Hi all. I am travelling to Vail with my sons, 12 and 11 in Jan.
Is it important to stay within walking distance of the lifts?
Is Mountain Haus suitable? My boys like the heated pool. Any suggestions on accommodation?

When we ski we always rent a condo instead of hotel. There are tons of condos in Vail that can be rented on various websites. I prefer VRBO.com and Vailnet. Vail has a great free bus system so even if you don't stay in a property that is walking distance to lifts you can take the bus. If you are there more than three days I'd take a day to ski Beaver Creek too. We go to the Vail-Beaver Creek area each summer for a family vacation and I've skied there several times also but since we always stay in Condo's I'm not to familiar with the various hotels.

Mountain Haus has condos. It has a great location - center of town, walk to lifts, restaurants, etc. The units are individually owned & decorated. You may wish to request a recently remodeled unit if one is available.

Thanks for your information. Is a condo better? The boys and I are happy to all stay in a room together. What is the advantage of a condo? Do you know another called Evergreen? It is another we have been recommended but I wondered whether it's too far from the center?

Does the Mountain Haus have a decent heated pool.
Are there any public heated swimming facilities in Vail?

For us, the advantage of a condo is more space, plus a kitchen. I don't like to cook full meals on vacation, but do like to have a frig for snacks and dinks, to have a quick breakfast (toast, jiuce and coffee) in the room, rather than spending an hour at a restaurant, and being able to pack a lunch for the hill.

We too like to do the condo thing. More room typically a better value.
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Condos are nice just to spread out and even if you're not cooking, you can have breakfast, sandwiches, grab a pizza and be able to spread out.

The Evergreen Hotel used to be part of the Doubletree chain, so its that moderate level. They have an outdoor pool, but I would check to see if its open in the winter. Its about 500-600 yards to the Lionshead gondola. There's a free bus system within the town that will get you a little closer.

The only public pool is in Avon - 10 miles west of Vail. There's a bus that will get you there for about $2/one-way. It's great for kids that age - floating pool, slides, etc. There's a lifeguard on duty, so you can try out the gym or the many classes while the kids are tiring themselves out.

If you want more details, you can e-mail me at [email protected]

Two other recommendaitons for you to consider. The Christiania, a small cozy hotel within easy alking distance to the Vista Bahn Lift (and a possible ski in if the snow's deep. It also has a great outdoor heeated pool and is right on the edge of Vail Village so it's a little less "busy" than the in the village places. If you go the condo route, consider Lion Square Lodge in Lionshead. Great location just off the Gondola. I'm not a big Lionshead fan, but you can always catch a quick shuttle to Vail Village.