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HIGH-ALTITUDE LIFESTYLE
ASPEN’S ETERN A L A LLURE
Where to dine, shop, play, and stay in Colorado’s capital of cool.
By Jen Murphy
Aspen is the rare mountain town that delivers both big nature and big city–worthy culture.
The historic downtown retains its Victorianera charm but is far from stuck in the past. Behind its storybook facades lie world-class shopping, art galleries, and cultural venues that rival any metropolis. No matter the season, you can combine epic adventures with a serious dose of art, music, film, and food. Start your day chasing powder or wildflowers— be it on skis, snowboard, bicycle, or foot—and end it with an intimate jazz show or Michelinstarred meal. Here’s how to experience the best of it all this season and beyond.
RISE & SHINE
Kickstart your day with a sustainably sourced, roasted-on-site brew from Unravel Coffee (unravel.coffee), where the aromatic and addictive beans are predominantly sourced from small farms in Ethiopia. A high-tech, eco-friendly Bellwether coffee roaster draws out unique flavor profiles, and talented baristas concoct drinks like the café miel, a double shot of espresso mixed with honey, cinnamon, and steamed milk.
The indulgent breakfast menu at Prospect, located in the historic Hotel Jerome, Auberge Collection (auberge.com/ hoteljerome), elevates morning classics with hyperlocal ingredients. The savory maitake mushroom eggs Benedict or sweet huckleberry skillet cake, topped with Meyer lemon butter and candied pine
nuts, will fuel you through the afternoon. For a quick bite before hitting the trails, stop by Silvers (silversaspen.com), a new bagel shop that boils and bakes its doughy delights on-site and serves them with artisanal spreads and decadent toppings like caviar and Nova lox.
ADVENTURE
It’s worth rising early—and bundling up—for a sunrise hot-air balloon ride with local expedition outfitter Blazing Adventures (blazingadventures.com). Each season provides a unique bird’s-eye perspective of the Elk Mountains and Roaring Fork Valley, such as a golden canopy in fall or snowcapped peaks in winter.
Family-owned, T-Lazy-7 Ranch (tlazy7.com) leads guided snowmobile tours along groomed trails to Maroon Lake, at the base of North America’s most photographed peaks, the Maroon Bells. Come spring, when the snow melts, cycling fanatics can make the iconic climb some 1,300 feet over nearly 7 miles from Highlands to Maroon Lake. Maroon Creek Road is mostly free of vehicles, making it a delight to experience on two wheels—and with an e-bike, you don’t need to be in Tour de France shape to pedal to the top. Locally owned Aspen Bikes (aspenbikes.com) offers a full fleet of pedal-assist e-bike rentals that will give you an extra boost.
During winter, guests arrive at Pine Creek Cookhouse by ski, snowshoe, or horse-drawn sleigh. Cover: The top women finishers pop bubbles in celebration during the Snow League 2025 awards ceremony.
REFRESH
Come down from your adventure high with a grounding class at O2 (o2life.com). This boutique fitness space specializes in Pilates and yoga but also offers meditation and sound-bath sessions. Its instructors, including Aaron King and Coco Rojas, have cult followings, so reserve a spot in advance.
New to Aspen, Base State Longevity (basestatelongevity.com) offers every biohack imaginable, from IV drips to red-light therapy to help you bounce back from jet lag, high altitude, or a muscle-taxing day on the trails. For a healthy après-ski, rent one of the private sauna-and-cold-plunge suites, which can accommodate up to four people.
SHOP
Tucked within the historic facades of downtown Aspen’s Victorian-era buildings are some of the world’s most sought-after luxury brands, including Ralph Lauren, Hermès, Moncler, and Morgenthal Frederics, plus coveted jewelers like Lugano, Buccellati, and Anna Zuckerman. Within the last year, Goop, LoveShackFancy, Revolve, and Veronica Beard have also opened brick-and-mortar shops downtown.
Prefer to shop local? Aspen has more than 50 locally owned stores. Favorites include Nuages (nuagesaspen.com)—a jewel box–sized indie boutique with an expertly edited selection of designers such as Azzedine Alaïa and Alberta Ferretti—and The Little Bird (thelittlebirdinc.com), a discerning consignment shop curated with gems like Celine bags and Louboutin heels.
DESTINATION DINING
Turn lunch into an adventure. Pine Creek Cookhouse (pinecreekcookhouse.com) has a dreamy setting among the Elk Mountains in scenic Castle Creek Valley and a local menu of dishes like hickory-smoked venison French dip and ruby-red rainbow trout with kimchi fried rice. In winter, the cozy log cabin can’t be accessed by car; instead, guests make the 3-mile round trip from Ashcroft ghost town via snowshoe or cross-country skis (rentals are included with dining reservations), or book a ride in the restaurant’s horse-drawn sleigh.
Writer Hunter S. Thompson’s favorite haunt, Woody Creek Tavern (woodycreektavern.com), was lovingly restored and updated in 2021 with a sensational lunch and dinner menu of comfort foods such as bison
In winter, family-owned T-Lazy Ranch swaps horseback riding for snowmobile tours to popular sites like Maroon Bells.
burgers and fried chicken. Year-round, you can cycle or cross-country ski the 8-mile stretch of paved Rio Grande Trail that leads from Aspen straight to the restaurant—and you’ll earn every bite. SEE
When Walter Paepcke co-founded the Aspen Ski Corporation in 1946, he envisioned a town where nature met culture. He and his wife, Elizabeth, recruited Herbert Bayer, one of the leading figures of the Bauhaus movement, to help execute his plans and craft Aspen’s aesthetic DNA, which included a restoration of the Wheeler Opera House (wheeleroperahouse.com) and Hotel Jerome. The Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies (thebayercenter.org), located on the campus of the Aspen Institute, preserves the pioneering designer’s legacy with rotating exhibits such as Sculpting the Environment,
an exploration of Bayer’s site-specific outdoor sculptures and land art (currently on display through April 18, 2026).
Art in Unexpected Places, a collaboration between the Aspen Art Museum (aspenartmuseum.org) and Aspen One (aspen.com), continues the tradition by investing in on-mountain art installations and partnering with internationally acclaimed artists to create one-of-a-kind lift tickets each winter. This year, American icon Ed Ruscha has designed the collectible ski pass. Collectors can also take a detour to shop at artist-owned spaces such as Simon Bull’s Meuse Gallery (meusegallery.com) and Christopher Martin Gallery (christophermartingallery.com).
LISTEN
Aspen’s lively music scene is reaching an exciting new crescendo thanks to a
LEFT: MICHEL ZIEGLER; RIGHT: TONY PRYKRYL
Above, from left: A sculpture by Berlin artist Nairy Baghramian fronting the Shigeru Ban–designed Aspen Art Museum; Sculpting the Environment, an exhibition of Herbert Bayer’s three-dimensional works, is currently on view at The Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies.
Experience the Colorful World of Simon Bull.
Step
Simon Bull - Kurz - Bekah Bull
Aspen And Spruce by Simon Bull | 30”x24” | Acrylic on Canvas
ESSENTIAL RESERVATIONS
long-awaited opening. In December, Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) debuted its first permanent space, located above the historic Red Onion tavern on the Cooper Avenue Mall. Christened the Paul JAS Center (jazzaspensnowmass.org), the dynamic venue features a 175-seat club that has allowed the nonprofit to reimagine its Café Series as a de facto supper club, with events showcasing a range of music genres including jazz, blues, soul, and funk.
Aspen’s legendary music venue, Belly Up (bellyupaspen.com), continues to host the biggest names in the industry, from LCD Soundsystem to John Legend. Its owners recently teamed up with the co-founder of C3 Presents (the production company behind Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits) to open AM7 (am7aspen.com), a live music membership club located upstairs from Belly Up.
You’ll be hard-pressed to find a mountain town with a more diverse dining landscape. The latest additions to the dining scene take their cues from France and Italy, respectively. ZigZag (zigzagaspen.com) brings Parisian bistro vibes to the mountains with dishes such as French onion soup and moules frites. Aosta (aostaaspen.com) channels the Italian Alps with chaletchic interiors, wood-fired pizzas, and classic pasta dishes like cacio e pepe.
For a taste of the Alps, book a snowcataccessed dinner at the newly restored Cabin (aspensnowmass.org) on Snowmass Mountain. Executive chef Cody Rydin puts a European twist on Colorado ingredients like Hunter’s chicken with wild mushroom ragout and buffalo tomahawk, drizzled with black-cherry gastrique.
Above, from left: Snowcat Dinners at The Cabin showcase seasonal menus and fireside cocktails; The circular bar at FrenchAmerican bistro, ZigZag. Opposite: Olympian
Shaun White’s new Snow League puts winter adrenaline center stage.
DISCOVER
Aspen has two social calendars—one based around Mother Nature (snow, wildflowers, foliage) and the other around events (sports, festivals, cultural programming). Buttermilk Mountain has emerged as a proving ground for action-sports athletes with a trifecta of competitions each winter including the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix (January 30–February 6, 2026, usskiandsnowboard.org), the X Games (January 23–25, 2026, xgames.com), and superstar snowboarder Shaun White’s new Snow League (February 27–28, 2026, thesnowleague.com).
Bibliophiles plan trips around Winter Words (aspenwords.org), an annual speaker series that brings in literary luminaries such as novelist Ann Patchett and awardwinning journalist Kevin Fedarko.
During the holidays, Hotel Jerome, Auberge Collection (auberge.com/ hoteljerome) embraces the magic of the season full tilt. On the calendar? An elevated Thanksgiving in the ballroom (November 28, 2025); a Yuletide Gathering locavore dinner at Prospect (December 24, 2025); holiday-themed Après Tea with Champagne and caviar; and other indulgences throughout the season, including carolers, Teddy Bear story hour with cookies and hot chocolate, and visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus.
In spring, Aspen Film (aspenfilm.org) hosts one of North America’s premier short film festivals, Shortsfest ( April 7–11, 2026). Past screenings have included Oscar nominees, including How We Get Free and Affairs of the Art
Kygo performs at the Palm Tree Music Festival at Aspen’s Belly Up.
Culinary greats, like chef Jacques Pépin and master sommelier Bobby Stuckey, descend on Aspen Mountain each June (June 19–21, 2026) for the annual Food & Wine Classic (classic.foodandwine.com), one of the most hyped food events in the nation.
Meanwhile, art aficionados worldwide flock here every July to browse works from blue-chip galleries at the Intersect Aspen Art + Design Fair (intersectaspen.com).
WHERE TO STAY
Built in 1889 during Aspen’s mining heyday, Hotel Jerome, Auberge Collection (auberge.com/hoteljerome) is woven into the fabric of the Aspen community. In August, Dallas-based design firm Swoon reimagined the 93 guest rooms and suites with stylish touches like black-and-white kilim-patterned settees and cashmere drapery. New original art pieces, including works from Adam Eddy and Jordan Wright Patterson, are displayed throughout the rooms. Catch a game over a burger and beer at the historic J-Bar, soothe sore muscles in the outdoor hot tub or with a massage in the lower-level spa, and sip craft cocktails next door at the hotel’s subterranean speakeasy, Bad Harriet. New this year: winter culinary pop-ups with visiting chefs—such as the duo behind Geneva’s two-Michelin-star The Woodward (various dates through February 2026)—and Après Tea, a restorative afternoon ritual served with Waterford crystal in the Garden Room.
Aspen Film hosts all of its programming at the Isis Theatre. Opposite: The Living Room at Hotel Jerome, Auberge Collection.
Talita
Von Furstenberg