Infamous Aspen. The Monaco of ski resorts. You know it’s true when you drive up and see the private jets coming in for a landing. There’s more fur out here than at the local zoo and a bottle of wine consumed by the Hedgefunders at the table next to you could pay for your whole week’s stay. Main street is like a catwalk of winter haute couture.
Aspen is the product of skiing’s long relationship with wealth and status. After packing up the yacht for the summer, the Aspen elite jet over to the slopes to wine, dine (and maybe ski a few runs).
And while the gross annual income is clearly abundant, so is the snow. This area seems to have been blessed with the perfect weather symmetry to produce consistent dry, fluffy snow. And while the woman next to you may be bundled to the nines in the fur of her future dinner, it doesn’t get very cold.
Aspen Mountain rises high above its bourgeois base and you can instantly predict that the skiing is going to deliver. Once on the lifts, Aspen feels quite different. Friendly mountain greeters, that appear to be enjoying their 70th season, give you trail tips perfectly suited to your palate. Our new BFF told us exactly wear to find some hidden steeper-than-steeps and he was true to his word - a little powder still remained just for us.
Aspen is predominantly a mountain of pitches. Big sweeping groomers everywhere, allow bankers and brokers the opportunity to one-up their colleagues by breaking out the tuck they learned in prep-school.
Maintained to a T, the conditions are as perfect as can be. The corduroy is as soft as the high thread count sheets in your hotel and you can almost go as fast as the red Ferrari parked beside the base lodge.
Aspen is definitely not the go-to destination for the cash flow deficient, but it is possible to spend a few days without having to subsidize your skiing with street performances. A few moderately priced hotels exist and you can get a reasonably priced meal if you plan ahead. A lot of places book-up well in advance, including restaurants, so put your planning hat on six months before you normally would.
For those able to indulge a little more, Aspen has herself some restaurants.
Modern and chick, classic and sleek, sushi or steak, to stay or to take. Veal or duck, try your luck, Nouveau cuisine, soups and stews, try the vegetarian or some great Swiss fondue.
Just remember, make reservations ahead of time. You’d think you were in Manhatten.
There are also some amazing hotels. While most START at $400 a night, there are some deals. The Annabelle Inn is an amazing place. Little rooms done up beautifully with wood canopy beds and ski themed decorative details are very romantic. There’s also a hot tub on the outdoor top floor from which you can watch ski movies on a big screen and gaze at Aspen Mountain at the same time.
There are some fun dance clubs - people getting their groove on. You’ll suspect that many of the revelers are either staff, someone’s teenager or third wife but you’ll find a crowd that’s both willing and able to dance till closing. More popular are the lounge type bars wear spiffy patrons sip martinis and talk stocks. Really though, Aspen has so much variety that you will find a place that fits like the perfect ski glove. Warm, comfortable, fits with your ski style, but not too much as to make it either tacky or boring.
I hear the real action can be found at house parties around Aspen. Be friendly, ski well and you might make some friends who extend an invite.
The one thing lacking is the Après skiing scene. At the bottom of the lift, a few restaurants have some live music happening but once the sun disappears behind the mountain, the patios empty and the crowd heads back to ready themselves for dinner. Après also starts very early as many skiers put in the requisite two runs and then head down for champagne.
Aspen really is all it is rumored to be. A trip sneaks a peak into the lives of the rich and famous. But while you may not have a sports car, a jet or a Louis Vuitton mink fur hat adorned with Swarovski crystals, you can probably take on most of the skiers and win.
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