to i70 and head for vail for 1 night. next morning i'd head for aspen utilizing 24 down to 82 then up to aspen so that you take independance pass. this would be an easy pace to contend with.
-personally if i had to choose only one i'd take estes park everytime-what a beautiful place with the views of the lake and the mountains!
-another thought could be to visit the pikes peak area seeing garden of the gods,pikes peak,air force academy/chapel staying for a night then heading up to estes or over to aspen for a night or 2. this could also give you your best whitewater rafting experience by putting you in the area of the arkansas river if you choose this route to aspen.

Estes Park & RMNP

I like vgronek's suggestion! And I know I'll be the minority, but I really really can't stand Aspen. I'd rather go anywhere else in the world. Estes Park is small, quaint, and RMNP is wonderful. A couple days in Denver, perhaps a jaunt to Garden of the Gods, spend a bit of time in Boulder, then head up to Estes..

Just to muddy the waters a bit, you might want to consider another mountain town other than Aspen. Aspen is beautiful, good for strolling through the town and people-watching, and a lot of outdoors stuff to do in the area. The drive there is easy and beautiful (Glenwood Canyon is especially beautiful, and I-70 goes right through it). However, it's a bit further away (3+ hours from Denver, probably the same coming from RMNP), especially as your time is somewhat limited. Maybe consider Vail or Breckenridge? Also pretty towns (though Vail was built in the '60s as a ski resort, Breckenridge is a former mining town, like Aspen), with lots of outdoors stuff to do, and many restaurants. And a lot closer.

In terms of RMNP/Estes Park as opposed to Aspen (or Vail or Breckenridge), it all depends on what you enjoy.

Here's my (biased) opinion on RMNP/Estes Park: Estes Park is an extremely touristy little town at the eastern gateway to RMNP (IMHO, on the tacky side of touristy). The restaurants lean heavily toward steak types of places. RMNP is a beautiful park, but there are not many roads through the park, so the traffic tends to concentrate on those roads (such as Trail Ridge Rd.). I have a big fear of heights, and have a real problem with Trail Ridge Rd., so we've never taken it to the other side. Quite a few good hikes, and the park map makes it easy to find them.

The other mountain towns: Also touristy, of course, but MUCH less so. Bigger variety of stores and restaurants, including high-end and ethnic restaurants, but also the ever-present T-shirt shops. (As you might guess, the number of high-end, expensive restaurants means Aspen's at the top, followed by Vail, then Breck, which has one or two that are like that). There are great hiking trails near each of the towns, though you'd have to check a book or ask at the visitor's center to find their locations. Each of those towns has, in or near it, stuff like gondolas, mountain biking, "regular" biking on paved paths, Alpine slide, etc.

You can do whitewater rafting from any of those locations, but I don't know how far you'd have to travel from each location to actually get to the rafting.

You'll have a wonderful time in any of the location, and each will give you a great taste of Colorado's beauty.

Thanks so much for all your advice.
I have a couple of questions..
What is the Pikes Peak area and how far is that from Denver? Garden of the Gods? What is the name of the town?
Maybe we could spend a night there, head up to Estes for 2 night and then back to Denver for our 4th night??
I'm afraid if we do 3 nights in Estes we'd be bored, no? I have no idea what its like.
Can you reccomend lodging in any of these towns? Estes,Vail/Breckinridge or Denver? I hear Cherry Creek is a nice area in Denver to stay.
Thanks for you help...

pikes peak is the giant mountain you will see from denver . it is where the song america the beautiful was written from. drive to the top of it. garden of the gods is a pretty place for its red rock formations especially pretty at sunset. if you choose to go there for a night(its near colorado springs and about 70 miles from denver)i would do something like this take i-25 down to the air force academy to see the one of a kind chapel(free too),proceed south to route 24 take it to pikes peak go to the top,then return down getting a hotel in manitou springs and visiting garden of the gods before and during sunset then return to the hotel. next day head to estes park the next morning. there are countless types of lodgings in and around estes park including an abundance of streamside inns/condos/etc. as well as nice hotels such as best western surrounded by peaks and walk to the lake. i would choose to explore the quaint town of estes park this day and perhaps take a nice hike along a river on your way there along highway 7 at a place called peaceful valley. next day i would drive into the park and go first to bear lake rd the have a picnic lunch in moraine park, take a hike. next day i'd head out early, drive trail ridge rd which is on top of the world it seems but safe and paved too by the way. i'd take it all the way thru to granby then take 40 to 70 and return to denver arriving by early afternoon.

I, too, am not a huge fan of Aspen. Go in the winter when you can ski at Snowmass and it will be a more worthwhile trip. I would also recommend Estes and RMNP for your 3 mountain days. Drive over Trail Ridge though and spend a night or two on the other side of RMNP in Grand Lake. Skip Pikes Peak and Colorado Springs.... or make it a day trip from Denver which is completely doable. RMNP is much more spectacular in my opinion.

You're the one visiting your son, right? As for as lodging, where does he live in Denver? Do you want to be close to him while you're in town? Let us know that.

For Estes Park, stay at the historic Stanley Hotel if you can. If not, there are plenty of B&Bs. Just do a search. And check out the Grand Lake Chamber of Commerce for lodging there.

About an hour in Estes park is enough for anyone.

An hour in Estes is enough!?!?
Yale:
My son lives near S Colorado Blvd. not far from the University he said...
Clueless where to stay, suggestions are greatful. Cherry Creek?
So maybe we should stay the 3 days in Estes/RMNP and then do a day trip to Manitou Springs with my son from Denver?

"an hour in estes park" could be true. However, Rocky Mountain National Park is well worth visiting. If you only want to spend an hour in Estes, go to the Stanley, wander around, have a nice lunch, admire the view. But DO NOT waste your money staying there; while the grounds and lobby and public places are nice, the rooms are overpriced, seedy, and rundown (yes, I speak from experience). There are many nice condo/cabins, esp. along the river.

Cherry Creek is a great area to stay - lots of shopping and restaurants. Also, a short drive to the DU area. There is a JW Marriott in the heart of Cherry Creek.

Poor Donna. The advice you're getting is reflecting everyone's personal biases and preferences. I think you need to look at some photos and website for each of the different areas and see what fits YOUR preferences.

Estes Park is a small town chock full of hotels and inns that is where people visiting RMNP generally stay. In my opinion, it's not fun to spend much time in the town itself. There are far more interesting mountain towns. RMNP really doesn't have any lodging within the park. Some people drive through it for the day, some linger longer, hiking and exploring. If that's your thing, stay longer at Estes Park.

Aspen is a mountain town. There are tons of things to see and do, even in the summer. Personally, I think the drive there is rather spectacular and if this is your Colorado vacation, it offers you lots of views and vistas that will really give you an idea of what Colorado has to offer. Glenwood Canyon is dramatic. If you take Independence Pass on your return to Denver you'll see my favorite Colorado pass and scenery.

If it were me, I would stay one night in Denver, one in Estes (or maybe Grand Lake after driving through RMNP) and then 2 nights in Aspen or Snowmass. Then spend the final night in Denver before flying out the next day.

Of course, this all reflects my personal preferences but I think it also gives you a great overview of Colorado, given a 5 day limitation.

Donna,

If your budget is tight, I recommend the Fairfield Inn and Suites on S. Colorado Blvd. during your Denver stay--we were just there in April and it was a wonderful surprise. Newly remodeled, it was nicer than some of the 4 star 'luxury' hotels we've stayed at. My daughter's dance competition was at DU and it literally took us 5 minutes to drive there from the Fairfield.

If you want to spend a bit more and be in the heart of Cherry Creek, stay at the JW Marriott. Oh la la--love it.

I have to say I'm with the group that thinks Estes is a tourist-trap. They actually have a traffic cop standing in the busiest intersection in town during the summer. On the other hand. RMNP is gorgeous and NOT a tourist-trap, so Estes would be a good base camp if you're going exploring. If you do stay in Estes and are a fan of "The Shining" movie, do stay at the Stanley Hotel. Stephen King based his book's hotel on the Stanley and it was quite an experience staying there. Very much a grande dame hotel.

Breckenridge is closer to Denver than Aspen and is a perfect summer getaway spot. I actually prefer going to Breck in the summer, rather than in the winter. Fun little shops, great restaurants, loads of golf courses and outdoor opportunities--sounds like it might be what you're looking for.

As far as white water rafting, you can find outfitters in both the Estes and Breckenridge areas, so no worries there.

You also mentioned Vail--we'll be there in August for a soccer tournament and I just booked two nights at the Vail Cascade Resort for our family. They have a summer special where you book 2 nights and get one free. I reserved a suite and ended up paying an average of $219 a night...not bad for pricey Vail.

...actually I booked three nights at the Vail Cascade--gotta take advantage of that free night :-)

Someone needs to do a better job of proofing her posts before hitting the 'post' button...

Donna-

Just got back tonight from a surprise anniversary trip to Estes Park. I've stayed there twice now (once at the Stanley which is HIGHLY overrated) and we just got back from a FANTASTIC and very private place for couples only. It was called Antlers Pointe (part of Creekside Suites). They actually have about 3 properties that are all very close to each other but are literally less than a mile from the entrance to RMNP. I will agree that Main Street in Estes is fairly touristy and although there are lots of restaurants we still haven't been to anything spectacular. We got a great reccomendation to go to the Baldpate Inn (which is not right in town) and when we went they were closed for a wedding but they have a very unique setting. Antelope Pointe is 8 small cabin/1 floor condo type units that you cross a little footbridge to get to over the river. Each unit has a grill outside, really nicely manicured landscaping, private hot tubs for each cabin all of which were just renovated and look brand new. They have a small kitchen with a tiny oven and stove and all the cooking supplies. So one night we grilled and the next night we went out. We also did the cookout picnic inside the park. We went almost every direction in the park and we still didn't see even close to everything. I live in CO and I still wanted to spend more like 3 to 4 nights up there so I wouldn't worry about it getting boring. I'll try to upload some photos of where we stayed and post them for you.

I just started uploading these photos but here's a few of ANTLERS POINTE (called it Antelope Pointe on the last post). Their website is below also.

http://community.webshots.com/photo/...37104772vGOGAh


http://www.estes-park.com/antlers/

lenleigh. THANKS.... The pictures are great!!!
Now we were thinkin of landing in Denver, drive out to Vail/Beaver Creek stay there for 2 nights, and while there making a day trip to Aspen.
Then on the 3rd day, leave early and head to Estes or Grand Lake for 2 nights. Then head to Denver for the last night to spend the day with my step-son.. Maybe go to Garden of the Gods for a day trip. WE don't mind getting up early and driving for 2 or 3 hours to get to our destination. This seems pretty do-able, wouldn't ya say?

I agree with Tess on Breckenridge in the summer. I'd choose that over Vail for summertime. Again, come back to visit Vail in the winter when you can ski the slopes. If you still want to make a day trip to Aspen, I'd recommend staying in Glenwood Springs... that way you can take advantage of the hot springs as well.

Donna, regarding your most recent plan, IMHO you would be spending way too much time in your car and too little time enjoying any one place.
I agree with Catbert's recommendation. Maybe drop the visit to Estes/RMNP/Grand Lake in favor of Breckenridge or Aspen or one other place you've researched. Forget about Garden of the Gods, with the other places you're planning, and a day-trip to Aspen from Vail would be a bad idea, too.

Simply pick a place and enjoy it.
It makes no sense to try to pack in as much as you're listing. They are all beautiful places, but each has plenty to offer on its own. Trying to see them all will just frustrate you.

It seems visitors think of Colorado like they do Italy-- that you can see it all in one quick drive-by visit. No, you can't. Don't even try. Because rushing through a beautiful place for the sake of saying "I've been there" is a waste of time, IMHO.

Plus, the mountain roads do get congested in the summertime with people trying to do just that, to touch bases with a packed itinerary of places. So driving can be sluggish in some spots, cars overheat on the inclines pulling , etc. And the price of gas??

Please minimize your driving, reduce the pollution and congestion. Just enjoy Colorado's quiet beauty and lively activities, not its choked highways.

Sorry if I seem to be ranting. It's a hot button of mine. If we had a good train system here, like in parts of Europe, it would be a godsend.

I strongly disagree with the last post. For years, I visited Colorado on at least an annual visit. Some of those visits were Grand Circle-type tours. Some of those visits were driving or flying in and spending lots of time in one location. The type and style of travel varied based on 1) what I wanted to see and do at that time 2) who was traveling with me and 3) what traveling companions had seen or not seen.

Colorado is a wonderful state. I have strongly reconsidered relocating there. If I "drop out" of my current life, I will probably resurface in Colorado.

Donna, enjoy your travels. Get a taste of Colorado and do your best to meet the needs, expectations and interest of your travel companions.

A warning though - you will want to come back again and again - especially since you have family there!

Enjoy.

Donna-

Your plan would work out fine. We rented a 4x4 and we had just as much fun driving back home through the mountains. Just because your in a car doesn't mean you can't enjoy the mountains. We drove through Grand Lake and it's a lot smaller than Estes but the main road is pretty packed with people. I think Estes is prettier than Grand Lake and you feel like your surrounded by more/bigger mountains than you do in Grand Lake. If you don't have the time to make it to Garden of the Gods (which I also have photos of on webshots) then you could stop at Red Rocks which is also very pretty and similar. It's famously known for the amphitheater where they have summer concerts and it's just off I-70/ C-470 on the way to or from the mountains.

Donna - There's lots of good advice here, but I think you need to take a moment and decide what it is you want out of this trip.

Your first post on this thread said you were going to spend a night or two in Denver, and the rest of your time in either Aspen or Estes Park. Your latest itinerary has you going from Denver to Vail/Beaver Creek (with a day trip to Aspen), then on to Grand Lake or Estes Park, then a night in Denver, with a possible day trip to CO Springs.

It's up to you - do you want to spend some time in one or two spots and explore/relax while there, or drive around to several locations and not have as much time at any of them? There are pluses and minuses to either plan, but for now, I really think you need to decide which plan (exploring one area vs. seeing a little of everything) is right for you, and THEN worry about the exact itinerary.

I'm with the "Estes is too crowded" group. We'll go up in the fall to see & hear the elk bugling and camp and hike, but if you're not of the camping hiking crowd - I think you could do RMNP in a day.

I think an Aspen day trip from Vail would be too much driving. I work in Vail, husband works in Snowmass - so we know that drive!

My 2 cents - from Denver drive to Estes, have lunch, drive through RMNP over Trail Ridge Road overnight in Grand Lake. Drive GL to Vail/Beaver Creek for a night or two. Drive thru Glenwood Canyon to Aspen and overnight. Return to Denver via Independence Pass thru Leadville- a long but scenic drive.

I would skip the Colorado Springs/Gdn of the Gods, Pikes Peak area this trip. Opposite direction and worth several days on its own.

Thanks for all of the great advice...
I have to make some decisions, trying to cram everything in just in case we don't come back. :0(
We don't mind driving and stopping and seeing things on the way. We did the PCH last year in 5 nights, was nice. We drove 2 or 3 hours every morning then stayed either a night or 2.

Last summer I spent time in Estes Park, Steamboat Springs, and Aspen.

Of the three, Steamboat Springs was by far our favorite. A real western feel, nice people, and beautiful scenery.

Estes was also beautiful, a little touristy, but worthwhile, especially if your goal is to see Rocky Mountain National Park.

Aspen was ok, although we felt out of place there...people were not friendly, the town was extremely expensive...I will not be headed back there.

Between the two I would choose Estes. However, if you can make it to Steamboat, it is worth the time to get there. Plenty to do, whitewater, horseback riding, rodeo, big firework show on 4th of July.

Donna, I'm surprised no one has mentioned the YMCA Estes Park right outside RMNP. We have stayed there twice, before kids and then last summer with kids. You may be able to get a room--it's very popular. We woke up early one morning to find mule deer outside our cabin! I agree that Estes Park is congested but it is a pretty town--we spent a morning walking around. Another suggestion, if you find yourself in the Boulder area, you MUST go to Celestial Seasonings Factory Tour. It's free and you'll never forget the experience. (They have a website.) I don't know anything about Aspen but Trail Ridge Road and RMNP are second to none. If you start the drive early, you'll avoid most of the congestion. Hope this helps.

I ditto not driving to Aspen just to "see" Aspen. You would do much better to enjoy the other mountain towns (and surrounds) you are already visiting. You aren't missing anything by missing Aspen - IMHO of course :-)

Estes and RMNP are a must, just may have another night or two before we go to Denver. Don't think I want to stay 3 or 4 nights in Estes/RMNP.

I would highly recommend Aspen. It is a favorite summer destination. The key to enjoying your visit though is staying in a location that is walkable to town. Traffic is heavy and frustrating if you stay out of town. I would not stop in Avon/Vail. 3 nights in Aspen would be better. Do not miss the Maroon Bells. They are gorgeous mountains in Aspen. Hiking is available from the parking lot. The evening concerts are wonderful in Aspen. The bike trails are fabulous. Take a ski lift to the top of the mountain too. Be sure and drink plenty of water if you aren't used to high altitudes.

We probably going to do 2 nights in Aspen, thinking of staying at the Inn at Aspen, they have a shuttle. Any other recommendations on lodging in Aspen?

Can someone suggest the best route to get to Aspen from Denver. Then from Aspen to Estes? Thanks....

www.mapquest.com

Did mapquest, but it takes you back to Denver and up..I'll check out AAA

Donna, there are two ways to get Aspen. I would go TO Aspen via I70 to Glenwood Springs and then 82 to Aspen. Glenwood Canyon is dramatic and beautiful.

I would return from Aspen by going over Independence Pass and then north on 91 to 9, connecting with I-70. Take 119 (Blackhawk) to 72 to Estes Park.

You could reverse these, or go one or the other both ways. It would give you a better overview of Colorado to do a different one each way. I-70 to Glenwood Springs is the less stressful.