Now Choose Life

Choose Life in the after- after the spouse dies, after the marriage ends, after the kids leave

  • Grief
  • Books
  • Food
  • Travel
  • What I Wore
  • links
  • Faith
  • Home
  • Favorite Things

Affordable Colorado Travel- Durango and Aspen

October 23, 2021 by Sharon

Affordable Colorado

Affordable travel in Colorado is doable with some planning. I know affordable and Colorado in the same sentence seems like an oxymoron, but it really isn’t. Planning ahead is key in these COVID times when so many others are traveling too.

We didn’t take any big trips this summer (’21). We did several small trips which ended up being a lot of fun for us. I looked forward to these short getaways throughout the summer and fall. We returned refreshed after each trip to Colorado.

I grew up going to Colorado, and it quickly became one of my favorite places. My parents loved to fly fish so every summer when I was a little girl, we traveled to the old mining town of Platoro, Colorado. My parents loved it because it was a fairly remote area, and they loved to get away from it all! When I was grown with a family of my own, my parents treated us to a trip to the Gunnison/ Crested Butte area. Again, they went to fly fish, but we hiked, read, and hung out as a family. Those were glorious trips. Short of sky trips to a couple of Colorado resorts, I had really not gone to other popular Colorado areas.

Dr. T and I had a mini honeymoon in Aspen when we got married six years ago so we were ready to go back and explore other areas this summer!

Affordable Colorado

The first place we traveled this summer was Durango to celebrate our 6th anniversary.

Affordable Colorado
The DoubleTree is right by the river. We sat out in the evenings and watched to kayaks go by. We also hiked down by this river one morning.

After narrowing down our search of where to stay to these three places– The Rochester, The Strater, and DoubleTree, we chose the DoubleTree because we are Hilton Honors members.

The great thing about staying at the DoubleTree is that it shares a parking lot with an Albertsons that has a Starbucks. I walked to Starbucks most mornings for coffee. It was a short walk from the Doubletree to the main street in town with many shops and restaurants.

We ate some great food! Our first night we met a co-worker of Dr. T’s and his wife for dinner at Ken and Sues. They live in Durnago and suggested this place. It was delicious!

We walked up by the college and had this beautiful view of town.

We ate crepes at Michaels Corner. It was lovely, and the crepes were great! Such a fun atmosphere at this food truck

Our last night in town, we ate Mexican Food at Nayarit. We just wanted to split some nachos, but we also love queso (hey we’re from Texas) so we also ordered queso, and we were not disappointed! The queso came in a “caldron” full of bubbly, delicious cheese! We were in heaven. Don’t miss the queso if you go!

We took a day trip up to Ouray driving the Million Dollar Highway. It was spectacular, and we had the best day!

We were very fortunate on this trip to have Dr T’s coworker love the town enough to want to show us around. He took us to many places, and told us the history of the town. I left knowing that the quality of life in this medium sized Colorado town is high. What a great place to live. We sure had a great visit!!

Dr. T rode one wheels with his co-worker, and we got to see the beautiful parks along the river. What a place to live!

Aspen

I mentioned at the first of this post that we went to Aspen for a minimoon when we were married six years ago. I hate to not share where we stayed because I found a great, affordable place to stay in a resort town where nothing is affordable!! We stayed at Mountain Chalet. Contact them directly for the best rates.

Home

Affordable Colorado

This is a gem of a hotel. It is so quaint. Breakfast is included with the room, and everyone sits at the same tables so you meet new people every morning. That was so much fun to meet others from all over the country. This is not a fancy hotel– if you want fancy, stay at the St. Regis right across the street. Mountain Chalet is family owned, and you will be treated like family when you stay here.

Shopping in Aspen is oh so fun! I love to buy “big for me” purchases when I’m on trips. I just always have special memories when I wear or use the item. I bought a beautiful coat at the Burberry in Aspen! I love the coat and love the memory I have of buying it with Dr. T in Aspen!

We had a fun time in Aspen. I’m ready to go back!!

Past Post from Now Choose Life

Viking River Cruise- Day 3

Filed Under: travel

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

After her husband’s sudden and unexpected death, Sharon McCuistian found herself a widow at the age of 48. With two grown children in college, Sharon had to find a way to live in her new reality. She turned to the things she loved to help in her grief: faith, family, and friends. Her love of words and writing became the cathartic venue by which she began to process her loss. It is through her grief journey that Now Choose Life was born. Read More

Follow Me On

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Recent Posts

Things Piquing My Interest #83

On April 22, 2022 a fires started in the beautiful Jemez Mountains in New Mexico. As the days have progressed, the fire has slowly moved closer and closer to the town in which I live. We are now under “Set” orders in the Ready Set Go program for dealing with wild fires. We have several […]

Spring Ideas To Add To Your Home

Looking for spring ideas to add to your home? Look no further! I’m sharing some favorite things from my home as well as sending you to some of my favorite blog posts that are all about spring! It’s been winter here in my beautiful New Mexico mountains, but inside, it’s all about springtime! Here are […]

Things Piquing My Interest #82

First of all, let me get you caught up on ME! I guess I won’t be a movie star after all. I was emailed about an extra part in the movie being filmed in the town in which I live. I guess I didn’t get back to them quickly enough because I never heard from […]

A Guided Pray For Ukraine- Using The Lord’s Prayer

For the past couple of years, I’ve been using the Lord’s Prayer as part of a guided prayer time. It’s made me think about specific areas for which I need to pray and made me reflect on how I’m choosing to live my life. I thought I’d share a prayer for UKraine using the Lord’s […]

Scottsdale

A Weekend In Scottsdale

Could you use a getaway right about now? I’ve got the perfect place for you-a weekend in Scottsdale, Arizona. Life has been stressful lately. I wanted a fun getaway with Dr. T so we picked Scottsdale. We also called our fun travel friends, Fred and Ethel, and they were happy to meet us there. Where […]

Recent Posts

  • Things Piquing My Interest #83
  • Spring Ideas To Add To Your Home
  • Things Piquing My Interest #82
  • A Guided Pray For Ukraine- Using The Lord’s Prayer
  • A Weekend In Scottsdale

Follow Me On

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • About
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022