Located in the heart of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, Beaver Creek is an upscale resort offering experiences both on and off the mountain. Overshadowed by better-known resorts, Beaver Creek doesn’t get the crowds other places do, which makes a visit here even more appealing.
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Here’s how to spend a perfect long weekend in beautiful Beaver Creek.
Things To Do In Beaver Creek
Beaver Creek is known for its world-class skiing, but it truly is a year-round resort. Here are just a few things to do in the area.
Head To The Mountain
Three areas make up Beaver Creek Resort: Beaver Creek Village (the main village), Bachelor Gulch, and Arrowhead.
In the summer, the resort offers more than 62 miles of biking and hiking trails. Hike from the main village to the top via the moderately rated Overlook Trail. At the top, there’s a restaurant and a disc golf course. And if you hike up, you get to ride the gondola down for free. You could also take the Village To Village Trail to hike between all three resort areas.
In the winter, Beaver Creek Mountain offers 150 trails spanning more than 1,800 skiable acres. There’s also a Nordic area at the top of the Strawberry Park Lift. McCoy Park has cross-country and snowshoe trails as well as a dedicated beginner ski area.
Enjoy A Colorado Dinner With A Twist
There are three private cabins on Beaver Creek Mountain, all with unique offerings.
Beano’s Cabin serves a gourmet prix-fixe, five-course dinner. In the winter, a sleigh ride will take you to the cabin. In the summer, you can try your hand at horseback riding to earn your dinner. The hour-long guided ride up the mountain is beginner-friendly. If that isn’t for you, you can ride up on a wagon pulled by a tractor.
Take a 15-minute sleigh ride from The Ritz-Carlton in Bachelor Gulch up to Zach’s Cabin. The rustic-chic cabin has a cozy vibe thanks to the fireplaces. For dinner, you can choose from a-la-carte menu items that feature regional ingredients, like lamb and steak, and sip on award-winning wines while enjoying the sweeping mountain views.
If you’ve got the grandkids in tow, Allie’s Cabin is where you want to be. Their signature family dinners include a three-course meal for adults and a buffet set up just for kids. For dinner and a show, book one of the Thursday wine dinners, which pair food with wine followed by a fireworks show. To get to Allie’s Cabin, you’ll take an open-air sleigh pulled by a snowcat. You’ll love the plush slippers that greet you when you arrive!
Take In A Show
The Vilar Performing Arts Center is in the center of Beaver Creek Village and features Broadway musicals, jazz shows, family shows, and films. Beaver Creek Resort was the first resort in the world to open its own performing arts center. Today, the center continues to bring top-notch shows to the area as well as host local awards shows and functions.
Relax And Rejuvenate
Whether you’re wearing yourself out on the mountain or just need a break, there are many great spas in Beaver Creek to help you unwind. The Exhale Spa inside the Park Hyatt offers all the usual spa services, but it also has a relaxing water sanctuary inside called Aqua Sanitas. It includes several hydrotherapy pools, a steam room, and a tepidarium, or an essential-oil filled room modeled after Roman baths.
Conde Nast Traveler has recognized Spa Anjali inside The Westin Riverfront Resort as one of the best spas in the world. Both its decor and its treatments are inspired by the natural world. For a truly unique experience, book one of the chakra journeys, which use ancient techniques and scents to take you on a healing escape.
Spend A Day In The Village
Beaver Creek Village is a quaint oasis of shops and restaurants. Walk through the village to find plenty of clothing, art, and jewelry. At the heart of it all is the Beaver Creek Ice Rink, which operates in both the winter and summer.
Beaver Creek Village hosts many festivals and events throughout the year. Highlights in the summer are the Beaver Creek Wine & Spirits Festival and the Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival. In the winter, you can enjoy snowshoeing and culinary delights during the Winter Culinary Weekend. And don’t miss Oktoberfest, where you’ll be dancing and eating bratwurst all weekend long.
Go Fishing Or Golfing
Fishing is a year-round sport in Beaver Creek. A number of companies, like Gore Creek Fly Fisherman, will take you to the best fly-fishing spots on the Eagle River, Colorado River, or Gore Creek.
If you’re visiting during the winter, try your hand at ice fishing. Vail Valley Anglers will pick you up from your hotel, take you to a frozen alpine lake, and provide you with a fishing reel, bait, a warm hut, and a hot lunch.
If golf is more your thing, you can easily hit the links at one of the golf courses in Beaver Creek. The course at the Beaver Creek Golf Club was designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr. and is open to the public. The EagleVail Golf Club is less than a 15-minute drive from Beaver Creek and is also open to the public. You can book a tee time online here.
Best Restaurants In Beaver Creek
Powder 8 Kitchen & Tap
Located at the base of the ski resort, Powder 8 Kitchen & Tap is a hot spot for apres-ski drinks. It’s a no-frills cafeteria with limited food options, but on a bluebird day, nothing beats having drinks outside in the sun while listening to live music. Powder 8 is open in both the winter and summer.
Vail & Beaver Creek Chophouse
For a more expansive menu, head over to the Vail & Beaver Creek Chophouse, also located in the base area. The patio is pretty big and is lined with heaters and firepits for warmth in the winter. You could easily sit here for hours and just people-watch. Attached to the chophouse is CBAR, where you can get your fill of seafood and oysters.
Beaver Creek Candy Cabin
For a sweet pick-me-up, head to the Beaver Creek Candy Cabin at the top of the Strawberry Park or Upper Beaver Creek Mountain Express Lift. Once a ski patrol hut, the wooden structure is now an old-style candy store filled with taffy, bulk candy, and even chocolate bars in the shape of ski boots. Sorry, summer visitors — this sweet shop is only open in the winter.
Sauce On The Creek
Beaver Creek Resort is near the town of Avon, which has its own food scene worth checking out. If you can only get away for one meal, go to Sauce on the Creek. It has the best-priced happy hour around. Don’t miss the Fat Tony (homemade meatballs) and pasta with vodka sauce. If you are there during the summer, sit outside on the patio. It has a laid-back vibe with bocce and live music.
Northside Kitchen
Pastries the size of your head? You will find them at Northside Kitchen in Avon. Don’t be surprised if you also find a line out the door in the morning — the sweets are that good.
Here’s a tip: Stop in to Northside Kitchen in the afternoon to snag any leftover pastries for a discounted price. They’ll still be delicious the next morning!
Best Places To Stay In Beaver Creek
Whether you’re looking for a hotel room or multiroom condominium, a variety of accommodations are available at Beaver Creek Resort. The resort offers several specials throughout the year that will allow you to combine your activities — like ski-lift tickets or golf — with your hotel stay to save money. You can refine your online search to book a place within a short walk or shuttle ride of the lifts. Or go for a ski-in, ski-out place like The Osprey at Beaver Creek, which claims to be the closest hotel to a ski lift in North America!
If you prefer a hotel setting, The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa in Avon has its own gondola that will take you to the ski resort. It has traditional hotel rooms as well as larger rooms with kitchens. The hotel has an outdoor pool that is lively all year round, plus delicious dining, including the award-winning Mexican restaurant Maya.
For an especially luxurious stay, consider The Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch. This rustic mountain lodge is set at the base of the Bachelor Gulch lift and is known for its lively apres-ski scene with an over-the-top seafood station, outdoor bar, and live music around the firepit. While you’re there, be sure to say hello to the resident dogs, a Bernese Mountain Dog named Scout and a Saint Bernard named Bachelor.
Pro Tip: You absolutely cannot leave Beaver Creek without trying one of its signature chocolate chip cookies. Chefs in white coats come out to the main base every day at 3 p.m. sharp to deliver these fresh-from-the-oven treats.
