Thursday, December 27, 2007 - Friday, December 28, 2007
Wow! A year has flown since this last Colorado trip and everyone is excited to be back to Breck. That's right...once you go back for seconds, you have the honorary duty to call Breckenridge by it's nickname of Breck. I believe many people name their sons Breck, which has it's pros and cons. Nonetheless, we are on our way with the Ss, while others are leaving later or via different cities. This time we had to overnight in Denver on arrival to head out first thing in the morning to Breck. We knew the chances for weather to be bad were great, so we did not want to drive in the night. We bunkered down, slept, and waited until morning.
During the drive to Breckenridge, we stopped at Beau Jo's Pizza in Evergreen, Colorado. S had eaten there before and the pizza was good and quite popular in the area. Beau Jo's Pizza started in Idaho and spread throughout the western states. From Mountain pies to Praire pies, this thick crusted pizza is made to order and provided with a side of honey for all of the leftover crust. A delicious dessert made on the spot right after your meal.
In addition, we stopped by the Safeway in Frisco, CO for some grocery shopping. Over $150 spent, but it would last us most of the week knowing we would have a full kitchen in our room. Regardless of kitchen or not, it is always a good idea to go grocery shopping for at least water and snacks.
This time we booked closer to the ski lift in a place called The Village at Breckenridge. Check out their site for the latest promotions. As stated on their web site, this has long been a favorite year-round destination along the river with a ski-in/ski-out lodging facility and ideally situated at the base of the ski resort with ski school and ski rentals just steps away. In addition, it has convenient access to the town's shops, restaurants, activities and events.
We checked into room V4610 and it was one large studio room with a bed, sofa bed in living room, dining room, and full kitchen. We were somewhat cramped, but it was fine for the amount of time we were going to spend there. However, we made it a point that during this trip, we were going to visit many real estate companies like Great Western Lodging to name a few. We saw other options for the next time to look at privately owned homes and condos. We also inquired about purchasing a place amongst a few of us to have as an investment property.
Just steps from the hotel, we rented our equipment at Charter Sports. With a convenient web site to search for the nearest locations and best rates, you can book everything ahead of time to save time after you get to the store. One thing to always get is a helmet no matter how old you are.
We them met up with everyone and went to the Quandry Grille in Breckenridge right on Main Street. A good restaurant for large groups it was perfect for ending to the day. Check out the web site for their hours of operation and menu.
Showing posts with label Great Western Lodging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Great Western Lodging. Show all posts
Miamians skiing in Colorado for the first time! - Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Most Miamians claim to have skiied along the East Coast of the United States (upstate New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina), but that is not really skiing until you move west. For some time, our friends and I wanted to plan a big skiing trip during the busiest and most expensive time of year: week after Christmas to ring in the New Year. Not only did we do it once, but we did it two years in a row and in the same place: Breckenridge, Colorado. We picked this location because it had everything for the beginner and more advanced skiier, plus the S's visited the year before all by themselves AND they wanted to do it again with alot more people.
IMPORTANT TIP: To really take advantage of the best deals for this HIGH SEASON time, it is important that you book early. Start looking at options in July or August prior to your trip and book early. There are many non-stop options into Denver for access to most ski resorts and if you go to Vail, there is non-stop flights there as well. As for accommodations, don't just stick with the name brands like Marriott or resorts like the one we stayed at. There are many privately-owned options where you can find roomier and more convenient options. For these options, you can go to Vacation Rental By Owner (http://www.vrbo.com/) or contact a local real estate company like Great Western Lodging (http://www.gwlodging.com/).
We landed into Denver in the evening with the Us. It was cold. The kind of cold that makes your bones hurt, but we were happy to be there. There were about five other families flying in for the same week: different flights, days, schedules, but same thing in mind: ski the Rockies and start creating some memories just like when most of us were kids. One of the best things about traveling in large groups is that each evening one family is selected to host dinner. We all pile into each other's hotel room, cabin, townhouse, or whatever to get a taste of home cooking and good old banter.
Upon arrival into Denver, we decided NOT to rent a car and take a Shuttle Van with Colorado Mountain Express (http://www.coloradomountainexpress.com/) to Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center (http://www.beaverrun.com/). Not to be confused with Beaver Creek (a resort/city in Colorado), this is the less luxurious, but a family-friendly hotel/resort about two hours from Denver, Colorado near the heart of Breckenridge. As for the shuttle ride, it was perfect to just sit back and not have to worry about driving at night in the bitter cold. We even convinced the driver to stop at McDonald's.
As we drove into the night, we wondered what the week would have in store for us. We wondered if everyone was on time. We wondered why we didn't book a beach vacation instead. We quickly remembered the beach is nothing new for us, but barreling down a slope in snow was new to us and the opportunity to experience it with a group of friends was priceless.
Arriving late into the night, we unloaded the tons of bags from the shuttle to the reception area. It was a long way from the reception area, but we finally checked into room 4206. It was comfortable room with one Queen bed a small kitchenette, exposed bath tub, small living area with sofa bed, and a view of the back side of the resort. Frankly, the room was a little dated, more long than wide making it difficult to pass through the room without bumping into others or things, but it would have to do just fine. We made plans for the next day to meet for breakfast and take some lessons.
Most Miamians claim to have skiied along the East Coast of the United States (upstate New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina), but that is not really skiing until you move west. For some time, our friends and I wanted to plan a big skiing trip during the busiest and most expensive time of year: week after Christmas to ring in the New Year. Not only did we do it once, but we did it two years in a row and in the same place: Breckenridge, Colorado. We picked this location because it had everything for the beginner and more advanced skiier, plus the S's visited the year before all by themselves AND they wanted to do it again with alot more people.
IMPORTANT TIP: To really take advantage of the best deals for this HIGH SEASON time, it is important that you book early. Start looking at options in July or August prior to your trip and book early. There are many non-stop options into Denver for access to most ski resorts and if you go to Vail, there is non-stop flights there as well. As for accommodations, don't just stick with the name brands like Marriott or resorts like the one we stayed at. There are many privately-owned options where you can find roomier and more convenient options. For these options, you can go to Vacation Rental By Owner (http://www.vrbo.com/) or contact a local real estate company like Great Western Lodging (http://www.gwlodging.com/).
We landed into Denver in the evening with the Us. It was cold. The kind of cold that makes your bones hurt, but we were happy to be there. There were about five other families flying in for the same week: different flights, days, schedules, but same thing in mind: ski the Rockies and start creating some memories just like when most of us were kids. One of the best things about traveling in large groups is that each evening one family is selected to host dinner. We all pile into each other's hotel room, cabin, townhouse, or whatever to get a taste of home cooking and good old banter.
Upon arrival into Denver, we decided NOT to rent a car and take a Shuttle Van with Colorado Mountain Express (http://www.coloradomountainexpress.com/) to Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center (http://www.beaverrun.com/). Not to be confused with Beaver Creek (a resort/city in Colorado), this is the less luxurious, but a family-friendly hotel/resort about two hours from Denver, Colorado near the heart of Breckenridge. As for the shuttle ride, it was perfect to just sit back and not have to worry about driving at night in the bitter cold. We even convinced the driver to stop at McDonald's.
As we drove into the night, we wondered what the week would have in store for us. We wondered if everyone was on time. We wondered why we didn't book a beach vacation instead. We quickly remembered the beach is nothing new for us, but barreling down a slope in snow was new to us and the opportunity to experience it with a group of friends was priceless.
Arriving late into the night, we unloaded the tons of bags from the shuttle to the reception area. It was a long way from the reception area, but we finally checked into room 4206. It was comfortable room with one Queen bed a small kitchenette, exposed bath tub, small living area with sofa bed, and a view of the back side of the resort. Frankly, the room was a little dated, more long than wide making it difficult to pass through the room without bumping into others or things, but it would have to do just fine. We made plans for the next day to meet for breakfast and take some lessons.
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