Estes Park, the town known for its taffy and trinket shops, continues its upscale slide as custom homebuilder StoneGate Homes introduces a $2 million model home.
Other indications that the little hamlet is getting more resortlike: Estes Park Resorts is working to build 108 nightly rental condominiums that will be attached to larger convention facilities and a spa, staples of ski-resort markets.
And an Arizona buyer recently made an offer on a $7 million home, said Robby Carson, co- owner of Estes Park Realty, which is marketing several multimillion-dollar homes, including the StoneGate model.
“It has been exciting watching the number of homebuyers coming in here recently, even with this bad weather we’ve had,” Carson said.
Estes Park is the state’s second-most popular tourist destination, behind Colorado Springs, according to research firm Longwoods International.
The closest ski area is Eldora, about 40 minutes away by car, but cross-country skiing and snowshoeing events are big in town. The “Snowshoe Estes” winter trails event in Rocky Mountain National Park will be Feb. 17, for example.
Carson and marketer Lee Miller advertise their properties in high-end magazines like the Robb Report and Mountain Living, Miller said, rather than limiting their ads to area newspapers.
Miller said he also places DVDs of the high-end properties in corporate jets.
“We market Estes Park to the world as, ‘We’re a fun place to come. It’s not just a place you visited in the summer when you were 6 years old,”‘ Miller said. “We’re finding success with that, and outside marketing benefits everyone.”
More upscale shops have moved in after existing business owners made a concerted push to go after them, said Susie Kenney, vice president of the Estes Park Chamber of Commerce. One new shop offers home-decor items for mountain cabins; another is adding wine and cheese, with wine tastings planned.
In addition, several Estes Park hotels now offer shuttle transportation to Eldora, Kenney said. But no matter how high-end the town becomes, it’s still family-oriented.
“We’re not a Vail; we’re not an Aspen,” Kenney said. “(But) we would love for more people to come up in the winter.”
