This past week we traveled to Denver so our kids could participate in the National Western Stock Show. This is a trip that we have made the past four years, but this year we mixed it up a bit by staying at an Air B&B home. We are a family of six and often will have an additional person in tow, so staying at traditional hotels can be more costly. It can also be kind of fun to experience ‘life in someone else’s shoes’ for a couple days. We’ve done this a few times now in other destinations, but this was the first time in Denver and I have to say it was our best experience to date.
Where We Stayed
We stayed at the Beautiful Highlands Oasis, which is a four bedroom condo home in the very chic West Highlands neighborhood. In my opinion, it felt more like a home than a condo. The front of the condo faces the semi-busy and popular 32nd Street, with the complex expanding backwards from the street down the side street it sits adjacent. The unit we stayed in was the front unit, so we had the opportunity to watch the street life throughout our stay. There are two upstairs bedrooms that each have their own bathroom and two basement bedrooms that share a bathroom, as well as a fun gaming area with a wet bar and entertainment center. The main floor is open concept living and very posh.
Obviously I had looked through the pictures in the listing for the home on Air B&B and I had read many of the reviews, but what I wasn’t expecting was the added bonus of the chic neighborhood vibe. The Wes Highlands neighborhood is actually a hodge-podge of new and old. I would say it is not quite an even split of new condos/homes to the original homes. The streets are very active with people out and about walking to their local destinations – mainly coffee shops, breweries and restaurants. It was quite a different vibe than what I would have expected to find in the almost downtown area of a large city.
Where We Ate
While there we took advantage of two local restaurants. The first was Blue Pan Pizza, which is recognized for its award winning Detroit Style pizza. This is a rectangular-shaped deep-dish pizza. The crusts are pre-made for the day and once they are gone, they are gone. They also offer the Classic Italian, Chicago Cracker Thin, New York Style and a Gluten Free option. We had to try the Detroit Style since that is what they are famous for and it was very good, but it was the Chicago Cracker Thin pizza that we really enjoyed. It was the atmosphere of the restaurant that was possible most notable though. It is a tiny restaurant – six tables and six bar chairs. We got lucky and showed up about 15 minutes before the only six-top table was vacated. During our wait I observed a lack of urgency from the other patrons, which is a bit foreign to me (family of six here – we are always on the go and rushing to try to fit everything into our day). The patrons at our future table were a conglomerate of multiple couples. On a week night they had joined up to enjoy each other’s company over good pizza and what looked to be some good microbrews.
We enjoyed steaks at LoHi Steakbar, located about a mile away down the road, on our second night. They boast that their meat is all cut in-house, the bacon is made from scratch from their own recipe and their craft cocktails are worth taking note. When we arrived, around 7:30, there were four other tables of patrons. Our server was attentive, but the process seemed slow. The wait between appetizers to salads to dinner was lengthy, especially since the restaurant was not busy. However, after observing I decided that this was intentional. The patrons that were all comfortably situated upon our arrival were all still nestled into their booths and tables when we left without any sign of packing it in anytime soon. I realized that this is the culture in this neighborhood. My observations lead me to believe that this is a neighborhood of mostly younger people that I assume don’t have kids or home-owner chores to keep them busy so they are able to enjoy the slow lane. It was interesting to observe and to kinda-sorta walk in those shoes.
Keystone Ski Resort
Next we headed up the mountain to Keystone Ski Resort for a couple of days of skiing and snowboarding. We have been enjoying this mountain for many years. The convenience it offers to be able to stay in the condos in the village, walk three minutes to the equipment rental facility, then another three to the lift is invaluable when you have young kids in tow. The multiple restaurants and gear stores in the village are very convenient. We especially appreciated Starbucks and the grocery store. This year we stayed in the Silver Mill building in a unit that was located almost directly above the Starbucks. It was the most centrally located condo we have stayed in to date and made the stay that much more enjoyable. The resort has put forth effort to make the village enjoyable for those that are not on the slopes as well. Throughout you will find life-sized board games – checkers, connect four, chess, bags, etc. There are also a couple roaring fires to cozy up to and an ice skating rink for those interested.
The mountain itself caters to a wide range of skiers and their abilities. My oldest is quite adept on a snowboard and enjoys visiting the outback and it’s runs, as well as the terrain park. My younger kids (and myself) enjoy the easier Schoolmarm-ish runs, which are still enjoyable because of their length. You don’t feel like you are spending your whole day on a lift. They offer ski and ride school for all ages. Our younger two have taken advantage of it a couple of times and have seemed to enjoy their day doing so and come away with some additional skills. I think if they took one-on-one lessons or group lessons for a couple days in a row there would be a lot more progress made. Our kids are to the age/ability now that we can take them up the mountain with us. This was the first year that we were able to do this and have everyone pretty much keep pace with each other. It was an extremely enjoyable trip. I am usually about spent after one day – too sore to be able to enjoy a second day because I am out of shape and have too much muscle fatigue. This year my months of working out prior to the trip made it considerably more enjoyable (#yayforfitness).
A Worthwhile Trip
If you are considering a trip to Denver and possibly a change of pace, the West Highlands neighborhood is worth checking out. And if you are ever in Denver during the National Western Stock Show, I would recommend checking that out as well. They have a rodeo every night, livestock shows going on throughout the days, some great food vendors and if you like shopping – a whole convention area full of vendors selling things that range from clothes to jewelry to artwork to equipment. It’s a bit of our country’s history plopped into the heart of downtown Denver for a few weeks each year. The ‘yards’ on the back side of the complex are particularly endearing. These yards are now used to display very pampered show cattle during the National Western event, but back in the day this was a real stockyard with a railroad running through it for loading livestock and shipping them throughout the country. And in my opinion, passing up the opportunity to head up the mountain and ski/board at one of the nicer ski resorts in the country if you are in Denver during the winter months is definitely a missed opportunity. Life is short, enjoy it to the fullest!
