Aspen Colorado-Snowmass Colorado-Visitors Guide

Aspen, Colorado is a city in the United States which is largely known as a ski resort. While the city was originally created in 1881 as a mining camp and named after the aspen trees which surrounded it, Aspen would be reinvented in the twentieth century as a place where both of the mind and the body would be exercised. The recreation of the city as a ski haven took place after World War II and was carried out by the industrialist Walter Paepcke. The Aspen / Snowmass resorts that he created, along with local attractions such as the Aspen Music Festival made Aspen a popular tourist destination and grew it out of obscurity into a place which would become known across the country and throughout the world.

The later decades of the twentieth century saw the town of Aspen, Colorado becoming even more hip as lots of artists and up and coming celebrities became enamored with the town, seeing it as a utopian community where views that they could identify with were espoused in intellectual debates and cultural programs. People such as John Denver and Hunter S. Thompson became identified with the city and Aspen Colorado became well visited by both the middle class and the upper class with a wide variety of ski resorts and tourism companies making moves to increase the visibility of the city and the quality of the local attractions.

The downtown area of Aspen Colorado is where you will find a lot of the action. While there has been criticism in recent years for the changes that gentrification of the neighborhoods have brought about, replacing the old time charm of the earlier buildings and shops of Aspen with high end chain stores and places which cater mainly to the rich and wealthy, there is a lot of fun stuff that you can see and do here. Downtown Aspen Colorado is a great place to go with your friends, eat at restaurants, visit the local clubs and go shopping for all of the souvenirs and things that you want to remember your trip by.

The East End of Aspen Colorado is where you will find a lot of quiet residences - this is the part of the city where the normal year long inhabitants of the city dwell, so unless you are visiting people who live here chances are you are going to spend most of your time in the other parts of the city. However, you might find that you can have a good time simply walking through the East End as it gives you a chance to see more of the old style architecture of the city and drink in the charm of Aspen while enjoying a relatively quiet pace compared to the resort areas and the tourist traps.

The West End of Aspen Colorado is the part of the city where the vast majority of the hotels, bed and breakfasts and other places to stay for tourists are. If you are staying in Aspen, Colorado this is probably the part of the city which you will be seeing the most in the mornings and the evenings, and you will be able to find easy transportation between the West End of the city and the various ski resorts.

Ski resorts are spread throughout the city a bit, and will all give you access to a variety of slopes of differing skill levels. With Aspen Colorado being one of the biggest ski / snowboard vacation destinations in the United States you will be able to get lessons very easily for any level of experience and find out how to start skiing, snowboarding or doing any other kind of winter sport. Downhill and cross country skiing are both well represented in the local offerings, and you can also enjoy ice skating, sleigh rides, horseback riding, snowmobile riding and more.

While Aspen Colorado is almost always thought off as a ski resort town and the major rush of tourists for the city is in the winter, there is also a lot to do in Aspen Colorado during the off-season. The summer sees the city of Aspen Colorado becoming your normal mountain resort town with things such as nature hikes, animal watching, fishing and whitewater rafting being common diversions for people who come to enjoy the city during the warmer months of the year.

Aspen Colorado is known not only for its winter sports and resorts but also for a variety of festivals - the Aspen Music Festival runs for nine weeks every summer and features some of the best classically trained musicians in the world, giving people a great reason to visit the city any time of the year. Film festivals and other cultural events are also common in Aspen Colorado at all times of the year. Aspen Colorado is a great place to go for a wide variety of reasons and everyone should try going to Aspen at some point in their lives!

Real Estate

Aspen Real Estate - Frias Properties of Aspen specializes in fractional ownership, selling or buying a home, condo, vacant land or ranch properties.

Snowmass Real Estate - Chaffin Light Real Estate offers home buyers looking for an alluring selection of family-oriented condominiums and homes that offer ski-in, ski-out convenience.

Lodging

Aspen Lodging - Frias Properties offers a wide variety of Aspen lodging for you to choose from; slope-side Aspen condo rentals, economical studio apartments or luxury private homes.

Guides

Aspen Activities - Aspen Colorado Tours offers a directory of summer and winter activity providers in the Valley.

Services

Aspen Wedding Photography - Verge Photography in Denver, Colorado delivers destination wedding photographic services anywhere in the world.

Travel

Aspen Colorado Discounts - SkiCoupons offers winter and ski travel discounts and coupons including lodging, lift-tickets and local food and beverage deals.

Aspen Summer Vacation - Mountain Resort Coupons provides savings, discounts and coupons to the Aspen, Colorado area for summer vacation deals on lodging, activities and local restaurants.