Getting to Colorado

There are few destinations in the United States more popular with skiers and snowboarders than Colorado, with its powder snow and long season, but getting there isn’t always fun. This year, the options are better than ever, however, and here are our top picks on how to get to the slopes with the kids — on trains, planes and, well, you know… — without wasting too much of your precious vacation time.

Colorado © Telluride Ski Resort

Planes

Colorado’s eight regional airports will offer new and expanded flights for the 2018–19 season, including service from Dallas (DFW), Newark (EWR), Boston (BOS), Ft. Lauderdale (FLL), Long Beach (LGB) and Denver (DEN).

Boutique Air, a new commercial airline, will offer year-round service from Denver International Airport to Telluride Regional Airport, located just 10 minutes from the town and the ski resort. The schedule features multiple, daily, round-trips starting at $149 each way.

Telluride will also add twice-daily, non-stop flights from Dallas/Fort Worth to Montrose-Telluride through American Airlines, which will operate up to three times a day during the holiday period.

Telluride will also feature daily, non-stop flights during the ski season from Newark International Airport to Montrose through United Airlines.

Steamboat Resort’s regional airport, Steamboat/Hayden Airport, will add year-round direct flights to Boston, Ft. Lauderdale and Long Beach with JetBlue. Beginning in winter 2018, JetBlue’s non-stop service from Boston Logan International Airport and Long Beach Airport will operate twice a week, while the Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport flight will operate once a week Dec. 15–March 30, 2019. The new JetBlue service marks 10 non-stop markets Steamboat has added in the past seven years.

Winter in Colorado © Telluride Ski Resort

Trains

For a third consecutive season, the Amtrak Winter Park Express will transport passengers from downtown Denver’s Union Station to the slopes of Winter Park Resort. New for the 2018–19 season, the Winter Park Express will offer additional Fridays in the January–March operating schedule, plus a brand-new lounge car for food and beverage purchases.

Buses

New ground transportation options will also ease travel to Colorado ski resorts. The Colorado Department of Transportation will expand its statewide Bustang motor coach service to include Salida, the town nearest Monarch Ski Area. With this expansion, Bustang now serves mountain towns near several Colorado ski areas including Arapahoe Basin Ski Area, Copper Mountain, Echo Mountain, Monarch Mountain, Purgatory Resort, Sunlight Mountain Resort and Telluride Ski Resort. Additional ground transportation options include other Front Range bus services and rideshare or carpool options.

For a full list of flights into and out of Colorado’s eight regional airports, and for more information on the Winter Park Express and ground transportation, please visit the site.