Base: Breckenridge, all three nights. From Denver International Airport the Epic Mountain Express shuttle takes about 2 hours in good conditions, longer in snow. In town, the Free Ride bus is free and runs from about 6:15 a.m. to 11:15 p.m., linking Main Street, the gondola and the lodging areas. Carter Park’s sledding hill is free; bring your own sled. Pace: deliberately easy: at about 9,600 feet, the first afternoon is for short flat walks, lots of water and an early dinner.
Main Street
Breckenridge’s Main Street is lined with nineteenth-century wooden storefronts, now shops, cafés and sweet shops, with string lights and snowbanks all winter. The Blue River runs along a plaza a block west, and the whole street is about a 15-minute walk end to end.
Expert tip: buy sleds, hand warmers and any forgotten gloves on Main Street the first afternoon rather than at the slopes the next morning, when everyone is in a hurry and the base shops are busy.
A little gold-rush history
Breckenridge History looks after several small museums in town, including the Barney Ford House on Washington Avenue, home of a man who escaped slavery and became one of Colorado’s leading businessmen. Check their site for winter hours and family programmes.
Ask at the welcome centre on Main Street for a free town map; the museums are a few minutes’ walk from each other. The welcome centre itself has a small free exhibit on the mining camp, with old photos of the town buried in snow, which is a good way to show kids how long winters here have been part of life. In early December the town also holds its holiday lighting and the Race of the Santas on Main Street; check GoBreck for the date if you are visiting then.
Sledding at Carter Park or skating
Carter Park, a short walk east of Main Street, has a free sledding hill that is the town’s after-school favourite. If you would rather skate, the town’s indoor ice arena holds public skate sessions; check the recreation department’s schedule for the day.
Kids feel the altitude less when they are having fun, but the adults may not; take breaks and keep water bottles in the car or backpack.
Dinner on Main Street
Where to eat: Crepes a la Cart, the walk-up crêpe stand on Main Street, for a warm snack, and dinner at Downstairs at Eric’s, a family pizza and burger place with an arcade.
Book an early table on holiday weeks; the town fills up between Christmas and New Year. After dinner, walk back along Main Street under the lights rather than taking the bus if everyone is warm enough: the snowbanks, the lit shop windows and the dark peaks above make the town look like a toy village, and the short walk helps kids sleep at altitude.
Denver International Airport → Breckenridge by Epic Mountain Express: about 2 hours, roughly 100 miles on I-70 and Highway 9. Main Street → Carter Park: about 10 minutes on foot. Main Street → the Breckenridge Ice Arena: about 10 minutes on the Free Ride bus.
Where to stay
- Beaver Run Resort — a big family resort at the base of Peak 9 with condo-style rooms and pools.
- Gravity Haus Breckenridge — a modern hotel at the base of the gondola, a short walk from Main Street.
Dinner: Downstairs at Eric’s on Main Street, early.
Tomorrow: Peak 8, about 8 minutes up the free BreckConnect Gondola from the edge of town.
Bad-weather plan
In a storm, stay close to the room: the Breckenridge Ice Arena is indoors, and the small museums of Breckenridge History, such as the Barney Ford House, are warm and short. Save sledding for a clear afternoon.
Stay: Breckenridge base · Anchor: Main Street · Free Ride bus free; sledding free
Good to know: If you drive from Denver, Colorado’s traction law applies on I-70 in winter: you need proper tyres or chains when it is in effect. Check CDOT before you go.
