Nine must-do highlights of Telluride, Colorado
By Jim Darby
The museum
Mining put many vintage Colorado towns on the map; what’s unique with Telluride is the way it has kept that character intact. The old town is tucked into a box canyon with mountainsides perfect for snow sports but also ripe for property development. Hence, you have Mountain Village out of the way up above, and a delightful Victorian-era town down below, with a museum that explains its origins and details the tussle between heritage and development in a most interesting way. See telluridemuseum.org
Telluride and its main street – West Colorado Avenue – with the New Sheriden Hotel on the left.
The coffee
By and large, the coffee in Colorado is not good – strength and flavour most often the victims of quantity and convenience. A Telluride exception is the van known as the Coffee Cowboy at the Oak Street Plaza, the base of the free gondola. Sure, you can order an Annie Oakley – a latte with caramel and cinnamon – but they also make excellent macchiato, latte and cappuccino. See thecoffeecowboy.com
The terrain
Fresh tracks in Telluride.
Telluride has a well-deserved reputation for steep, extreme and challenging terrain but there are many long and gentle groomed runs for skiers and boarders. If you want to see how the stars live, take a cruise down the long and winding Double Cabin run to the base of Lift 10, past the estates of Mountain Village. Oprah Winfrey has a five-bedroom house here somewhere (with a wine tunnel, seven-person spa and indoor theatre). Tom Cruise used to – he sold his spread for $US39.4 million in 2022.
The tour
It’s a big ski area, with 149 runs – the longest of them 7.6 kilometres – and many skiing zones. There’s a logic to the way it all works though and you can discover it on a free guided tour with a Telluride resort ambassador. Tours depart daily at 10am from the top of Lift 7 and include some background on the area’s history and the mountain environment. You’ll need a lift pass and you’ll need to be an intermediate level or above skier or boarder. See telluride.com
The trails
There’s an area known as Top-a-ten because, what do you know, it’s at the top of Lift 10 and it’s here that 10 kilometres of trails are regularly groomed for people who want to explore the forests and admire the views of mountain peaks near and far using snowshoes or cross-country skis. Civilisation remains close – there are restrooms and a warming teepee on location.
The heliskiing
Into the wilderness with Telluride Helitrax.
Get set for adventure with Telluride Helitrax – one minute you’re in Mountain Village, next minute you’re in the helicopter with Telluride town disappearing beneath you. A few minutes more and you’re landing in a snowy wilderness with untracked slopes there to be skied. Groups of four plus a guide typically ski six runs with the helicopter doing the lifting. The focus is very much on a safe day out in an extraordinary mountain environment. See helitrax.com
The mountain lunch
Bon Vivant for an extraordinary mountain lunch setting.
Some venues with beautiful views are about the seeing, some, like Bon Vivant, are also about being seen. Perched on a deck at 3414 metres with a Perspex windbreak and island bar, the queue forms at 11am to grab a table or book one for later. Everyone gets a pair of sunglasses with frames that change colour in the sun (ours from white to pink) and the service is good. But this is not a lingering European lunch – here the tactic is turnover, we were seated at 11.30 and had our skis on again not long after 12.30.
The mountain dinner
Arriving for dinner at Alpino Vino.
Alpino Vino once claimed the mantle of the highest restaurant in the US, at 3647 metres, but that’s been taken by another Colorado venue – Il Rifugio at Arapahoe Basin (3810 metres). At night, in this rustic cabin, when you arrive by over-snow transport to enjoy an Italian inspired five-course set menu with matching wines, the height really isn’t all that important; the food and atmosphere are simply wonderful. See telluride.com
The old hotel
Telluride was alive with gold fever when the Sheriden Hotel was built in 1891, but it burnt in 1894, so the New Sheriden was built from brick to open in 1895. The “New” is actually Telluride’s oldest hotel and its boisterous bar is little changed from the day it opened, at least as far as mahogany wood panelling and filigree light fixtures go. On the other side of the building, the Chop House restaurant is one of the best in town, particularly for Colorado beef. See newsheridan.com
One more thing
Not much comes for free in a ski resort, but the need to make it easy for people to travel between the old town of Telluride and Mountain Village means the gondola, with its spectacular views and serious vertical climb, is free for all. Use it to get to the ski fields or to put some variety in your wining, dining and exploring.
The writer was a guest of Telluride, Travelplan Australia and Colorado Ski Country (coloradoski.com). Snow specialist Travelplan has a variety of Colorado ski packages, including Telluride, with discounted accommodation, lift tickets and airfares. Phone 1300 754 754. See Travelplan.com.au
Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter
Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.