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.

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

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!