ASPEN

BAKERIES, COFFEE, ICE CREAM & JUICE
●Aspen Saturday Market – 100 West Hopkins Avenue; 970-379-1346; aspen-saturdaymarket.com; can purchase breakfast for picnicking in nearby Wagner park.
●Paradise Bakery – 320 South Galena Street; 970-925-7585; paradisebakery.com; try cookies & hot chocolate; also, ice cream.
●Victoria’s Espresso – 510 East Durant Avenue; 970-920-3001; aspenespressobar.com; good quick breakfast spot.



BARS & NIGHTCLUBS
●Ajax Tavern – 685 East Durant Avenue (at Little Nell Hotel); 970-920-6334; thelittlenell.com/dining/ajax-tavern; excellent drinks & food.
●Belly Up Aspen – 450 South Galena Street; 970-544-9800; bellyupaspen.com; live music venue.
●Casa Tua – 403 South Galena Street; 970-920-7277; casatua.com; Miami-based restaurant outpost; Italian; lovely outdoor patio; try Casa Tua Aspen (prosecco & Martini & Rossi rosato).
●Eric’s Bar – 315 East Hyman Street; 970-920-6707; sucasaaspen.com/erics-bar; whiskey – lots of it – is bar’s claim to fame; hip little watering hole that attracts rowdy crowd; also varied lineup of imported beers on tap.
●Jimmy’s – 205 South Mill Street, #2; 970-925-6020; jimmysaspen.com; prides self upon mezcal & tequila selection (145 labels).
●Matsuhisa – 303 East Main Street; 970-544-6628; matsuhisarestaurants.com/aspen; collaboration with Nobu Matsuhisa & Nobuko Kang (designer); laid-back upstairs lounge.



HOTELS
●Annabelle Inn – 232 West Main Street; 970-925-3822; annabelleinn.com; affordable; 35 rooms, all with 20" flat-screen TVs; 1 hot tub has Red Mountain views; other hot tub in courtyard that with waterfalls & fire pit.
●Aspen Meadows Resort – 845 Meadows Road; 970-925-4240; aspenmeadows.com; set on 40-acre, Aspen Institute campus; chic, Bauhaus-style resort (2 miles from both Aspen Art Museum & skiing); modern suites feature floor-to-ceiling windows & flat-screen TVs, plus kitchenettes & sitting areas with pull-out sofas; some offer balconies or patios with mountain views; 1- and 2-bedroom suites add living rooms; room service is available; resort fee covers parking, Wi-Fi & 24/7 area shuttles, plus bike, snowshoe & tennis gear rentals; casual bar, breakfast eatery & seasonal restaurant; spa, gym, tennis courts & outdoor pool.
●Hotel Jerome – 330 East Main Street; 970-920-1000; aubergeresorts.com/hoteljerome; 1889 downtown brick landmark (1^st Colorado hotel to have electricity); elegant & expensive.
●Limelight Lodge – 355 South Monarch Street; 970-925-3025; limelighthotels.com/aspen; most affordable of hotels listed but still expensive.
●Little Nell – 675 East Durant Avenue; 970-920-4600; thelittlenell.com; “the” Aspen hotel; expensive.
●St. Moritz Lodge – 334 West Hyman Avenue; 970-925-3220; stmoritzlodge.com; looks like Americanized Swiss chalet; 36 rooms; steam room & outdoor heated pool surrounded by plum trees & killer view.
●St. Regis Aspen – 315 East Dean Street; 970-920-3300; stregisaspen.com; located at Aspen Mountain base, between gondola & lift; complete renovation in 2011 updated guest rooms & public spaces & added cozy library with working fireplaces for warming up to after day on slopes; rooms are richly decorated in muted colors with bursts of vibrant reds & streamlined leather club chairs.
●Viceroy Snowmass – 130 Wood Road (Snowmass); 970-923-8000; viceroyhotelsandresorts.com/snowmass; overwhelmingly huge & sprawling.
●W Aspen – 550 South Spring Street; 970-818-3311; marriott.com/hotels/travel/asewh-w-aspen.



RESTAURANTS
●Bonnie’s – above Lift 3 on Aspen Mountain; 970-544-6252; aspensnowmass.com/our-mountains/aspen-mountain/dining/bonnies; American food; lunch is must.
●Cache Cache Bistro – 205 South Mill Street; 970-925-3835; cachecache.com; upscale French-American cuisine & lengthy wine list presented in chic bistro with sleek bar.
●Casa Tua – 403 South Galena Street; 970-920-7277; casatua.com; Miami-based restaurant outpost; Italian; lovely outdoor patio.
●Cloud 9 Alpine Bistro – 76 Boomerang Road (Top of Cloud 9 Lift, 100 yards below Cloud Nine chair on Aspen Highlands); 970-923-8715; soffiawardy.com/eat-drink/eat-by-city/aspen-colorado/cloud-9-alpine-bistro; old ski hut feel; views of Maroon Bells; popular lunch dish is osso bucco with ratatouille & roasted potatoes, soup & salad included.
●Element 47 – 675 East Durant Avenue (at Little Nell); 970-920-4600; thelittlenell.com/dining/element-47; leisurely, multi-course meals.
●Jimmy’s – 205 South Mill Street, #2; 970-925-6020; jimmysaspen.com; Saturday night traditionally Latin dance night; only thing better than dance moves is crab cakes, meatloaf; known by locals for unreal bar menu, with great (Aspen) prices; specialties include mac & cheese.
●Kenichi – 533 East Hopkins Avenue; 970-920-2212; kenichiaspen.com; popular sushi haunt.
●Krabloonik Fine Dining & Dogsledding – 4250 Divide Road; 970-923-3953; krabloonik.com; log cabin from which you can watch sled dogs teams come & go as you bite into tender caribou loin or wild-boar chop; largest dog kennel in America’s lower 48 states; rustic restaurant with huge picture windows overlooking mountain views; seating around sunken fireplace; game variety; beef tenderloin; lamb; & fish.
●Matsuhisa – 303 East Main Street; 970-544-6628; matsuhisarestaurants.com/aspen; collaboration with Nobu Matsuhisa & Nobuko Kang (designer); laid-back upstairs lounge; dazzling food.
●Meat & Cheese Restaurant & Farm Shop – 319 East Hopkins Avenue; 970-710-7120; meatcheese.avalancheaspen.com; cheese & meat boards are main event, offering up seasonal selections of cured meats, sausages & house-made breads; global entrees are also served alongside creative cocktails, local beers & international wines in modern space divided into cozy dining room & chic marketplace & butcher.
●New York Pizza – 409 East Hyman Avenue; 970-920-3088; eataspen.com/aspen/restaurants/1075/new-york-pizza; surprisingly good pizza & nice variety; reasonable prices, but no credit cards accepted.
●Pine Creek Cookhouse – 11399 Castle Creek Road; 970-925-1044; pinecreekcookhouse.com; have to take short hike up to restaurant; cuisine & stunning views well worth extra effort; reservations recommended.
●Piñons – 105 South Mill Street; 970-920-2021; pinons.net; Aspen institution never disappoints; American specialties include wild game; Western atmosphere; expensive; open over 20 years.
●Pyramid Bistro – 221 East Main Street; 970-925-5338; pyramidbistro.com; open-air café with healthy food.
●Rustique Bistro – 216 South Monarch Street; 970-920-2555; rustiquebistro.com; try ribs.
●Wild Fig – 315 East Hyman Avenue; 970-925-5160; thewildfig.com; 10 tables; Mediterranean menu.



SERVICES
●Aspen Center for Environmental Studies – 100 Puppy Smith Street (Hallam Lake Center); 970-925-5756; aspennature.org; offers information about hiking (try Green World Day Hike), as well as guided tours.
●Aspen Kayak Academy – 315 Oak Lane; 970-925-4433; aspenkayakacademy.com.
●Aspen Music Festival – 980 North 3^rd Street; 970-925-9042; aspenmusicfestival.com; classical performances.
●Aspen Whitewater Rafting – 520 Durant Street (inside Hamilton Sports); 970-920-3511; aspenwhitewater.com; river-rafting.
●Blazing Adventures – 555 East Durant Avenue; 970-923-4544; blazingadventures.com; river-rafting.
●Walking Tours – 320 East Hyman Avenue; 970-948-4349; AspenWalkingTours.com; try “Aspen’s Darkside,” which is evening walk including stories about ghosts & murder that guide makes really entertaining.



SHOPPING
●Amen Wardy Home – 520 East Durant Avenue; 970-920-7700; amenwardyaspen.com; housewares; merchandise is so unusual (whimsical house gifts to fur blankets) that it’s worth shipping home.
●Aspen Institute – 1000 North 3^rd Street; 970-544-7940; aspeninstitute.org; 40-acre campus designed in Bauhaus style by Herbert Bayer.
●Aspen Saturday Market – 100 West Hopkins Avenue; 970-379-1346; aspen-saturdaymarket.com; can purchase breakfast for picnicking in nearby Wagner park; everything from food products to handicrafts.
●Meat & Cheese Restaurant & Farm Shop – 319 East Hopkins Avenue; 970-710-7120; meatcheese.avalancheaspen.com; great place for quick bite for lunch.
●Explore Bookseller – 221 East Main Street; 970-925-5336; explorebooksellers.com; bookstore in old Victorian house with restaurant that serves great vegetarian food upstairs; elegant room in front near fireplace or enclosed porch in summer.
●Little Bird – 525 East Cooper Avenue; 970-920-3830; thelittlebirdinc.com; new & vintage wear.
●Radio Boardshop – 4004 East Hopkins Avenue; 970-925-9373; radioboardshop.com/service/radio-demo-center; although primarily skateboard shop, very cool t-shirts & shorts.
●Recycle Art Aspen – 315 East Hyman Avenue, Suite 303; 970-948-9888; recycleartaspen.com; restored bicycles.
●Ute Mountaineer – 210 South Galena Street; 970-925-2849; utemountaineer.com; out-of-doors clothing & equipment.



SIGHTS & SITES
●Ashcroft Ghost Town – Castle Creek Road (11 miles up Castle Creek Road from roundabout at west entrance to Aspen); 970-925-3721; aspenhistory.org/tours-sites/ashcroft-ghost-town; once prosperous silver mining town.
●Aspen Art Museum – 637 East Hyman Avenue; 970-925-8050; aspenartmuseum.org; designed by Pritzker-award-winner Shigeru Ban; rooftop sculpture garden is worth special visit.
●Aspen Center for Environmental Studies – 100 Puppy Smith Street (Hallam Lake Center); 970-925-5756; aspennature.org; rehabilitated prey birds.
●Cathedral Lake – White River National Forest; 970-925-3445; fs.usda.gov/whiteriver or hikingwalking.com/index.php/destinations/co/co_cent/aspen/cathedral_lake/cathedral_lake_detail; among Aspen’s most “iconic” hikes; 5.6 miles round trip with 2’K elevation.
●Hunter Thompson Home – 1278 Woody Creek Road (Woody Creek, Owl Farm).
●North Star Nature Preserve – Highway 82 (east of Aspen); 970-920-5232; iba.audubon.org/iba/viewSiteProfile.do?siteId=470&navSite=state; great bird-watching.
●Wheeler Opera House – 320 East Hyman Avenue; 970-920-5770; wheeleroperahouse.com; built in 1889.