Keystone Winter Family Vacation Highlights
Keystone Ski Resort (formerly known as Mt. Holly) has been in operation since 1958. Founded by Earl Eaton and his wife Elva Rogers, they envisioned a ski area where families could come together to have fun while enjoying natural scenery in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. It remains a popular family vacation destination, with an emphasis on skiing and snowboarding for all ages. Keystone has over 300 inches of snowfall annually and slopes that are perfect for beginners and experts. In addition, there are many activities for the entire family to enjoy.
Keystone family-friendly activities include night skiing on the weekends and peak holiday periods, and it’s the largest night skiing operation in Colorado. Keystone Kidtopia program offers daily free activities for the family to enjoy, from the Giant Snowball Launch to the world’s largest Snow Fort and lots of fun games and surprises in between. The Keystone Ski and Ride School has kids, adults, and family private lessons available. Scenic sleigh rides. Ice skating at Dercum Square and the five-acre Keystone Lake. Snowmobile tours. Mountain top snow tubing, and scenic gondola rides.
How to get to Keystone ski resort in the winter? You can transfer between Denver International Airport (DEN) to Keystone Resort in about 2.5 hours, and it’s a scenic drive along I-70.
Breckenridge Winter Family Vacation Highlights
Only 30 minutes down the highway is Breckenridge Resort, which is another popular family-friendly Colorado vacation destination. At an elevation of 9,600 feet in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, this small town welcomes visitors from all over with open arms and offers plenty for everyone to do. The highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains surround Breckenridge and it offers some of the best skiing and snowboarding in Colorado, with a layout of peaks to choose from.
With less than 800 residents during summer, it’s easy to get around town and enjoy all that Breckenridge offers. In winter, Breckenridge becomes one of Colorado’s most popular ski areas with over 1 million annual visitors who come for world-class skiing with over 100 runs to choose from and five snow parks, so everyone in the family will have plenty of options on the mountain during their stay.
One thing guests love about Breckenridge is that they have lots of activities for families – both inside and outside the resort. There are plenty of indoor attractions like arcades, bowling alleys, and ice-skating rinks to keep everyone entertained when there isn’t enough light to go skiing. And then there are outdoor fun activities including dog sledding tours, tubing, ice skating, sleigh rides, and snowmobiling.
The town of Breckenridge also offers plenty of fun with many great restaurants with kid-friendly menus and free WiFi hotspots throughout town, making this destination perfect for any age.
How do you get to Breckenridge? Breckenridge ski resort is around 30-minute drive from Keystone or a two-hour drive from Denver or transfer from DIA, or less than a 30-minute drive from Keystone.
Vail Winter Family Vacation Highlights
Vail ski resort has been providing memories since 1962 – it’s no wonder they’ve earned a reputation as being one of Colorado’s favorite resorts. If you like scale, Vail has you covered with over 100 trails and 5,317 acres of wide, open, cruisy terrain, challenging back bowls, and every other type of skiing and riding option and condition in between.
No matter the age, Vail is a destination for many families. From snow tubing to cross-country skiing, there are plenty of activities that will keep everyone happy and entertained during their stay. Whether you’re looking for a family-friendly activity or just want to have some time with your spouse, the resort offers something for every member of your crew.
Snowmobiling through the backcountry trails is always a crowd-pleaser and they even have kids snowmobiles to hire, which is super cool. The kids can go ice skating at Vail’s outdoor rink and enjoy a hot chocolate while you watch them play. There are snowshoeing or gondola rides. Ski biking and tubing at Vails Adventure Ride is always a fun time for the entire family. Explore the European inspired town of Vail with their exclusive to souvenir shops, there is something for everyone from Cartier to a packet of gum. You can sneak off to one of the many world-class day spas.
To get there from Breckenridge is a 45-minute drive or you can fly into Denver International Airport (DEN) and then it is 2 hours and 30-minute transfer. Or you can fly into Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) for a 30-minute transfer to Vail.
Beaver Creek Winter Family Vacation Highlights
Did someone say cookie time? Every afternoon at 3 pm, Beaver Creek delivers piping hot free chocolate chip cookies for the kids and the bigger kids to enjoy. It’s estimated they supply over 700,000 cookies a year. Now that’s a resort that’s dedicated to putting a smile on the face of families from around the world.
The skiing and riding at Beaver Creek across its 1832 acres is exceptional for all levels, including family experts who like to ski steep bumps and it’s often less crowded from its larger Vail neighbor which is a short 15-minute drive up the highway.
One thing that makes Beaver Creek such a fun destination is the kids’ activity zones strategically located around the mountain. There is also a spectacular ice skating rink in the center of the village. Beginner skiers will enjoy Haymeadow Park and more advanced skiers and riders will enjoy laps on Red Buffalo Park and a visit to the cookie cabin, Kid’s Adventure Zone, Sheephorn Skills Zone and the Snow Sculptures towards the bottom of the runs.
Beaver Creek is located 15 minutes down the highway from Vail or you can fly to Denver International Airport (DEN) and then it is 2 hours and 45-minute transfer. Or you can fly into Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) for a 30-minute transfer to Beaver Creek.
All four resorts can be skied and ridden on the EPIC Pass, which is a day, multi-day, and season pass option that goes on and off sale once their quota of sales has been reached each season. Grabbing the right EPIC pass is often the best value for you and your family and we sell the EPIC passes plus all of your resort lodging, lifts, lessons, rentals, and transfers to make your next Colorado family ski vacation the best one yet.
Top Family-Friendly EPIC Colorado Ski Resorts
Keystone Resort
Breckenridge Resort
Vail Resort
Beaver Creek Resort