When I was in my 20’s, I would travel with my cousins to Colorado every year for a week of skiing. We skied all day and had fun all night. One of the last trips we took together before everyone started to get married and have babies, was a trip to Copper Mountain, and I have amazing memories of our trip together. So, when we had the opportunity to spend the weekend at Copper Mountain as a family, I couldn’t have been more thrilled to make new memories there with my husband and two little ones.
We arrived on a Saturday and stayed until Monday, which we really liked because Sunday and Monday didn’t have as much traffic on the mountain. Sadly traffic getting up there on Saturday was pretty brutal. Granted there was a bad accident just outside of Idaho Springs, but it took us 4.5 hours to get there. (And now we know, leave before 5:30am or after 10:00am and you should be good to go!) At least by the time we got up there, we still had time to get in a decent day of skiing!
The good news after our epic traffic adventure, was that Copper Mountain was right off of I-70, we could see it right from the highway! We pulled into the Copper Mountain Lodging Check-In facility, and within minutes I had keys in my hands for our two-bedroom condo in the East Village.
We were excited to see our condo in The Greens. It was in the East Village, right near the Super Bee lift. The parking was right out front of the building, and they had carts available to make load-in so much easier. (TIP: This kind of trip requires a lot of ‘stuff’: ski gear, food for the weekend, and things to keep the kids busy. We used IKEA bags to keep all the little stuff together, and load-in was a breeze!) The kids made themselves right at home in our comfy condo, and I quickly unloaded everything.
My daughter and I went to ski that afternoon, and then we met my husband and son in Center Villagefor some apres ski entertainment. InclineBar and Grill had wonderful live music and the food was delicious! The kids were exhausted, so we headed back to our condo for some relaxation time, and then tucked them into their comfy beds while we enjoyed hanging out in the condo.
The next morning, we dropped my husband off at Center Village to ski (we loved how easy it was to come and go from the parking at The Greens), and I packed the kids up for a morning in Center Village. We dropped our ski stuff off at the lockers in the guest services building and then headed to the ice skating rink. Skates were only $10 to rent, and anyone could walk out on the ice. My daughter wanted to ice skate, and my son grabbed one of the fun seal walkers to get out on the ice with his boots. My daughter whirled and twirled around us while we walked across the entire lake and back. The kids loved it and I really enjoyed watching how much fun they were having!
Once we dragged my daughter off the ice, we headed over to Sugar Lips for some delicious and fresh made mini donuts. They have so many different topping options, our selections were half cinnamon/sugar and half strawberry sauce. They were so delicious that there were a few tears when they were all gone! After donuts, my daughter and I hit the ski trails, and my son and husband went back to Sugar Lips for more donuts!
One the first day of skiing, my daughter and I explored the mountain. It had been a while since I had skied Copper, and we had to stick to the greens. Then on the second day we really found our groove. We headed up the American flyer lift and went down the Coppertone run, which is a nice family friendly green – and it’s so long! Then we found our way over to the Rendezvous lift and spent most of the afternoon there. It’s not a high-speed lift, so the ride was a little longer (although I think that helped my daughter ski longer), but the green runs were incredibly fun – and no one was back there! If you end up over there with one of your beginner skiers, know that the lift doesn’t slow down much to pick you up or drop you off, but the lift operators can slow it down just for you to load, which made it so much easier for my daughter to hop on. When we’d unload she’d have to hop off a little bit, and the chair would usually give her a little love tap as it turned, but she didn’t care, she was ready to head down the hill! The third day we headed to the same area and had some more fun cruising down the runs on a beautiful sunny day!
After skiing, we headed over to JJ’s, one of our favorite apres ski places in the East Village (and where many of those memories from my 20’s happened!). Sadly, they didn’t have live music on Sunday night, but when they do it’s an incredible place to be. The kids enjoyed their food while we enjoyed some nachos and adult beverages. I think Copper Mountain has some of the most affordable mountain resort food as well, and it’s good food, which isn’t always the case. When the kids started to turn into pumpkins we walked less than a block back to our condo for some quiet time and then bed!
On our final morning we had to get packed up, but we dropped my husband off to ski first, and then the kids and I loaded out our stuff (we’ve got it down to a science now, the kids know exactly what to do!). We were able to leave our car in the lot until 2:00pm, even though check out was at 10:00am (awesome perk!), so we got loaded up and headed over to Center Village to pick up my husband. Then my daughter and I headed out for our last day of skiing.
We had bought tickets for tubing that afternoon for my husband and daughter, and they had the best time. While they were enjoying the big kid rides, I took my son to Critterland, where he lounged in a tube ride that was similar to pony rides. He had a great time, and then he and I walked over to JJ’s again for some French fries (and a beer!) Then it was sadly time to head down the mountain, but we brought with us memories of an incredibly fun family weekend!
Copper Mountain has always been a favorite of mine, and it was nice to be back! Over the last few years they have made a significant investment in the renewal of their resort, $20 million to be exact, and you can tell. This renovation has produced three new dining locations, new retail, RFID gate technology, a revamped beginning area, plus lots more! There are some beautiful new restaurants and amenities for family travelers. One of their new attractions is the Mountain Coaster, which we didn’t get a chance to ride on during our weekend, but we had fun watching people go down it as we came up on the lift.
Another new addition is the Kokomo Express Lift in the West Village. We didn’t make it over there this time, but had skied in the west village a couple weeks ago. Before the high-speed lift the easiest runs in the West Village had longer lines, and with the Kokomo Express Lift now there’s less waiting and more skiing!
We left already looking forward to our next visit! Want more info about Copper? Check out their website.
