Trip Take: Winter Park
Those who’ve been following Base Kamp since the beginning might recall that we hadn’t planned on heading to Colorado for MLK weekend. Our original plans called for a trip east to Killington (VT), but, when warm temps in New England interfered with resorts’ ability to make snow, we pivoted. Mark and I really value skiing back east, both for the unique character of New England ski mountains and towns and the value that eastern mountains often provide. When only 40% of terrain is open, though, it’s tough to justify flying in that direction when the trip’s sole purpose is skiing.
Because our flights were on Southwest, we were able to rebook without a fee. While the flights were pricier than our Killington (Albany) flights had been, we found a roomy, affordable Winter Park condo that kept our total trip cost close to what we’d originally planned. We flew into DIA on Friday after school and returned late on Monday night.
Our Approach
This was a different trip than our 6-day adventure to Sun Valley. There, staying in a hotel meant frequent dinners in town and ample opportunities to explore the area beyond the slopes. In Winter Park, though, skiing was the only item on the agenda. We’d spent freely on dining and entertainment in Sun Valley, so we took a more economical approach in Winter Park.
The morning we arrived, Mark made a quick grocery run. Simple breakfasts at home and a big batch of pasta with ample leftovers meant that on-mountain lunches were our only spendy meals. We really could have edited our packing list for this trip down to our ski gear and pajamas, and sometimes, a ski-and-pajama trip is exactly what we need! Though we didn’t get to experience much of the area outside the resort, I have no doubt we’ll be back.
Accessing the Mountain and Village
Our condo in Fraser was about 10 minutes from the resort base. We rented a Ford Edge for this trip and drove it daily from our condo to the mountain. The resort has a variety of parking options, and their app was very helpful in determining which lots still had spaces available. We learned during our stay that when the app reports a lot has “limited” parking spots remaining, it’s best to switch to another lot with more availability. Close-in parking on weekend days cost $20 (Hot tip: take a photo of your rental car license plate; you’ll need it at the pay station.)
Ridin’ the Winter Park Cabriolet
The Vintage Lot, from which visitors can ride the Cabriolet lift directly into the village, offers a free 5-minute drop-off area, which is a convenient option if a member of your party isn’t planning to ski and needs the car for other adventures. An additional, 30-minute drop-off zone is available in the North Bench lot. We used the North Bench drop-off on Sunday morning when our kids were scheduled for lessons (though the walk to the Ski and Ride School was still a decent hike for kids carrying gear).
Winter Park, like many other resorts, now provides wagons at various stations throughout the village. These little wagons are lifesavers when carrying several pair of skis. The Base Kamp team are BIG wagon fans; we hope every mountain will invest in them soon. Especially at a place like Winter Park, where the walk from one’s arrival point to a lift (or to ski school) can be long, a wagon is a tremendous help.
On the Mountain, Day 1
Having overfaced Z on arrival at Sun Valley, we wanted a much more positive start for her at Winter Park. On Day 1 (Saturday), we rode the gondola to mid-mountain and took Whistlestop (green) to the High Lonesome Quad and spent some time getting warmed up on the greens at the top of that lift (Whistlestop, Hobo Alley, Lonesome, Switchyard, and Village Way).
After confirming that everyone was smiling and ready for more, we moved to the blues of Vasquez Ridge, taking Lonesome Whistle (blue) past the bottom of the Olympia Express Quad via Wagon Train (green) to the Pioneer Express Quad. At the top, we lapped Sundance, Quickdraw, Shootout, and Buckaroo (blue) before breaking for mid-afternoon eats at Lunch Rock (accessed via Gunbarrel, a green, and the High Lonesome Quad). After lunch, we tried Edelweiss (blue), then took the Sunnyside Express 6-Pack back to the top and split up for our final run to the base. Mark and H took Mary Jane (blue) and Corridor (green) back to the Gondola base, while Zoe and I took the scenic tour on Whistlestop, Hookup, and Village Way (green).
Happy skiers!
On the Mountain, Day 2
Sunday was lesson day, so Mark handled ski school dropoff while I parked the car. While I headed to the village via Cabriolet, Mark introduced the kids to their instructors. H, in the Blue-Black group, headed out with four peers and a fun, young instructor named Ryan. Z joined up with five green-blue girls and warm, friendly instructor Dan.
We consider signing our kids up for lessons every time we take a trip. We looked into it at Sun Valley, too, especially after Z’s bumpy start. It’s always nice to have a break to ski on our own, and we want our kids to continue to grow their skills. Z still needs the confidence to stay parallel on the steeps, and H needs to ski with kids more capable than his sister so he can be challenged.
At Sun Valley, though, private lessons were prohibitively expensive. All-day group lessons, inconveniently offered only at Dollar, would have met Z’s needs, but not H’s. At Winter Park, all-day group lessons were available for kids of all abilities, and all lessons depart from the same base area. The terrain at Winter Park is far more varied and interesting than at Dollar, and the lessons were $70 less expensive each. We were sold.
While Mark indulged my ongoing love affair with blue groomers, the kids worked on their skills. We ate lunch at Sun Spot (a huge Caesar Salad for me and a delicious pastrami sandwich for Mark), then I made my way to the base to prepare for the kids’ return from lessons. Mark, meanwhile, squeezed in a few more runs.
From Sun Spot, he headed down Sober Englishman to Mary Jane (blue), then up the Super Gauge 6-pack to Roundhouse (blue). From there, he headed up to Parsenn Bowl on the Panoramic Express 6-pack, taking Larkspur (blue-black) down through heavy clouds and some falling snow. He also managed to sneak in some turns on Jabberwocky and White Rabbit (blue) before finding his favorite run of the day on Hughes (blue-black), where folks had been racing earlier, and Brian’s Run (black). While he was exploring, I wandered the base, enjoying the falling snow and grabbing some resort stickers and a Christmas ornament from James and Parry’s.
At pick-up, we were happy to hear our kids report that they’d each had “the best day ever,” respectively. Instructor Ryan reported that H could ski all over the mountain, and he’d been thrilled to spend his day exploring the trees and learning to pole plant and stay over his skis on the moguls. Instructor Dan was happy with Z’s exceptional French fries on green terrain, and described the drills he’d used to encourage her to maintain that same position as the blues get steeper. She came off the hill smiling, with a strand of party beads and some Starbursts, so I’d say that Dan is a pretty skilled motivator of second-grade girls. Tip your instructors, folks. They earned it! Please don’t hesitate to email us for our instructors’ contact details if you’re looking to schedule private lessons in Winter Park.
On the Mountain, Day 3
I dropped Mark and the kids off for a few more runs on Monday morning then returned to pack the condo for our 10AM check-out. New snow had fallen the previous afternoon, evening, and into the morning, so the rest of of the family wanted to take advantage. Once the car had been loaded, I drove back to the resort and parked in the Vintage Lot, where the weekday parking fee had dropped to $10. I hopped the Cabriolet and grabbed a coffee before receiving Mark’s report that Z was cold and finished for the day. The temperature had dropped overnight, and the wind was blowing, so I wasn’t surprised. I rejoined my crew near the gondola base, and we ate a quick and filling Tex-Mex lunch at Lime Cantina before braving the ride back through the pass and down into Denver for our flight home.
Our Place
Over the years, we’ve rented many ski properties, often through companies like VRBO and Airbnb. A few years ago, we began booking directly with properties’ management companies (Vacasa, Sky Run, etc.) whenever we could. We’ve found that this saves money, but it can also sometimes change payment and refund terms, so read the fine print carefully. We rented “Spruce Ridge Retreat” through Vacasa, and it was a great pick for this trip. With three levels of living space, three bedrooms, and three baths, we had more than enough space for our family of four. Plus, we had a washer and dryer—two items essential to our “pack light” strategy. Perched up high on a hill, our unit had a great view, and it was five minutes from the grocery, shops, and the main road to the resort. Since this trip was a quick one, we focused on the skiing, eating simple meals at home and hanging out in the condo at the end of each day rather than hitting the town.
Rte. 40, which runs through the towns of Fraser and Winter Park to the mountain, reminds me of a pumped-up New England mountain road. Rental gear, retail shops, and après options as far as the eye can see! While our short trip didn’t allow time to explore many of these, they do provide ample incentive to return. On our way back from skiing on Sunday, we did try out Fraser’s Vicious Cycle Brewing and are pleased to give it an enthusiastic thumb’s up! Excellent beer, a wide-open space, and a welcoming attitude toward well-behaved kids and dogs give the place a laid-back vibe. It makes ordering that next round a no-brainer.
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Winter Park is unique among Colorado resorts because of its train connectivity to both downtown Denver and the airport. On weekends, it’s possible to fly into Denver, zip directly downtown to Union Station via the A-line “airport train,” then continue on to Winter Park via the seasonal Winter Park Express train. Visitors disembark right in the base village, just steps from ski school and lifts, then stay for the day, the night, or the whole weekend! Zero worries about traffic, weather, and mountain driving? Amazing.
If we had chosen to stay in the village, we definitely would have used the train. Since our condo was 10 minutes down the road in Fraser, renting a car was the best choice this time. The drive to Winter Park from Denver includes a winding mountain pass (Berthoud Pass) that we first tackled at night with few other cars on the road. For those unaccustomed to mountain driving, the pass can be intimidating—especially in the dark or in poor weather. Occasionally, truly severe conditions may cause the pass to close entirely, so be sure to monitor the weather. Drive slowly and allow plenty of extra time when returning to Denver to catch your flight home.
Speaking of flying, we’ve had some interesting airline adventures this ski season, including a bump and rebooking out of Sun Valley. The trend continued on this trip when, despite the fact that our flight was direct, our skis didn’t make it on our plane from Chicago. Southwest located them immediately, though, and loaded them on the next flight. We were given two choices: wait at the airport another 1 1/2 hours for our skis to arrive, or have Southwest deliver them to us in Winter Park the next day.
We chose to wait. We worried that our skis wouldn’t arrive before we’d planned to hit the mountain, and Southwest wasn’t offering any compensation for the potential cost of rentals. We weren’t excited about hassling with rentals in the morning, either, so, when the airline offered us a $200 flight credit to hang around, we stayed put. We collected our car, and our skis arrived on the next flight as promised. Travelers beware, though: evening food options are limited once you’ve left the secure side of the airport. We ate a dinner of gas station hot dogs before returning to the terminal for our skis then set out for Winter Park.
Waiting on two more pair of skis at O’Hare
The Take-Away
There’s no one “right way” to do a ski trip. This season, we’ll take both local day trips by car and fly-to trips east and west. For some trips, a quality hotel near the slopes, with all the amenities it offers, is the right solution. For others, a roomy condo further out, and the ability to prepare hearty meals and do laundry at home, is best. Keep your options flexible, and consider how the length of your trip might impact your choice. By operating this way, we’re able to indulge a bit on some trips while saving on others, crafting a season that allows us to experience a variety of mountains and a whole lot of fun!
