Looking to go to Breckenridge in January and wanted to know your opinions on skiing for intermediate and beginners? Also does anyone has good suggestions on where to stay. It would be nice to stay in the main town if possible. There will be two of us. Are there any lodges or small hotels or is everything condos to rent?
thanks

Breck is well geared to the beginners and intermediate ski with decent separation. Peak 10 is solely for advance skiers and Peak 7 is most a beginners area with 8 and 9 a mix of both. The area is loaded with thousand of condos so finding a place to stay especially in January is not a problem. Avoid the MLK weekend if you can. Many of the condos will be ski out and some both in and out. The town has an excellent free bus system that you can easily get around without a car. Try the VRBO or other condo web site plus the Breckenridge web site.

Since you are looking for inns and not condos, I recommend Hunt Placer Inn.

You'll love Breckenridge - great little town. I'm wearing gloves today that I bought at a terrific glove shop in town. I also get spices (by mail now) from a store I found in Breckenridge:

http://www.handandglove.com/index.htm

https://secure.spicemerchants.biz/sm/ (the "Butcher's Rub" is fabulous on pork chops)

We stayed at Grand Lodge on Peak 7. It's not right in town (5 minutes drive), but it is ski in-ski out, which we liked, and the place is lovely (the suite was tight for 3 people, but we were in the smallest size available). We didn't have any problem driving into town, and parking was fairly easy.

free transportation all across the numerous towns there.. being close to a bus stop or on the slopes is more important to me. Frisco is a nice town, also, and you have the free shuttle station there that take you to all three ski areas. It is much smaller than breck, though, but very nice.

I think you will also like Copper Mountain. I loved their daily free guided mountain tours. They gave me someone to ski with for awhile when my husband and son went off to do their more advanced slopes.

Agreed, Breckenridge is very good for neophytes and intermediates. Unlike Taos Ski Valley, the greens are actually beginner-friendly.

I got an email from oyster.com today and this was one of the items in the email:

http://www.oyster.com/breckenridge/h...e85a1594cd90aa

Looks nice.

Take at least one day of lessons for each of you, even though you will be in separate classes, unless you want to spring for a private lesson. It is the prime way to improve your skiing, and your fun doing it.

I just want to add that be aware of the altitude of that resort. Dont push to hard the first day!

Other than that......great resort for intermediates. Nice town as well

-john

Drink LOTS AMD LOTS of water all the time.

Good point bmw! We stayed in a condo on one of the trails and that was at 9,000 ft.

Less booze, more water!

We loved Breck, and are thinking of a return trip this year.

any ski rental shop you would recommend?

one near the slopes/bus stop to keep your skis and snow boots so as not to have to drag them back to the flat if it is far.

Personally think they are all about the same. There is one at the main base with the 12 pack chair lift. Goggle Breckenridge and see who comes up. I have personally used Christy Sports.

you may find coupons for them also. Another activity we LOVED out of Frisco was a snow mobile tour off mountain in a fabulous area.

Here's one company.

http://www.coloradosnowmobile.com/

I was surprised at how expensive the shuttle services are to and from denver airport to Breckenridge. Can you someone recommend one or two?

They are all about the same and you are right--expensive. Rent a car? Over all, you might enjoy it more. But now the time is short, and the rates may be up.

You will also find that the drivers will stop for something to drink, and expect a tip at the end. Just an FYI.

I rent a car. Cost can be comparable and you get the freedom to set your own schedule. I'm guessing the services are so standardized that the differences are negligible - like airport parking companies.

There's no reason that a shuttle would be cheap - they drive you two hours from the airport and the same or more back, and the conditions for driving can suck on two levels: weather and traffic. You have to drive THROUGH Denver no matter what, which sucks because it's a major city AND because I-70 is woefully undersized for the traffic conditions (just three lanes each way through central Denver when I last went . . . this may have changed). If you're returning to Denver on a Sunday, prepare for serious traffic snarls because everyone goes to I-70 to return to the city from the slopes.

And the trip to/from Breck requires negotiating some of the snowiest, slickest Interstate roadway in the US if a storm hits (did this in a rented Altima in '08). It snows in them thar mountains.