Travel Tips for Telluride

Where to stay? What to do? Well, don’t worry. We’ve sent our travel experts into the depths of vacation land for you. They’ve traveled the roads, ate the food, played with the locals and found the little things that make a vacation unforgettable. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it so you could have the inside view to your next vacation.

Travel experts share their secrets to conquering Telluride, Colorado:

Travel Expert Cameron Nash on Telluride

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the summer :

1. Everything gets booked soon during certain festivals. I suggest booking really early (about 10-12 months before) if you plan on staying here in August.
2. I recommend staying in town as opposed to Mountain Village because there are many more amenities and there’s still easy access to mountain activities.
3. Because of Telluride’s altitude, be prepared for snow – even in July!

Telluride lodging highlight – Manitou House

1. It’s inexpensive for Telluride, but still nice.
2. It’s in a great location next to Lift 7 and Smugglers Brew Pub.
3. Cute little rooms that are perfect for a ski-bum vacation.

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. Hike Coronet Falls. It’s a short half-mile hike to beautiful waterfalls.
2. River Rafting the San Miguel is great. It’s a small river, but with massive spring runoff it can be very fast and exhilarating.
3. Bring Sunscreen. The sun is very intense at such high elevation.

When dining in Telluride, you must eat at:

1. For breakfast: Eat at Baked and order anything because it is all delicious
2. For lunch: Go to Smugglers Brew Pub. Their beer has won 11 awards.
3. For dinner: Go to La Cocina and order the veggie burrito because Telluride knows how to treat hippies right.

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the winter:

1. There is more lodging in town than in Mountain Village.
2. Telluride Ski Resort has mostly advanced terrain and is not suited to beginning skiers.
3. The town has many more restaurants than the Mountain Village.

I suggest staying in these Telulride accommodations in the winter:

1. Telluride Mountainside Inn
2. Spiral Stairs
3. Riverside

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. Apre Ski at the Buck
2. Ice Skating in Town Park
3. Ski Baseball in March

Good eats at Telluride :

1. For breakfast: try a place in town called Baked, and order a breakfast burrito.
2. For lunch: the Buck, and order beer and fries because they make for good ski fuel.
3. For dinner go to La Cocina. The quesadilla’s because the make for great leftovers.

Travel Expert Heather Gardner on Telluride

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the summer:

1. Telluride hosts a large number of festivals that sometimes makes lodging and parking difficult to find.
2. The Mountain Village and town of Telluride are two distinctly different areas.
3. Air conditioned accommodations are not necessary.

Some great lodging Telluride lodging accommodations:

1. Bachman Village has attractive free-standing units with good location and a reasonable price.
2. The Viking Lodge has a nice outdoor pool and a great location on the river walk.
3. Riverside is a fantastic location with some recently updated units.

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. Hike Bridal Veil Falls.
2. Guided horseback rides.
3. Historical Tour of Telluride.

When dining in Telluride, you must eat at:

1. For breakfast (or lunch): Baked in Telluride. It has a killer breakfast burrito, soups and chili, and don’t forget Telluride’s favorite pizza (available for delivery).
2. For lunch: Smugglers Brew Pub. Sit on the patio, drink a cold beer and order Calamari.
3. For dinner: La Cocina (best guacamole around). It’s light, satisfying Mexican fare. For an upscale place, try La Marmotte. It offers seasonal, fresh French cuisine.

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the winter:

1. Most lodging in town is very convenient to skiing.
2. Most skiing in Telluride is at least intermediate – no beginner access from town.
3. The Mountain Village and town of Telluride are two distinctly different areas.

Some great winter Telluride lodging accommodations:

1. Double Diamond is a great ski-in/ski-out property.
2. Etta Place in town is a good priced ski-in/ski-out property.
3. Mountain Lodge at Telluride is an upscale property in mountain village that’s also ski-in/ski-out.

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. A spa treatment at “Atmosphere Spa” at Camels Garden Hotel.
2. Take a horse-drawn sleigh ride with local colorful cowboy “Roudy.”
3. Go for a snowmobile tour that includes a soak in a hot springs and a gourmet lunch.
4. Feeling adventurous? Try some of the best ice climbing (guided) in the country.

When dining in Telluride, you must eat at:

1. For breakfast: Baked or Maggies, both in town.
2. For lunch: Poachers Pub or Diggity Dogs, both in Mountain Village.
3. for Apres Ski: Chair 8.
4. For dinner: Cosmopolitan, Hongas Lotus Petal and Las Montanas.

Travel Expert Gena Bair on Telluride:

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the summer:

1. Telluride has two lodging locations: The town of Telluride and the Mountain Village.
2. During the summer months the town is the best location.
3. There are a plethora of festivals during the summer months in Telluride so booking as far in advance as you can is recommended.

Telluride lodging highlight – The Viking Lodge

1. The location is perfect. It’s right on the river walk between the Park and the grocery store.
2. It has a year-round swimming pool.
3. If you get a unit in the back of the property you can listen to the sound of the river all night.

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. Festivals, festivals, festivals. Telluride is the destination for so many festivals the town takes an entire week for the Nothing Festival just to have a break.
2. Telluride is not only one of the most beautiful destinations in all of Colorado, it also has a huge culture ambiance for such a small population.
3. Every possible summer activity you can imagine is available in Telluride from rafting, hiking and horse back riding.

When dining in Telluride, you must eat at:

1. For breakfast: Baked in Telluride. Order one of the potato burritos out of the hot case. They have many breakfast items ready to go with fast service, and the coffee is great.
2. For lunch: La Cocina De Luz. You order from the counter and they bring it out to your table. Very casual but the food – especially the fish tacos – is incredible.
3. For dinner: Smugglers Brew Pub is a must. They have the best calamari I have ever had in my life. They also have a tasting menu of all of their award-winning lagers and ales.

What to know when booking your Telluride vacation rental in the winter:

1. If you want a ski-in/ski-out property and you’re coming with family and/or you have novice skiers, stay in the Mountain Village. The hill that drops you down into the town of Telluride is a high intermediate run.
2. Stay in the town of Telluride if your group is intermediate to expert skiers and you want some night life.
3. The gondola runs from the town up to the mountain village. If you want to stay in the upper village but also want night life, the Gondola’s a great option.

Telluride lodging highlight – the Mountain Lodge at Telluride, Luxury Cabins

1. Surrounded by aspens and blue spruce you may feel as if you are in the middle of nowhere, yet, the Village and the gondola are all within a short stroll.
2. With health club facilities, a heated outdoor pool, a jacuzzi and full hotel services, your stay in the San Juan Mountains will be unforgettable
3. It is completely furnished with an exercise room, steam room, lockers and showers with ski-in/ski-out access.

“Local secrets” and activities you must experience when staying in Telluride :

1. At the Resort Quest rental shop, you can rent helmet cams and record up to an hour of footage and they’ll burn the DVD for you back at the rental shop in less than 10 minutes.
2. The Telluride Historical Museum is a fantastic way to learn about the town’s history. They have great displays and exhibits of old mining equipment and how they lived. It is very interesting.
3. Mountain Village Pond. The pond is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., weather permitting.

When dining in Tellulride, you must eat at:

1. For breakfast: 9545 Restaurant and Bar, located inside of the Lost Creek Inn, has an amazing Bloody Mary Hollandaise for their Eggs Benny. It is an experience unto itself.
2. For lunch go to Crazy Elk Pizza for easy family dining. Its crust has a great honey flavor that is soft and chewy.
3. For dinner: Allreds. It is right at the top of the Gondola. Chef Bob Scherner has created a menu to die for. His menu has been deemed “Internationally Influenced Regional American.” He serves a five-course tasting menu so you can experience all of his classic food.