Skiing Suggestions

Loveland (the ski area, not the town). My favorite part about them is that the lodge at Loveland Valley (down from the tunnel - the Basin is on the tunnel) is small and very friendly. and parking is closer from the far end of the lot than how far you walk from the bus stop to the lodge at the big resorts (i.e., Winter Park or anything in Summit County).

Kids 5 and under are free. their lessons are the cheapest of those w/in an hour or so of denver when I last looked. and we have yet to find anyone else that can come close on total price for lift tickets - not even Eldora. they have coupons in the entertainment book.

we taught our kids ourselves but I've heard good things about Loveland's ski school.

we rented the kids' equipment from them a couple times too and it wasn't too bad on cost - only a few bucks more than down the hill.

If you're near I-70 and Kipling, Larson's is a great place to rent and super cheap (Last year it was $25 for 2 sets of kids skis/boot and one helmet - we owned one helmet). Their hours are weird so you need to rent the night before.

have fun!

solvista near grandby is close to metro area, great for beginners and families. Have fun!

I like Keystone in Summit CO Its easy to get to and has lots of beginner trails.

Good Luck

Eldora. It's a 45 min drive from Arvada or Boulder and no I-70 traffic. Very, very family friendly....lots of ski lessons for little kids, magic carpet, close parking, cheap lift tickets. there's a nordic center if you want to try snowshoeing or cross country skiing if you get tired of alpine. It's a small mountain so it's hard to lose each other. A great starting point for getting back into skiing. Have fun!!

For rentals: Sports Authority or Co ski & golf. Both are great.

Copper Mountain is a great resort and very family friendly.

Colorado Ski and Golf is a great place to rent skis if you want to rent before you go up. CS&G also has a wonderful ski exchange program for kids. You rent for the whole season and if they grow out of something (poles, boots, skis) during the season you can swap it out for another size. Wilderness Sports in Dillon if you want to rent in the mountains.

I am very lucky that we have family and can stay in Carbondale and ski at Snowmass. They have a wonderful ski school for kids and a challenging mountain for us to ski. The Aspen classic 5 day pass is great and you can ski for around $50/day. Steamboat, Copper Mountain, Winter Park, Keystone, Vail, Ski Cooper, Sunlight and Loveland also are very kid and family friendly. Not sure on how expensive. I'll bet they have some great infomation online about their programs and pricing. If you can go during the week and not the weekend that would be better. The ski areas are not as busy and you are less likely to get stuck in traffic on I-70. I have never been, but have heard that Telluride is great too.

Have fun!

Hi K.,
I learned at Sunlight (near Glenwood Springs) as a child and loved it. Now that I live in the Denver area and don't want to drive three hours, my favorite is Copper Mountain (where I learned to snowboard as a young adult). I think both have good beginner runs and are family friendly.