The best ski resorts in Colorado

The USA is known for many things, its world-class ski resorts among them. Though Brits might naturally plump for the closer proximity of European slopes, the States has carved out a reputation for snowsports thanks to a number of famed mountain destinations to rival the Alps.

Colorado is one such state, with ski resorts lauded for their champagne powder, extensive and varied terrain, tree-lined trails and gentle bowls to play in. Blessed with the incredible Rocky Mountains, a variety of snow-sure destinations and plenty of Wild West charm, it has quickly risen to become the capital of skiing in the US.

Legendary resorts like Vail, Aspen and Breckenridge, with their vast skiable areas, have long attracted visitors hoping to sample world-famous runs and a taste of the high life at 2,500 metres.

From the family-friendly haven of Steamboat to lesser-known destinations for those in the know, such as Telluride, Colorado caters to skiers of all abilities, with over 32 resorts to choose from. Here’s a selection of the best. 

Vail

Perhaps the USA’s most famous ski resort, Vail – operated by the eponymous Vail Resorts – is home to a vast skiable area of over 5,000 acres that caters to every level of skier and snowboarder. Plentiful recent investment means that lifts are quick, and with a season that runs from mid-November to mid-April, there’s plenty of time to experience this vast, Bavarian-style resort. For the ultimate experience, the Epic Pass gives access to all of Vail’s Colorado resorts, including Crested Butte and Breckenridge.

Though the resort’s glittering reputation and high-end restaurants and activities make it an expensive place to ski, Vail has an almost unrivalled variety of accommodation, place to eat and drink and, most importantly, slopes. Beginners can tackle the areas at the top of the Eagle Bahn Gondola and Gopher Hill, while intermediates will enjoy runs such as Born Free, Bwana and Simba. The Back Bowls and Blue Sky Basin contain some of the most famed terrain in Vail, with powder bowls, tree runs and steep trails.

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Heidi offers stays at the Tivoli Lodge in traditional accommodation with pared-back, spacious rooms and plenty of mountain character, just four minutes from the slopes and the resort hub.

From £3,267pp including seven nights’ accommodation, return flights from London Heathrow, one piece of checked luggage per passenger and airport transfers. Departing 5 February 2024.

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Aspen

Colorado’s other resort renowned for its glitz (and prices to match) welcomes a similarly glamorous crowd. Though the town is equally vibrant and the slopes equally welcoming for all levels, it’s generally far less busy than its well-heeled rival. Its four mountains cater to every ability, from gentle beginner slopes around Buttermilk to the World Cup run on Aspen Mountain and the serious off-piste area around Highlands and its Bowl. Freestyling is an option in the terrain park, but intermediates can have fun traversing the wide, groomed blue runs on Aspen Mountain.

With a population of around 7,000, Aspen is an energetic town even outside of the ski season. It has long attracted the wealthy and famous, though not everything is pricey – Aspen is an après capital too, with plenty of happy hour deals and bars ranging from live music at Limelight Lounge to old saloons (J-Bar) and casual fine dining at Ajax Tavern.

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Beat the post-Christmas blues with the Ski Solutions package to The Gant, Aspen. A series of large, functional apartments set at the base of Aspen Mountain (and within walking distance of the town), it benefits from year-round indoor and outdoor pools and an on-site restaurant, Pepperjack’s Cafe, that serves breakfast and lunch daily.

From £3,745pp including seven nights’ accommodation, return flights from a London airport and airport transfers. Departing 13 January 2024.

Breckenridge

Breckenridge is the third-highest ski resort in the world, at a whopping 3,914 metres. Home to around 3,000 acres of skiable terrain and 187 trails, this extremely snow-sure destination is another resort with plenty of variety in its slopes.

There are plenty of long, well-groomed blues on Peak 7 and on Peak 8 just off the Beaver Run SuperChair, while intermediates and beginners can enjoy blue and green trails at the Bergman Bowl, now accessible via a high-speed lift. Peak 8 and Peak 9 are home to the best of the other beginners’ terrain, while the Erickson Bowl (also served by the new lift) and Peak 10 cater to more advanced mountain goers.

In resort, Breck’s history as a mining town is still evident, with low-rise Victorian buildings and colourful facades aplenty, while several bars and restaurants create a lively après scene. Centred around the charming Main Street, you’ll find everything from taco joints to high-altitude distilleries, with over 200 shops and restaurants to try.

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Crystal Ski offers a trip to the Beaver Run Resort, just 10 minutes away from the centre of the town. This ski-in/ski-out hotel has an indoor and outdoor pool, a spa and wellness centre and its own restaurant, while its rooms are spacious and rustic, with a distinct traditional mountain feel.

From £2,136pp including seven nights’ accommodation, return flights from London Heathrow, one piece of checked luggage per passenger and airport transfers. Departing 3 February 2024.

Beaver Creek

Another Vail Resort-owned destination, Beaver Creek has quickly garnered a reputation as one of Colorado’s premier resorts. A more muted resort than Vail, there’s plenty of choice for accommodation and a fairly lively après scene.

Since opening in 1980, Beaver Creek has hosted the Alpine World Ski Championships three times, with annual World Cup races also taking place along its Birds of Prey track. With just over 1,800 acres of terrain, it is smaller than some of its competitors but provides great variety, especially for beginners and intermediates.

There is less advanced terrain in Beaver Creek, though the Stone Creek Chutes, Grouse Mountain and Birds of Prey trails offer steep black runs. For beginners, almost every lift has a top-to-bottom green trail, with a good beginner zone at the top of the mountain. Arrowhead and the Larkspur Bowl contain long blues, with the Centennial Express lift and Bachelor Gulch also popular among confident intermediates.

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For a comfortable, well-located stay in Beaver Creek, stay at The Pines Lodge, a RockResort. The Heidi package puts you in a stylish King Room with excellent views of the surrounding mountains, and you’ll be less than 10 minutes away from both the town centre and the slopes.

From £3,048pp including seven nights’ accommodation, return flights from London Heathrow, one piece of checked luggage per passenger and airport transfers. Departing 13 January 2024.

Telluride

Telluride is another former mining town brimming with amazing mountain scenery. Sitting in a valley on the banks of the San Miguel river, this 2,000-acre ski area is slightly off the beaten track, but is worth the effort to explore a haven of intermediate and advanced pistes. The town of Telluride itself is a more upbeat alternative to the family-friendly atmosphere and accommodation in the Mountain Village, with more bars and restaurants and a lively atmosphere on weekends and during holidays.

Beginners can check out the Mountain Village or the greens near the Chondola lift and the Sunshine Express, with intermediates favouring the Prospect Bowl and the area around the Polar Queen Express.

For experienced piste-bashers, there are groomed black runs in the Revelation Bowl, as well as excellent, steep off-piste in the Gold Hill Chutes, near the Prospect Express or just off Palmyra Peak.

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Hotel Telluride offers a stay in a beautiful chalet-style stone building near the centre of Telluride and just seven minutes from the lifts. A Snowpak package offers a Superior Room and includes lift passes and equipment rental, all of which can be collected within a 10-minute walk.

From £3,174pp including seven nights’ accommodation, lift passes, all equipment rental and airport transfers. Arriving 1 February 2024. British Airways operates regular flights from London Heathrow to Denver, with prices starting at £560pp for return flights departing 1 February and returning 8 February 2024.

Steamboat

Steamboat has become popular with all levels of skier, known for its snow-sure conditions and the quality of its powder snow (of which it gets around eight metres per year). The unusually high number of Winter Olympians that are from the town – as of Beijing 2022 there are 100, by far the most of any town in the US – attests to the world-class snowsports opportunities spread across the 3,000 acres of skiable terrain.

The lower parts of the mountain feature some of the best beginners’ areas in the country, with gentle blues allowing easy progression and some areas even opening during the evening for night skiing. Intermediates should head for the areas around Morningside and the Pony Express, with steeper blue runs including Vagabond and Heavenly Daze. For the more advanced there are the steep slopes of Mount Werner and the zone around Morningside Park, with the backcountry of Fish Creek Canyon also accessible.

The resort, as well as the town of Steamboat Springs, is known to be family-friendly (kids under 12 ski for free) and features plenty of non-skiing winter activities. There’s a distinct mountainous, Wild-West feel to the town, with wide boulevards and plenty of low-rise buildings set among the mountains of the Yampa Valley.

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American Ski Classics provides packages to Steamboat. For a stay that is just five minutes away from the ski area (and with free shuttles into town), choose the Steamboat Grand. It provides a series of rustic, cosy rooms alongside a year-round outdoor pool and on-site restaurant, with the weekend happy hour at the Cabin Bar a particularly popular feature.

From £2,736pp including seven nights’ accommodation, return flights from London Heathrow, one piece of checked luggage per passenger and airport transfers. Departing 20 January.

Crested Butte

Known as “the last great Colorado ski town”, Crested Butte sits three miles from the 1,500-acre ski area of the same name. It’s a charming, unpretentious Victorian town that combines alpine-esque surroundings with classic 19th-century American buildings, and though it is further to get to – around four-and-a-half hours if driving from Denver – it’s worth it to experience a true Coloradan ski town from times gone by.

Though there are some good beginner zones around the base of the mountain, with excellent progression beneath the Red Lady Express and some great intermediate runs around the Paradise Bowl, Crested Butte is really an advanced-to-expert paradise. Over 50 per cent of the runs here are categorised as advanced or expert level, with groomed black runs under the Silver Queen Express and plenty of double-black diamond runs, found in the Teocalli Bowl, near the Silver Queen chair and at the Extreme Limits.

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Stay at the Nordic Inn, courtesy of Expedia, if you want an ideal base for maximizing time spent skiing while also being able to enjoy tranquil, comfortable accommodation when you’re not on the slopes. It sits 10 minutes away from the resort centre and a few hundred metres from the nearest lift, with free shuttles to take you into town whenever you need something a little livelier.

From £1,598pp including seven nights’ accommodation and return flights from London Heathrow. Departing 27 January.

Read our reviews of the best USA hotels