Thanksgiving in Colorado
 

My wife and I (Mrs. mdtravel) are going to be traveling to Colorado over Thanksgiving as just a sort of getaway trip. We've been to Denver plenty of times and we wouldn't mind being there again.

I'd like to get suggestions on things to do around the Denver area. We've been to Vail and Aspen a few times so those drives are probably not necessary. Are there quaint or interesting towns? What about unique hotels or places to stay? I don't think we'd mind just spending our time driving around seeing things.

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We did the "Thanksgiving in Colorado" trip about 3 years ago.

I'm not sure how much time you have, but we took about 7 days.

After leaving Denver, we went to Crested Butte, which is a cute (nothing like Vail) town, with some nice restaurants. (It's about a 4-5 hour drive from Denver. Try to spend some time walking/hiking in Black Canyon.

Then we drove down the "Million Dollar Highway" and went through Ouray and Silverton.

We stayed in Durango. We spent a day at Mesa Verde, which wasn't nearly enough time.

We then went up to Telluride, which is perhaps my favorite town in Colorado. You are encircle by mountains. The town is very cowboy-like, but authentic. Some great restaurants and shopping there.

Then we went to Aspen for a long day, and stayed overnight at Breckenridge before departing out of Denver.

It was a lot of driving, and I'd do it a little differently now. I'd probably just do the Crested Butte up to Aspen. There are some wonderful sights to see.

We're heading back to Aspen this Christmas. Can't wait.

Have fun.

Crested Butte is great - but it will mean a lot of driving (even 5 hours from Denver can be quite optimistic). If you want smaller towns near Denver, have you been to Red Rocks and Morrison - you can hike around Red Rocks... and Morrison is just a few miles up the road. From there, take the Canyon to Evergreen. Both are tiny towns with an interesting and funky mix of shops and restaurants... Certainly nothing like Aspen in size or glitz. But I think fun. Have lunch at Wildflower Cafe in downtown Evergreen.

If you only have a limited amount of time, Crested Butte is really not an option. There are several very beautiful "scenic byways" which you should research, one of which is the drive from I-70 near Idaho Springs to Nederland on Colo. 119. There are some unique towns also in the foothills, and some B&B's that are very remote and hospitable.

Another great thing to do (IMHO) is to go to VRBO.com and take a scenic and rustic ranch house or cabin in the Steamboat Springs area. That's roughly the distance of Aspen from Denver, a nice, scenic drive, and there are plenty of things to do, not the least of which is go to Strawberry Park, my favorite clothing-optional (nights) hot springs, where a hot soak under a starry sky on a cold evening is just about as good as it gets. http://www.strawberryhotsprings.com/

Have you had high tea at the Brown Palace hotel in Denver? My wife says that's really nice.

Here is a suggestion for a great Downtown Denver evening: Get tix for something at the pepsi center like the avalance or nuggets, or at the performing arts center, and have a great dinner in lodo.

have fun and enjoy.

Have you stopped at Glenwood HotSprings west of Vail? There are also nice hot springs in Steamboat Springs.Until today, it has been really warm. If the warm weather continues, a horse back ride in Estes Park or around Crested Butte might be nice. There's a great traveling art exhibit right now at The Denver Art Museum with many of the Masters presented. Denver has a great zoo and Botanic Gardens. Both have Christmas exhibits, but I don't know there opening dates. Check out some of the plays in town at that time. Hotel Monaco just got a "top" rating in today's newspaper and the Fort restaurant in Morrison got a "top" restaurant for visitors. The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park is nice if you ask for a remodeled room.

Anyone have any experience at the Stanley Hotel in Estes? I'm thinking of going there for Thanksgiving dinner and staying over on Thanksgiving night.