Aspen or Vail for Summer 2024

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about Telluride, Montose, or Ouray? I'd go to any if those in the summer before Vail.

Those are all great, but in a completely different part of the state.

[Anonymous]

Appreciate the Op for asking this. My son loves Colorado and asks to go every summer. Sometimes we do other times we make our way to California. We spend so much time in Aspen and boulder - so may try Aspen on for size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about Telluride, Montose, or Ouray? I'd go to any if those in the summer before Vail.

Those are all great, but in a completely different part of the state.

They're easier to get to than Aspen.

[Anonymous]

NP, but can anyone compare Vail and Aspen (in summer).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP, but can anyone compare Vail and Aspen (in summer).

Several people did…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP, but can anyone compare Vail and Aspen (in summer).

Several people did…

Other than a couple of people saying, “Aspen is a real town and Vail is not,” I don’t think there were comparisons, just suggestions of activities in each place (which sounded very similar to me).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colorado native, so I'm probably biases but Vail ALL day. I spent every summer growing up going to Vail for at least a week and it's still my favorite mountain town. Aspen is beautiful but annoying...not a place Coloradans spend any time. That being said, that is probably my bias against it from growing up there. Its just so much more a scene in the ways that I don't enjoy.

Crested Butte would be my pick. Great summer town, stunning, great with children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colorado native, so I'm probably biases but Vail ALL day. I spent every summer growing up going to Vail for at least a week and it's still my favorite mountain town. Aspen is beautiful but annoying...not a place Coloradans spend any time. That being said, that is probably my bias against it from growing up there. Its just so much more a scene in the ways that I don't enjoy.

Hard disagree. I too am a CO native. Vail is a resort that was built in the 1970’s as a ski resort. There are some summer activities but it isn’t a real place where people live. Wherever you go in the mountains you will find beautiful scenery and plenty of outdoor activities. But if you have any interest in culture or history don’t do Vail. Do Aspen or Leadville or Breckinridge.

[Anonymous]

Isn’t Breckenridge akin to Vail - a ski resort that the town grew around?

[Anonymous]

Prospectors entered what is now Summit County (then part of Utah Territory) during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush of 1859, soon after the placer gold discoveries east of Breckenridge near Idaho Springs. Breckenridge was founded to serve the miners working rich placer gold deposits discovered along the Blue River. Placer gold mining was soon joined by hard rock mining, as prospectors followed the gold to its source veins in the hills. Gold in some upper gravel benches east of the Blue River was recovered by hydraulic mining. Gold production decreased in the late 1800s, but revived in 1908 by gold dredging operations along the Blue River and Swan River. The Breckenridge mining district is credited with production of about one million troy ounces (about 31,000 kilograms) of gold.

[Anonymous]

Aspen is great in the summer. I have been there many times. Tond of hiking and biking, plus the town has plenty to see and enjoy. Food is fantastic. The bus system is easy to use. If you do, definitely take the bus up to the Bells. Hike there during the day. It’s spectacular.

I went to Vail last summer with the kids. It was great for a week but I prefer Aspen. Vail had fewer food options, and less of a town that’s fun to do stuff in.

Either is beautiful and would be fun. But if prices were similar I’d go for Aspen in a heartbeat.

You didn’t mentioned Breckenridge but I found it really fun too. Altitude is higher though - one thing to consider.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Prospectors entered what is now Summit County (then part of Utah Territory) during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush of 1859, soon after the placer gold discoveries east of Breckenridge near Idaho Springs. Breckenridge was founded to serve the miners working rich placer gold deposits discovered along the Blue River. Placer gold mining was soon joined by hard rock mining, as prospectors followed the gold to its source veins in the hills. Gold in some upper gravel benches east of the Blue River was recovered by hydraulic mining. Gold production decreased in the late 1800s, but revived in 1908 by gold dredging operations along the Blue River and Swan River. The Breckenridge mining district is credited with production of about one million troy ounces (about 31,000 kilograms) of gold.

It’s been probably 10 years, but I still remember taking my kids on a gold mine tour outside Breckenridge. It was really enjoyable for a range of kids aged 3-12 and their parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colorado native, so I'm probably biases but Vail ALL day. I spent every summer growing up going to Vail for at least a week and it's still my favorite mountain town. Aspen is beautiful but annoying...not a place Coloradans spend any time. That being said, that is probably my bias against it from growing up there. Its just so much more a scene in the ways that I don't enjoy.

Well my great-great-grandfather came to Colorado in the 1800s to work on the railroad and I wouldn’t even call Vail a mountain town. It’s a large resort between the interstate and a ski mountain. I’d rather spend a week in any of the other towns mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn’t Breckenridge akin to Vail - a ski resort that the town grew around?

No. It was a mining town that added a ski resort. Aspen was also a town that added skiing, although no question that the skiing has contributed to the growth of the town and the price of real estate.