Mountain Vacation in the United States
 

So I'm looking for somewhere to go in either the continental united states or Canada.
It will be me and my father and wewould like to be in the middle of some really dramatic mountains. We don;t ski so it doesnt have to have ski runs.
So far we have been to Vail, Colorado and Aspen, Colorado so we would like a change o scenery.
We're thinking of stay anywhere from five nights to ten nights/
We do like luxury but we would take beautiful views over luxury.

What time of year do you want to go?

Lee Ann

What about Banff or Jasper, in Canada? The Canadian Rockies are absolutely breathtaking, even more so than in the US, I think.

Sorry, I should have thought a little more before I posted. What are your interests besides being in the mountains - shopping, hiking, restaurants, etc.?

Have you ever been to Grand Teton National Park or Yellowstone? You could combine the two easily. www.nps.gov/grte and www.nps.gov/yell

Lee Ann

ElendilPickle - I will make an exception to my statement above for GT/YNP. You win.

:-) sludick! I haven't been to Banff or Jasper, but I thought of that as a possiblity as well.

Lee Ann

Our three favorites have been named here: Canadian Rockies (Banff), Colorado (Rocky Mountain National Park), and Grand Teton National Park (Jasper, WY). They are equally wonderful--each in its own way.

HTTY

> wewould like to be in the middle of some really dramatic mountains

That being the case, your choice is Banff / Jasper.

Would I prefer Yellowstone / Tetons over those two? Definitely. But you didn't say you were looking for "geo-thermal features" or "waterfalls" or "natural wonders" or "wildlife" -- you said, "really dramatic mountains." The Tetons have those, but the combo of Banff / Jasper has more of them.

Since I live in Colorado- I am advocating for another visit here. Telluride/Ouray are beautiful- down in the south west part of the state. Crested Butte is wonderful in the summer- the wildflower festival is fun and different. Back towards I 70 and the more central part of the state- Winter Park, Grand Lake and then over Trail Ridge Road to Rocky Mountain National Park is as dramatic as it gets. That road is only open in the summer months though. Stay in Estes Park and enjoy the scenery, dining and shopping.

Banff! The Colorado Rockies are great, and there are wonderful towns to visit, but the Canadian Rockies are much more dramatic (and yes, breathtaking).

There are a lot of great mountains in the US. If you don't ski or snow activities, I would go in the summer then.

Mt. Rainier
Tetons
Rockys
Lassen
Even Mt. Hood or Mt. St. Helens are very impressive to me.
Sierra Nevadas/Yosemite/Sequoia National Parks

Even somewhere like Guadalupe or Big Bend have nice Mountains in a totally different atmosphere.

I haven't been to The North Cascades(going this summer), but they appear to be somewhat like Banff.