Ski away this winter at Aspen Resorts

Are you the kind of person who would like to be out in the open and be doing something than staying cooped up indoors? In summer it does not matter. What about winter time? It will be freezing cold and one has to be all bundled up to stay warm. All around you see people shovelling snow off their driveways and walkways. Not to worry. Ski resorts are your ideal destinations to make vacations and holidays during the winter fun!

So, what is a ski resort in the first place?

A ski resort is a resort that has been designed and developed to ski, snowboard and host various other winter sports. To facilitate the sports, these resorts are generally located in mountainous areas, usually in the outskirts of a town or a village.

In North America, these resorts have skiing as the main stream activity. Apart from ski trials there are supporting services like hotels, restaurants, rentals for renting skiing and other sport equipments and the ski – lift system. The ski – lift systems are used to rapidly transfer people to the top of the slopes. Chairlifts are very common among them. For shorter slopes like the ones for beginners, they use rope tows. For larger ski areas aerial trams and gondolas are used. In some resorts, you could even avail lodging on the slopes themselves. You could ski out and back in, right to your door!

Is Skiing the only sport on the resort? No. Snowmobiling, sledding, horse drawn sleds, dog sleds and ice skating are also available. Not only that, you have local entertainment like theatres, cinema, clubs and cabaret. For aiding tourists and guests, ski patrols come to the rescue of injured guests and have basic first aid facilities. They also ensure order in the resort and dismiss nuisances.

 What does Aspen offer?

Aspen boasts ‘The power of four’. With four peaks named Snowmass, Aspen Mountain, Aspen highlands and Buttermilk, tourists are promised the times of their life.

Getting here

The nearest airports are Aspen/Pitkin County airport (ASE, 3 miles from Aspen, 6 miles from Snowmass), Eagle County Regional airport (EGE, 70 miles from Aspen and Snowmass), Denver International airport (DIA, 220 miles from Aspen and Snowmass), Grand Junction Regional airport (GJT, 130 miles from Aspen and Snowmass), Colorado Springs airport (COS, 270 miles from Aspen and Snowmass).

There are free shuttle services between the four mountains from 8 in the morning to 4:30 in the evening. Rubey Park on Durant Street is the starting point for shuttles within Aspen downtown. There are scheduled and chartered services available at airports to your lodging. It is advisable to book the services prior to arrival.

 For novices and beginners

There are ski and snowboard schools that have trained professionals who are more than willing to build confidence, help you understand the terrain and guiding you to ski and snowboard. They also help you know other things on the resort. The programs are designed for tourists of all ages and abilities. The lessons are designed for 100% satisfaction, risk free adventure.

Staying and Lodging

There are many lodges, resorts and condominiums and clubs to make the stay stellar. Be it economical accommodation or ultrachic hotels, there are hotels and resorts of all kinds. You have on the slope lodging and ski in and ski out gondolas. Child care and tree house adventures are available for kids. They can spend their time happily here when the adults are taking a respite.

Lifts tickets and equipments

As for the lift tickets they are categorised for kids, adults and the youth. You could purchase the tickets seven days in advance and get 10% off. In addition to this you could add rental equipments to this purchase.

Rental equipment stores are available for adults and children. For those who want to make outright purchases, there is also a D&E retail store.

Happenings

There are events and activities that happen here to make it lively. Music festivals, culinary and art experiences, the Aspen Ideas festival which is an Aspen original and signature events mark the calendar almost every day.

The Meeting is an event that offers all the biggest and best ski and snowboard movies of the year. Along with this there is a fashion show, industry conference and other fun activities in which snow sports film makers, athletes and industry insiders take part.

The Power of Four race series is a premier race series that tests the limits of elite and recreational athletes. Apart from this there are mountain bike races, trail races. Ruggerfest and Aspenfest are in town events that steal the show too.

The Numbers

Ajax Statistics

Vertical Rise: 3267 feet

Skiable Terrain: 675 acres

Peak Elevation: 11212 feet

Base Elevation: 7945 feet

Annual Snowfall: 300 inches

Number of Lifts: 8

Number of Trails: 76

Snowmass Statistics

Vertical Rise: 4406 feet

Skiable Terrain: 3010 acres

Peak Elevation: 12510 feet

Base Elevation: 8104 feet

Annual Snowfall: 300 inches

Number of Lifts: 20

Number of Trails: 83

Aspen Highlands Statistics

Vertical Rise: 3635 feet

Skiable Terrain: 714 acres

Peak Elevation: 11675 feet

Base Elevation: 8040 feet

Annual Snowfall: 300 inches

Number of Lifts: 4

Number of Trails: 115

Buttermilk Statistics

Vertical Rise: 2030 feet

Skiable Terrain: 420 acres

Peak Elevation: 9900 feet

Base Elevation: 7870 feet

Annual Snowfall: 200 inches

Number of Lifts: 7

Number of Trails: 43

Whether you are an expert or a novice, if you love the snow and you like being on the move, you could try the one of the top ski resorts in North America - Aspen