With New Year’s Eve falling on a Saturday this year, it may be the perfect time to spice up your annual year-end traditions and celebrate with a last-minute weekend getaway.
And whether your tastes run toward five-course meals and champagne toasts or torchlight parades and fireworks, these Colorado mountain towns have got you covered. All still had lodging available nearby Dec. 30-Jan. 2 as of last week.
1. Aspen
Aspen Mountain will be illuminated by fireworks not once but twice on New Year’s Eve. There are plenty of where you can catch a glimpse, but one more affordable viewing option is ‘s Shadow Mountain Lounge, where there will be a live DJ, cocktail service and complimentary champagne toast at midnight — all at no cover and open to the community. Fireworks are at 8 p.m. and midnight.
2. Beaver Creek
Home to one of , Beaver Creek pulls out all the stops for its youngest revelers — there’s a public glow-stick ski down, a torchlight parade and fireworks, and that’s before the big party gets started at 7 p.m.The at the features games, dancing, DJ, giveaways and two balloon drops, one at 10 p.m. and the other at midnight. Tickets are $65 for children ages 5-12, $75 for those 13 and up and free for children 4 and under.
3. Breckenridge
Catch Breckenridge’s traditional torchlight parade and fireworks on New Year’s Eve — they’re visible from most spots around town — and then if you’re not too hungover the next morning, lace up your trail shoes (or snowshoes) for the at 11 a.m. Jan. 1. The snowy course follows the Blue River and starts and ends at Colorado Mountain College. Race entry is $35 for adults, $15 for kids.
4. Estes Park
The is celebrating the New Year with a family-friendly party for guests staying in its lodges. The will feature DJ music, games, snacks, refreshments and a bedtime-appropriate 10 p.m. ball drop. Guest lodge rates start at $64 for members and $79 for non-members.
5. Grand Lake
There are tons of New Year’s Eve fireworks displays, but offers a scenic backdrop of a different sort — Colorado’s largest natural body of water. Prime viewing spots for the annual fireworks include Lake Avenue, Lake Park, the beach and the East Inlet Boat Launch.
6. Keystone
Your New Year’s Eve soundtrack doesn’t have to be just club anthems and chart-toppers. Get your bluegrass on at the in Keystone with a New Year’s concert by . Opening is Fort Collins-based folk act Pandas & People. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door.
7. Steamboat Springs
If you’ve ever dreamed of ringing in the New Year at 9,080 feet above sea level, then Steamboat Springs’ is the place for you. Ride the gondola to the resort’s Champagne Powder Room and enjoy panoramic views of the Yampa Valley — not to mention live music and dancing and a complimentary dessert bar, chocolate fountain and dim sum appetizers. Dine at Hazie’s, Four Points, Ragnar’s, Haymaker and Western BBQ and get complimentary entry to the party; otherwise, tickets are $50 per person.
8. Telluride
Snagging one of the last remaining rooms in Telluride may require a bit of a splurge, but it doesn’t get much more magical than an open-air sleigh ride to dinner and fireworks. The begins with a 15-minute sleigh ride to the historic sheep herding ranch before prime viewing of the resort’s torchlight parade and fireworks, an open bar and buffet-style gourmet dinner. Tickets are $200 for adults, $100 for youth ages 13-21 and $55 for children ages 6-12. Seats are extremely limited — reserve in advance by calling 970-728-7560.
9. Vail
‘s torchlight parade and fireworks on Golden Peak kicks off the evening’s festivities at 6:15 p.m. Afterwards, there are parties aplenty to choose from, including the s glitzy . Tickets to that soiree start at $500 per person. Or you can always hang out, free of charge, in the resort’s redesigned bar and lounge, The Remedy, and rock out to the DJ before watching the ball drop on the big-screen TV.
