Bret Michaels Coming to Winter Park, CO – Summer 2011

Posted on April 22, 2011 by Chris

Winter Park, CO Music Festival with Bret Michaels of Poison Fame

Who is ready to sing “every rose has it’s thorn” ? Bret Michaels, of Poison fame, is headlining the Winter Park Music Festival on August 6th and 7th, 2011. The Winter Park Music Festival is presented by Denver radio station 103.5 The Fox.

Saturday, August 6th Warrant, Skid Row and The Groove Hawgs will be on stage at Hideaway Park right off of US Highway 40 in the town of Winter Park, CO. Saturday’s show kicks off at noon and will go to 6pm. On Sunday, August 7th Bret Michaels and the Groove Hawgs will be rockin’ it out from noon until 3pm.

Hideaway Park is a great place to see live music. Surround by the peaks of the Colorado Rocky Mountains with great seating and sound and right in walking distance of all Winter Park has to offer. Prices for the show have not been announced but we will keep you informed when that information becomes available.

Check out Bret Michaels Facebook page and get psyched up for some great music this summer. Here is a YouTube video of Poison’s top ten songs. Bret should be playing all of these Poison classics high up here in Winter Park.

Warrant (Cherry Pie) and Skid Row (18 and Life) both had success in 80′s and 90′s and should make for a great afternoon of headbangin’ music.

Looking to see some fun music in a great setting? Look no further than the Winter Park Music Festival. Come up for the whole weekend and enjoy the fun here in the Colorado mountains.

Winter Park Lodging Company has the best lodging for the WP Music Festival. We have a couple of units that will be able to see Bret Michaels from the patio. So book your lodging today for the best and closest digs.

Grand Lake Lodge Set to Open Under New Owners

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Chris

First Season New Owners Grand Lake Lodge

Colorado’s Favorite Front Porch is set to open under new owners full time June 6th, 2011. Last summer the Lodge opened for a short time with limited food and hours as a kind of audition for the new owners. This season will see the Grand Lake Lodge up and running at full steam serving breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as getting back into the wedding business.

GLL is now owned by an investor group out of South Dakota and managed by Regency Hotel Management. The full restaurant menu has not come out yet but that should be available in the next few weeks.

The new Grand Lake Lodge website (partially completed) can be found at http://grandlakelodge.rtrk.com/

If you have never been out to the Lodge, it is quite a treat. Some of the best views in all of Colorado. The Lodge sits above the town of Grand Lake which is on the banks of Colorado’s largest natural lake. Grand Lake has been a summer playground for some of Colorado’s most wealthy and famous residents. The entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park sits just outside Grand Lake Lodge’s entrance. If are looking to explore the high country or just get away, there is not a cooler place than the Lodge.

Word on the street is there will not be too many changes coming to GLL at least this year. The Lodge will be open from July 10, 2011 and will close September 11, 2011. Wouldn’t it be really nice of the new owners could keep GLL open in winter months also? That may be too tall an order though. It is very nice to see Grand Lake Lodge reopening and we wish them the best!

SolShine Music Festival – Winter Park, CO

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Chris

Winter Park Resort – SolShine Music Fest

The American Music Festival is making a return to Winter Park, Colorado, now called the Winter Park Solshine Music Festival. This may be in name only but it sure does bring back great memories of the American Music Fest held on the slopes of Winter Park Resort from the mid 19190′s to the early 2000′s. The AMF brought to Colorado some of the biggest and best music acts of the day and still some of the best know artists around . Check out the AMF concert poster to the right and see Widespread Panic, Brian Setzer and Ani DiFranco…. Wow, I wish we could get these artists back to Winter Park now!

The new SolShine Music Festival will be held in the Town of Winter Park at the Hideaway Park amphitheater and at Cooper Creek Square. The dates are July 16th and 17th, the weekend before the Winter Park Jazz Festival, another great week here in Winter Park for some live music.

Line-up for Winter Park Solshine Music Festival:

Saturday, July 16, 2011 – at Hideaway Park

The Subdudes – click here to listen
Punch Brothers – click here to listen
Trampled By Turtles – click here to listen
Elizabeth Cook – click here to listen
Blind Pilot – click here to listen

Sunday, July 17, 2011 (Cooper Creek Square)
Gregory Alan Isakov – click here to listen
Johan Wagner – click here to listen
Megan Burtt – click here to listen
Reed Foehl – click here to listen
Ramaya Soskin – click here to listen

Admission is free for general admission and $25 for VIP section in the restricted area at the front of the stage.

If you are looking to come up to the mountains this summer this is a wonderful time. Mountain biking is aplenty and the temperatures are perfect. There are no 100° Denver and Front Range summer days up her in Winter Park. Make your plans now to see some fun music and get up to the Rocky Mountains this summer. Let Winter Park Lodging Company make your trip fun and hassle free.

Winter Park Jazz Festival Lineup 2011

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Chris

jazz festival lineup winter park colorado Winter Park, Colorado Jazz Festival Artist Lineup

The artist lineup has been announced for the 2011 Winter Park Jazz Festival. This is the twenty sixth edition of the WP Jazz Festival and the lineup looks very, very good.

This year the festival is being held July 23rd and 24th and is the highlight of the Winter Park summer concert series. (Check out the poster for the tenth jazz festival to the left)

The 2011 Winter Park Jazz Festival Lineup

Saturday, July 23

OJay’s
Najee
Alex Bugnon with Special Guest Nelson Rangell
Dotsero

Sunday, July 24
Dave Koz
Will Downing
Arturo Sandoval
Hot 8 Brass Band

Tickets go on sale on April 1st at 9am. Call: 888-409-5974 for more information from the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce.

Ticket and Package Pricing

Gold Circle Seating Package $100*

The Closest chair seating to stage available
A private entrance for Gold Circle Members
Lunch in the Private “Stage Left” tent including two beverages of your choice at the “Stage Left” bar
All day access to Stage Left Tent including a private cash bar
*$110 Day of Pricing

Plaza Party Seating Package $100*

Top level chair seating with shade coverage
A private entrance for Plaza Party Members
Lunch in the Private “Stage Left” tent including two beverages of your choice at the “Stage Left” bar or the Plaza Complex Private Bar
Access to Plaza Complex Cash Private Bar
All day access to Stage Left Tent including a private cash bar & access to an additional Private Cash Bar in Plaza Complex
*$110 Day of Pricing

VIP Seating Ticket $45*

Priority Chair seating close to stage
*$50 Day of Pricing

General Admission Ticket $35*

Lawn Seating
*$40 Day of Event

Get your Winter Park Jazz Festival lodging now for the preferred and closest digs. Don’t miss this years hottest summer concert in Winter Park , Colorado.

Devil’s Thumb Ranch Sleigh Rides

Posted on February 14, 2011 by Chris

Horse Drawn Carriage Rides Winter Park, CO

Looking for some fun for the kids and the whole family? Devil’s Thumb Ranch is offering guests of Winter Park Lodging Company a screaming deal for carriage rides through their Cabin Creek Stables. The stables have agreed to a special offer just for WPLCo guests…

Mondays through Thursdays, get four sleigh riders for the price of two (a $70 savings) on our feed sleigh rides offered at 10:30 and 3 pm daily. Reservations required, space limited.

The feed sleigh rides are when they take a small amount of guests out to help feed the cattle…they get to see the cows very close up and help give them hay…kids and people from the big cities love it.

You can check out Devil’s Thumb other sleigh ride offerings or do a special event out on their beautiful property.

Ski Magazine rated Devil’s Thumb Ranch in their top 5 Favorite Sleigh Rides and this what they had to say about DTR:

After a sleigh ride around the ranch’s 5,000 snowy acres, return to the stable to dinner around the campfire. Tabernash, Colo., near Winter Park; (800) 933-4339; devilsthumbranch.com .

Dinner at either The Ranch House Restaurant or Heck’s Tavern is some of the best eatin’ you will find here in Winter Park or the whole Fraser Valley. If you have never been out to Devil’s Thumb you are missing one of the top destinations in Grand County and Colorado for that matter.

So if your heading up to Winter Park let us here at the Winter Park Lodging Company set you up with the best deals and most fun activities that be had on your Winter PArk winter vacation. Check out all the special deals WPLCo has to offer guests of the Grand County and the Fraser Valley.

Come on up and get to horsin’ around and have a grand time in Grand County, Colorado.

The Grand Park Rec Center – Winter Park, CO

Posted on January 1, 2011 by Chris

Winter Park Recreation Center

Ohhh, the cold has hit us here in Winter Park. It has been almost too cold to ski, almost. For the kids though when it dips to the negatives or hoovers around the zero degree mark it may be better to take a day of and let that arctic cold front just move on through.

And what to do with that day not spent on the ski slopes? The Grand County Recreation Center is the answer to that day not on the skis or board. There is not a better way to get away from the cold than our state of the art rec center right on Winter Park’s main street. Here is some of the specifics of the facilities at Grand Park Recreation Center:

Natatorium with 20ft loop slide, spray & play feature, lazy river, zero-depth entry pool and 4-lane, 25-yard lap pool
Whirlpool, sauna and steam rooms
Locker rooms and family changing rooms
Climbing and bouldering wall
Multi-sport gymnasium
Gymnastic center including a foam and tramp pit (scheduled programs only)
Running / walking track
Cardio, circuit training and free weight area
Aerobic / dance studio room
Drop-in childcare
Pool party room for rent
Multi-purpose classrooms for rent
Beautiful lobby area with fireplace, TV and game tables

Enough activities here to keep the most active of kids and parents busy for the day.

Grand Park Recreation Center hours:

Monday – Friday    6:00am – 9:00pm
Saturday             7:30am – 9:00pm
Sunday               10:00am – 6:00pm

If you are a guest of the Winter Park Lodging Company you can get discounted day passes for only $8 instead of $10. If you’d like to take advantage of our discounted day passes, just swing by our office in downtown Winter Park to purchase them. Call the WPLCo office, 877-329-1383 or 970-722-0707, to get your discounted Grand Park Rec Center passes.

We are here in Winter Park and if the winter part becomes a bit much take a day and enjoy our little piece heavenly summer, The Grand Park Recreation Center.

Winter Park, CO 2010 Summer in Review

Posted on October 3, 2010 by Valarie

We’ve had another great summer in Winter Park this year, and it’s pleasantly lingering on into a beautiful Indian summer. We hope you had a chance to share it with us, but if not, we’ve compiled a few photos of some of the fun we’ve had. Click on the photos to see the full stories and try to make it up next year.

Sarah & Family's Horseback Ride & Cowboy Dinner with Sombrero Stables

: Amy & Family’s Visit to Rocky Mountain National Park

Chris Killin' it at Trestle Bike Park

Sarah on Mountain Bike Ride with Amy on Blue Sky Trail just 1 mile from downtown Winter Park

The Winter Park Lodging Crew in full downhill gear for a day at Trestle Bike Park

Val at the Blues from the Top Festival with friends

Sarah and Chris took their boys Nicholas & Willem for $1 ice cream cones in Grand Lake

Rachel took a ride with Adventures in Whitewater and saw some cliff jumping in the Colorado River

: Labor Day Mountain Bike Pond Crossing at Winter Park Resort

Fall Discount with Winter Park Dog Sled Kennels

Posted on September 27, 2010 by Valarie

Guests of Winter Park Lodging Company visiting this fall are in for a treat. Dog Sled Rides of Winter Park is offering a generous 30% discount for the following activities, until November 24, 2010. Plus, we hear they just had puppies. Who doesn’t love to play with puppies?

Give them a call or book your tour today.

Cart Rides: www.dogsledrides.com/winterpark/carts.php – Designed for two adults or two adults and one or two children. One of the adults must use the steering and braking to control the cart. The carts have four wheels and are pulled by nine or ten dogs. We follow our open trails for 3.5 miles. The ride is about 45 minutes and the guests are here for about 75 to 90 minutes.

Scooter Rides: www.dogsledrides.com/winterpark/scooters.php - One rider aged 14 or older per scooter. The scooters have two wheels and are pulled by one or two dogs. We follow our open trails for 3.5 miles. The ride is about 45 minutes and the guests are here for about 75 to 90 minutes.

Kennel Tours: www.dogsledrides.com/winterpark/summer.php – The kennel tours are for people of all ages and ability levels. We learn a lot about how to care for our dogs, see where they live, see the sleds, and get to mingle with the dogs in the exercise yard. Depending on how many questions are asked, the tour lasts about an hour or so.

Call Dog Sled Rides of Winter Park at 970-726-8326 today.

Zoppe Italian Circus in Winter Park Village

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Chris

Horseback Riding in Winter Park: Steak Dinner Ride

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Chris

Bernie's Backside

My brother and his family plus my 77 year old dad were in town last week, so we decided to be tourists and headed to Sombrero Stables in Snow Mountain Ranch (a YMCA camp) for a steak dinner horseback ride.

We had to arrive by 3:30 to be matched with our horses (I got “Hitch” who liked to eat grass). We were riding by 4:15 in a straight line with our nice guide who rode looking back at us to be sure we were ok.

We rode the horses into a nice trail, thru some beautiful big aspens and by a meadow where our guide said she saw a moose just a few days before. We squinted and hoped, but no moose appeared. It was very peaceful and not scary in the least, since they don’t let you go any faster than a walk, although we learned the trick of holding the horse back a bit and then got to trot to catch up.

We arrived at our dinner spot – a wagon-looking grill and picnic area. By that point, one of my nephews was in the deep depths of a horse allergic reaction so they offered (and he accepted) to take some Benedryl and ride back down in the car. He hung out with us for dinner though which was surprisingly good. We had steak, excellent grilled potatoes, beans, and bread. They even had “Cowboy Coffee” for the caffeine addicted.

Wagon Grill

Got back on the horses and by that point we were aching a bit (knees, bum, etc) but we made it back before sunset and said goodbye to Bernie, Hitch, and the rest of the horses. One hint – if you tell them you’re an experienced rider, they give you the horses that act up a bit so for the most enjoyable time, swallow your pride and tell them you’ve never put your foot in a saddle.

Strongly recommend this fun activity for families with kids (age 3 and up) or groups that want to take enjoy the scenery and West without flying down a mountain on a bike or falling in the river on a raft. Thank you, Sombrero Stables!