6 Reasons to Love Winter in Colorado's Ski Towns

1. Colorado's Got the Best Snow

We’ll spare you false modesty and just come right out and say it: Colorado’s snow is the lightest and fluffiest around. Think powder. Think soft landings. Think knee-deep adventures from October to April (or even May and June for a few lucky mountains). Our high altitude, low humidity and high frequency of super-sunshiny days make the perfect conditions for getting caught smiling while skiing. With 28 ski areas and more than 40,000 acres of skiable terrain — the most in North America — everyone from daredevil carvers to cautious first-timers will find a winter vacation in Colorado worth bragging about. Read about all 28 Colorado ski resorts >>

2. Ski-Town Culture 

Exactly what makes Colorado’s ski towns stay on your mind long after you’ve left is hard to define. It’s probably the what’s-the-rush? attitude, the happy glow that hovers over Main Street when the powder’s coming down, the lack of 12-lane highways and the comfort of going to a chic restaurant in ski pants and with a goggle-induced cowlick in your hair. These are the sorts of things that will have you looking at your watch once you’re back home, knowing you’d be trying to squeeze in one more run before the sun slowly dips behind the peaks or taking your first sip of an amber-hued craft beer at a slopeside bar…if only you were back in Colorado’s high country right now.

3. Ski Resorts of All Sizes

Because we’ve got so many excellent ski areas, you don’t have to decide between a polished, high-tech, well-groomed ski resort or the old-school, it’s-only-about-the-snow ski area. Colorado offers you the chance to spend a day in either world or find somewhere that includes the best of both. Visit a resort that offers valet parking and warm cookies at the base or one where “après ski” means lawn chairs in the parking lot. With award-winning terrain parks and wide and deep bowls, groomed trails that go for miles and limitless — not to mention immaculate — backcountry acres, gentle beginner-friendly runs and expert-style steeps at almost every mountain, you can have it all.

4. Eco-Friendly Vacations

Colorado’s resorts are leading the green revolution with award-winning conservation programs to help ensure their slopes stay healthy for generations of snow-seeking vacationers to come. In fact, several of the state’s ski areas offset not just a little, but every single kilowatt of their energy use through the purchase of renewable energy (wind, solar and water). Indeed, many of the state’s other ski areas offset portions of their energy this way, and the number doing so — and the amount they’re saving — increases every year. Colorado ski areas are also thinking of creative ways to ensure they’re doing their part to preserve our natural playground. Of course, they all recycle, work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, use energy-efficient lightbulbs where possible and encourage alternative transportation. And with the revival of "the Ski Train," known now as Amtrak's Winter Park Express, you can get from Denver's Union Station right to Winter Park Resort's slopes without even getting behind the wheel.

5. Plenty of Options for Non-Skiers

For those who prefer their vacations spent by a fire in the lodge instead of schussing downhill, Colorado’s ski towns offer pedestrian-friendly lanes filled with art galleries, boutiques with everything from fleece jackets to evening gowns, cozy coffee shops and plenty of places to savor a leisurely lunch while the snowflakes fall outside cafe windows. Hot springs pools, indulgent only-in-Colorado spa treatments, historic museums, peaceful snowshoe trails and festivals celebrating the season round out the perfect off-slope afternoon. Find winter vacation ideas off the slopes >>

6. Après Ski

As the lifts start to close and skiers and riders get in one last run, it may look like the finale to a thrilling day on the slopes. But for many of Colorado’s ski resort towns, it’s just halftime. The night is young, and there is still plenty to do! Following the European tradition of skiing well and then eating well, the ski towns make it a priority to offer exceptional dining at the base of their slopes. And when dinner’s done, saloons, brewpubs, cantinas and other warm watering holes cater to those wanting to share their day’s snow stories. Find some of our favorite après ski spots >>

Want more? 

Check out winter adaptive sports in Colorado >>

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Photo: Courtesy of Winter Park Resort.