Aspen Skiing

The mogul-packed monster of Aspen Mountain , looming over downtown, is for experienced skiers only. But, to Ski Aspen in every skiers dream. Many experienced skiers come to ski Aspen Mountain just to find prices on Hotels in Aspen out of reach; Buttermilk is great for beginners, with an excellent ski school that offers a three-day guaranteed "Learn to Snowboard" program; the wide-open runs of Snowmass , though mostly for intermediate skiers, feature some testing routes.

Highlands has some new high-speed lifts and offers excellent extreme skiing terrain. Daily lift tickets for all mountains are available. Rental of skis, boots and poles usually costs around $18 a day - you can also rent snowshoes in which to trek up and down the mountains. However, the town's best value has to be its fifty miles of groomed Nordic ski trails - one of the most extensive free cross-country trail networks in the US.