Vail Resorts - Pitstops for Kids

Best Ski Towns: Luxury Vail ski vacation

November 25, 2021 By Amy Hagstrom

It’s impossible to have a ‘best ski towns’ series and not include Vail, Colorado. There’s a reason Vail has been absent from our list thus far…it’s already on everyone else’s list. That said, Vail deserves a place on ours as well, because with perhaps the exception of Deer Valley Utah, Vail and its neighbor and Vail Resorts partner, Beaver Creek, offer up the most luxurious ski vacation experience we’ve tried. If you’re looking to book a luxury Vail ski vacation, here’s how to do it.

Luxury Vail ski vacation planning:

Start by setting the tone for your vacation by staying at The Sonnenalp. This Leading Hotels of the World-classified hotel delivers that coveted and rare combination: it’s both luxurious and comfortable. It’s right in the heart of the Vail Village, and the Sonnenalp ski concierge service ensures you never have to carry your own gear anywhere (plus you get a private ski locker and changing area directly across from Gondola One). I love the amenities at a hotel, but still want the space of a rental during a ski vacation, and at the Sonnenalp, almost all the rooms are suites. Vail Resorts-owned Arrabelle is also a home run, located in the Lionshead Village (a very short shuttle ride from Vail Village).

At Vail, the skiing and snowboarding can be fantastic, thanks to its sheer size and diversity of terrain, but a vacation here is also about the overall experience. To that end, when planning a luxury Vail ski vacation, take as much time to plan your dining reservations as you do your ski days. (Yes, it almost hurts me to write this, as an avid ‘go all day long’ skier, but when in Rome…)

With kids, definitely make at least one reservation at Swiss Chalet, located in The Sonnenalp. They’ll love the authentic Alpine cuisine, and fondue is fast to the table and fun to eat, keeping kids entertained. Other sure bets in Vail with kids: Bully Ranch, with casual burgers and to-die-for tater tots, and Blue Moose Pizza (a crowd-pleaser for sure).

If you and your partner or spouse can get away for a long lunch on the mountain, head to The 10th, Vail’s premiere on-mountain option (in my opinion). There’s just something so luxurious about a sit-down lunch during the heart of the day. Plus, the views are amazing, so even if you’re not skiing, it’s worth booking (you can take Gondola One up without ski gear).

Additional must-do’s for the grown ups: La Tour on East Meadow Drive for French cuisine in the heart of the village and Tavern on the Square in Lionshead Village. If you’re in the mood to stay out late, head to the Red Lion in Vail Village for the best live music (and a very local scene), then finish your evening out with a nightcap at King’s Club in Sonnenalp.

In addition to skiing, hotels and ski rental shops alike will rent or lend you snowshoes, which families can take on their own around the villages or up the nearby summit passes (if you have a car), or guided snowshoe trips are offered at Sonnenalp and other luxury properties.

Plan an evening in which you simply window shop (or productively shop…your choice) in Vail Village, Beaver Creek Village, or Lionshead Village, where you’ll find the top stores in outdoor gear, lifestyle wear and more, and then go ice skating on one of the many outdoor rinks (we counted three in Vail and one in Beaver Creek, but there are probably more). If interested, look to time your visit around world-class ski and board competitions: Vail and Beaver Creek host many, including the Burton cup and the Birds of Prey stop on the World Cup downhill tour. Best of all, viewing these competitions is often free.

Kids’ ski lessons are among the best quality in the world at both Vail and Beaver Creek (BC especially often wins awards and recognition for theirs), and as an added incentive (if you need it), near Vail’s ski school learning areas in Lionshead, a full ropes adventure course is on offer…tempt your kids to try this after their lessons are over for the day!

What do you love to do as part of a luxury Vail ski vacation?

On being a skiing family: From the first green run to a family ski vacation

January 12, 2021 By Amy Hagstrom

Recently, I read a Facebook update from a friend and fellow travel writer that declared something along the lines of, “Third time’s a charm! On our third ski vacation, we finally fell in love with skiing.”

This happy statement made me reflect on my own family’s ski ‘journey’, which started perhaps a bit differently than most. Unlike many parents, we considered ourselves a ‘skiing family’ even before our kids could ski. My husband and I had both grown up with the sport in the Tahoe area, myself racing slalom at the state level through high school. There was nothing I loved more than skiing, and we couldn’t wait to share this winter pastime with our boys.

We started each son on skis at age three, which turned out to be a worthwhile yet exhausting endeavor. By the time our third son was born, we were a full-fledged preschool-and-toddler ski family, with tiny Rossis, boots, snowsuits, goggles, mittens, and other paraphanilia littering the back of our car. We hauled all our gear up to our local ski lodge at Mt. Ashland, Oregon, in a huge duffel bag, with stumbling children (usually with runny noses and lost gloves) trailing in our wake. We set up a port-a-crib in the lodge for our baby, and my husband and I took turns taking laps.

Those early years were fun, but rough. My mom, the boys’ grandma, was actually in the trenches the most, as the most patient ski instructor of our group. Without her, I’m not sure my kids would have mastered the ‘pizza wedge’. As they grew, we continued to teach them on our own during the preschool years, and they followed us like ducklings around our local mountain. We signed the boys up for weekly lessons with our local ski racing club when they hit the required age, and the consistent, dedicated instruction took them from competent intermediate skiers to experts.

Perhaps because we’ve been on the mountain almost every weekend of every winter of our boys’ young lives, we never had that ‘aha moment’. We never experienced that single day in which we said, ‘This is it! We get it now.’ Instead, it just seemed to happen without our noticing, until one season, we were all skiing blacks together and I realized I wasn’t wiping anyone’s nose or helping anyone take off their snowsuit to go potty or sweating in my jacket as I knocked the snow off someone’s little boot and guided it into their binding. After years in the trenches, we could all, as a family, ski any run of any resort…together.

Sometimes, I’m asked whether it was ‘worth it’ to teach my kids to ski so young, when the process was still more like hefting sacks of potatoes than a rewarding day in the outdoors. My answer: absolutely. By declaring ourselves ‘a skiing family’ before we actually were one, I fulfilled the prophecy. And there’s always more to learn. Now, we take family lessons at major resorts from Tahoe to Colorado to learn more skills, my 5th grader is trying to perfect his 360, and my teen skiers are considering backcountry skiing and avalanche courses. I imagine when they have kids, they’ll start as ‘skiing families’ too.

Is your family still working up to that first blue run? Read this account of a family finding that ‘aha moment’ during a private lesson at Vail.

Vail luxury ski hotel: Sonnenalp hotel review

December 16, 2019 By Amy Hagstrom

I have been lucky enough to stay in many luxury ski hotel properties, from Whistler to Tahoe to points east. My stay at The Sonnenalp, a Leading Hotels of the World property in Vail, Colorado, met the expectations that properties like the Fairmont or the Ritz Carlton had set for me, but also exceeded those expectations in subtle ways.

What do I mean by this? The Sonnenalp Hotel, which is a true family-owned property, in the same family for four generations, has a very understated and timeless style of luxury and service. From the moment you drive into the porte-cochère and your ski gear is whisked effortlessly away by the ski concierge team to the simple yet thoughtful texts sent by the front desk staff, inquiring how your stay is going and whether there is anything they can do for you, at The Sonnenalp, it’s all about quietly and efficiently serving, while providing a timeless and lovely place to call home in the heart of Vail.

While beautiful, the Sonnenalp exhibits a cozy Bavarian elegance, not a flashy or sleek luxury vibe. Inside, the long halls with meandering staircases with wooden handrails call to mind a European ski chalet; in fact, in some parts of the hotel, I truly would mistake my location for the Alps. All the guest spaces of the hotel, from the small front lobby to the expansive King’s Club lounge (arguably the heart of the hotel) exhibit an understated but sophisticated elegance. You’d never make the mistake that you were in a budget hotel, by any means, but you are also spared any sort of stuffy or snooty ambiance.

Sonnenalp rooms:

Ever stayed at a five-star, very expensive property and looked around your hotel room and noted you were actually lacking a lot of useful items, like a fridge, table, or microwave? The Sonnenalp has 112 suites to its 15 rooms, with a focus on comfort. I stayed in one of their two-level mountain suites, which was laid out with a living room and wet bar space downstairs (with fireplace) and two bedrooms upstairs, with over 1300 square feet total space. Be sure to ask for a few room fans upon check-in, as we found the upstairs to get stuffy. I appreciated having a Nespresso machine, a minibar, a second fridge for storing our own things, a microwave, and two and a half bathrooms.

We enjoyed turndown service, lovely robes for use in the room and at the spa area, and eco-friendly bath amenities. The only thing I found missing: access to a washer and dryer, or even just a dryer, in the suites. When skiing with a family, a dryer is huge.

Sonnenalp European spa:

At The Sonnenalp, the European spa concept means that in addition to their luxurious spa, most of the spa’s 10,000 square feet is accessible for all guests, including children. What this looks like: when you enter the spa area, you are not stopped at a sign-in desk (though they have one). Instead, you’re invited into the large space that houses a 360 degree fireplace with sunken seating, a full bar (with oxygen bar), and the indoor pool and hot tub. Off of this room are the men’s and women’s locker rooms, sauna, steam rooms, and fitness center…open to everyone (though children under 16 are not allowed in the back locker rooms or fitness center of the spa). Out glass doors by the pool, the outdoor section of the pool and two additional outdoor hot tubs await.

While kids need to be respectfully quiet in this greater spa area, they are welcome, and what results is a very cozy, warm space for families to gather apres-ski or anytime. For adults, complementary yoga classes are held here almost daily, as well as personal training services. While the fitness center is not large, it has the cardio and weight training equipment needed.

While I love that most of the spa can be appreciated by everyone, I do recommend booking at least one spa treatment during your stay. My aromatherapy massage was one of the best I’ve ever had, made even more relaxing in the knowledge that the rest of my group could be having fun in the pools and hot tubs. A poolside/spa-side menu is available (though outdoor pool deck service is seasonal).

Sonnenalp dining:

The Sonnenalp has multiple restaurants onsite, and of course, you’re in the heart of the Vail village, so many additional restaurants are within walking distance. As noted above, the cozy King’s Club, with bar, a ‘living room’ type space, and even a library, is the place to start your evening with a drink during their happy hour. It’s also the place to return later in the evening for live music. A must do is Swiss Chalet, Sonnenalp’s nod to Alpine cuisine, with fondue and raclette, and for the most casual dining option, head to Bully Ranch, the hotel’s Western-themed restaurant (where you’ll instantly feel like you’re in Wyoming, not Germany).

While Sonnenalp may be best known for Swiss Chalet’s fondue dinner, their breakfast buffet, held daily at Ludwig’s, is in danger of outshining it all. There’s more than any one person could possibly eat at this gourmet buffet of hot dishes, granolas, fresh fruits, berries, cheese spreads, bagels and lox, smoked salmon, artisan breads, and more. The buffet is $35 per person (or $23 for the continental version), but don’t gasp just yet: with most reservations, it can be included in the cost of the stay as an add-on (well worth it). If you don’t add the buffet on and don’t want to pay that price, there is also an a la carte menu, as well as room service. By no means is Sonnenalp dining inexpensive, but it is part of the overall experience of the hotel.

Sonnenalp activities:

The hotel has a kids’ club, which is complementary with activities planned for kids daily, with drop-in options. At the time of my visit, the club was open from 4 pm to 6 pm, which was great: parents can enjoy happy hour while the kids are busy. This service is for kids three and up who are potty trained, but even if you have a younger one, stop by for a complementary box of sanitized toys to take back to your room. For older kids, there’s a game room adjacent. Get always updated kids’ club information.

The planned activities for adults, beyond the spa and fitness offerings, such as the snowshoeing treks aforementioned, were offered six days a week during my visit. Of course, a main activity for parents is simply relaxing. I recommend sitting in the library with one of their famous mudslides.

If visiting in winter, most families plan to ski. Here’s how the ski concierge services work at Sonnenalp:

Because the hotel is about three blocks from Gondola One (where you can upload for Vail skiing), Sonnenalp guests have access to nearby Gorsuch Ski Cafe. The ski concierge team will transport your gear there upon your arrival to the hotel. Guests walk the few blocks in comfortable winter boots, instead of ski boots, and grab their gear from the concierge there. The space has ample room for getting on gear and storing skis and boards. You can also apply sunscreen here and there’s seating for 40-50.

For summer season guests, Sonnenalp has their own private golf course, with a much large fitness center and pool complex, as well as on-site dining, Harvest. The fitness center and Harvest are actually open year-round, and shuttles can be arranged from the hotel. There is a daily fee for golf, but I was assured hotel guests have use of the fitness area complementarily.

Photo credit: Amy Whitley and Sonnenalp.

Disclosure: I stayed at Sonnenalp as a guest of the hotel, for the purpose of review. All opinions remain my own.

Keystone lodging review: The Springs at River Run Village

March 7, 2019 By Amy Hagstrom

During or latest winter Keystone ski trip with kids, we stayed in a two-bedroom condo in River Run’s The Springs. At the end of our trip, my nine-year-old declared it the best ski lodging he’d experienced. Why did he rate it above other ski-in, ski-out resort lodging? Three reasons: 1. the Springs pool, 2. the proximity to the River Run Gondola, and 3. the fact that it’s surrounded by woods.

The Springs is located at the far end of River Run Village, just far enough away from ‘village life’ to be tranquil (with plenty of snow to play in around the building), but close enough that you’re literally two minutes from dining and lifts. I loved the decor of the building, which is accented with lovely wall displays of wildlife, aspen trees, and other nature scenes. The lobby of The Springs features a bubbling creek, which flows outside to the pool area and funnels into the pool slide. The entire building is open, bright, and peaceful.

Amenities:

Our two-bedroom unit included a master bedroom with king bed and bathroom with jacuzzi tub and shower (plus a vanity with two sinks), a second bedroom with queen bed and bathroom with shower and tub, a full kitchen (with full-sized appliances), a roomy living space with couch and fireplace, and an entry with lots of hooks for coats and space for ski boots. We had three flat-sceen TVs in the unit, a large balcony, and lovely wooded views. We wished we had a washer and dryer in our unit; this may have been the only thing lacking.

The kitchen was well-stocked with plates, utensils, pots and pans, and the like. Bring your own coffee (though there is a coffee-maker and filters), plus items such as ziplock bags. Free wifi is in all rooms. Your unit comes with a parking pass for the heated underground garage, should you need it, and all units are assigned a ski locker. From the locker, it’s a one-minute walk to the River Run Gondola.

Located in the lobby is a media room set up to watch movies with stadium seating (first come, first served, though we never saw it used) and a nice toddler and preschool play room. There’s a pool table in the lobby, and space for board games or card games.

Pool and fitness center:

Yes, there’s a full fitness center at The Springs, though when I’m on a ski vacation, I get enough exercise on the slopes! Adjacent to the fitness center (and accessed from the lobby) is the outdoor pool complex. Included is a beautiful free-form heated pool with waterfall and small slide, plus a heated kids’ wading pool with fountains, and two hot tubs. One hot tub is designated as adults-only, but we found both hot tubs to get so crowded, we let the kids warm up where they liked (don’t tell). There’s plenty of seating with tables and lounge chairs in the pool area, plus a BBQ for communal use, though during our trip, it was much too cold outside to utilize either. We loved the gated entry at the back of the pool area, which leads directly into the parking area for the gondola and to the pedestrian bridge to the village; this made for a nice shortcut to and from The Springs.

Rates:

At the time of our visit, a two-bedroom unit was listed for $394 a night (one bedroom condos, which would easily house a family of four were $284). Shop around between River Run lodging options: nearly all buildings have some sort of pool amenity (though not all have slides) and all are in walking distance of the slopes.

Location within Keystone:

River Run Village is definitely our pick among Keystone lodging locations: kids have Kidtopia, the ice rink, the gondola and slopes, and rentals within walking distance, as well as dining options galore. The only time we needed to utilize the free Village to Village Shuttle was to go to Mountain House for Kamp Keystone and Lakeside Village for lake ice skating at the Adventure Center.

Directions:

From Denver, travel west on Interstate 70. Exit at the Silverthorne/Dillon exit #205. At the end of the exit ramp turn left (East) at the stop light onto Highway 6. Travel 6.2 miles into Keystone Resort.

As I disclose whenever applicable, we enjoyed a complimentary stay at The Springs for the purpose of review. Comped stays make it possible for us to provide readers with accurate reviews of kid-friendly properties.