Two kids, boys about 10 years old, walk past the bar to the hostess stand of a popular restaurant in Aspen, Colo.
asserted
kids → walk → Aspen
“We’d like a table for two,” one says.
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one → like → two
The waitress doesn’t blink; she leads them to a booth.
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she → blink → booth
The mountain town of Aspen isn’t just a gnarly spot of X Games sports, or a seventh home location for the world’s most rapaciously successful accumulators of capital (the median price of a single-family home hovers around $13 million).
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price → hover → million
It’s also become a playground for . . . children.
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It → become → children
The pretty, pedestrian-friendly downtown, girt by gingerbread houses, is just five blocks across from Main Street to the gondola up Ajax (officially Aspen Mountain), and only about three times as wide.
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downtown → gird → Ajax
Cafes swell with families around Wagner Park Playground in the heart of the town’s pedestrian mall.
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Cafes → swell → mall
Its curvaceous, wooden climbing structures were completed last fall, inspired by the city’s namesake trembling tree.
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structures → complete → tree
But practically every inch of this at times ostentatious little town, once known for countercultural figures like Hunter S. Thompson, is kid heaven.
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inch → know → Thompson
Strollers are like supercars, and sometimes made by the same brands.
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Strollers → make → brands
Bigger kids can roam freely (armed with dad’s credit card) in this supremely safe and privileged space.
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kids → roam → space
Scooter-friendly streets, ice cream and shaved ice stands, a diverse restaurant scene and a bijou movie theater add to pre-adolescent interest.
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streets → shave → interest
Best of all, a concentration of 5-star hotels — like Little Nell, Jerome, St. Regis and the newly opened White Elephant pamper juveniles with all-seasons programming and concierge services that are special to the 8,000-foot elevation.
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that → open → elevation
“Aspen is truly a year-round escape that’s perfect for family adventure,” said Whytney Rawls, the travel adviser founder of the Amara Escapes.
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Rawls → ’ → Escapes
“Whether you’re an adventurer, a grand resort connoisseur, or looking for that Western feel we all dream of when visiting the spectacular Colorado Rockies, there’s something for everyone.
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we → ’re → everyone
[But] when planning an Aspen trip, thinking you can just show up and handle everything once you arrive is not the move, especially during peak winter dates.
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you → plan → dates
Here’s what top travel pros recommend for your family on your next (or first) trip to the town one adviser called “St. Barts with fur.”
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adviser → ’ → fur
Where to stay
Where you book will reflect what your kids are into.
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kids → stay → what
“For families with confident skiers who want the full Aspen experience, the Little Nell is the benchmark,” said Sangeeta Sadarangani, founder of Crossing Travel.
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Sadarangani → want → Travel
“[It’s] the only ski-in/ski-out hotel on Aspen Mountain, with an excellent ski concierge and the town just outside the door.
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It → ’ → door
Sadarangani sends families with younger children to Viceroy Snowmass.
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Sadarangani → send → Snowmass
With ski-in/ski-out access, multi-bedroom residences and proximity to family-friendly terrain, it removes the fuss from the morning rush to the mountain.
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it → ski → mountain
But know that Ajax, the mountain afront Little Nell, is serious stuff, with no beginner terrain.
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Ajax → know → terrain
For multigenerational trips, or for older teenagers looking to make the scene, historic Hotel Jerome is the spot.
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Jerome → look → scene
Although it’s in the center of Main Street, the hotel organizes a mountain of on- and off-season fun: from horseback rides through the Rockies, pony rides and horse-drawn carriages to family ski days, with ski fittings and private instructors on the beginner friendly slopes of Buttermilk or Snowmass — and après-ski for kids, including a build-your-own snowman kit.
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hotel → ’ → kit
What to do
Aspen is on a downhill, which is a good thing since most families come here to ski.
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families → come → downhill
But since the pandemic, it’s become a year-round destination that any guide will tell you is best enjoyed in the less-crowded summer.
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you → become → summer
Once you’ve checked in, have your family hit the trails.
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family → check → trails
Bike scenic tot-friendly trails include the Rio Grande along the Roaring Fork River.
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trails → include → River
Almost every hotel offers cruiser bikes, but rented e-bikes are how the cognoscenti get around.
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cognoscenti → offer → bikes
Sadarangani recommends the 0.7-mile Snowmass Village Nature Trail for younger children, or the area’s most iconic trip: the one-mile Maroon Bells scenic trail.
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Sadarangani → recommend → children
“The Grottos [a half-mile loop trail near Aspen] is another family favorite, because children can explore the rocks and waterfalls,” she added.
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she → explore → rocks
“I would then allow half a day for Lost Forest [a mid-mountain adventure park on Snowmass Mountain], where younger children have Robin’s Nest, the trout pond and climbing wall, while those tall enough can ride the Breathtaker Alpine Coaster.
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those → allow → Coaster
For children around 9 to 12, the Sierra Club Loop at Snowmass and Smuggler Mountain Overlook are great climbs, and adventurous children will want to attempt the Treeline Challenge Course, with its ziplines, bridges and rappels.
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children → want → ziplines
Teenagers will appreciate the challenge of Crater Lake or Hunter Creek, both half-day hikes.
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Teenagers → appreciate → Lake
Or consider the 5.6 miles to Cathedral Lake (elevation gain 1,986 feet), or the 6.5 mile out-and-back to American Lake (elevation gain 2,034 feet).
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elevation → consider → feet
Snowmass Bike Park is another teenage hang, but book a professional clinic, say experts.
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experts → book → clinic
They’ll start in the learning area and on the green Verde Trail before moving up.
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They → start → Trail
Indoor kids will appreciate the Anderson Ranch Arts Center, a workshop and creative space for children and teenagers interested in ceramics, painting, photography or digital art.
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kids → appreciate → ceramics
However, just loitering around America’s richest little town may be the best together time money can buy.
uncertain
money → loiter → town
The Aporia
