Aspen - Part 1: Lodging

The Hyatt Grand Aspen Hotel

Ian and I took a wonderful, much-needed vacation last week to Aspen, Colorado. I have so many pictures, and so I'll share it in different parts.

We got the idea to go to Aspen a few months ago. We love EBay and I was searching one evening for good travel deals and I found this one for Aspen for the week before our 11th wedding anniversary. What an amazing deal! We got four nights for 2/3 what ONE night regularly costs. We stayed for less per night than we could've at a Motel 6 - and this place was the NICEST place in Aspen! We found all the pictures we could online and read reviews and we couldn't pass it up.

I was a little worried that spending 3 months anticipating our vacation and the great hotel would turn out badly if we showed up and it wasn't everything I had built it up to be in my mind. Not the case. It was so much nicer than what I imagined and by far, the nicest hotel we have ever stayed at (and we've stayed at a few really nice hotels.)

We got to our room, tipped the bellman, and after he left, toured the place. I was giddy; ok, I was beyond giddy. I couldn't stop giggling and shouting "WAHOO!!" It was such a beautiful place and the style was exactly what Ian and I LOVE. It was rustic without being harsh; elegant and yet cozy. It was warm and inviting. It had beautiful wood plank floors, solid wood doors and paneling on the walls, iron lighting, and beautiful artwork on the walls.

(I LOVE this rug! we contemplated how hard it would be to smuggle it out of the Hotel without being caught!;)

There were 2 fireplaces (living room and bedroom), 4 T.V.'s (kitchen, bathroom, living room bedroom), an extra deep jetted tub, a shower that shot water out from very angle - which was also a steam shower, it had two sets of double doors leading onto a balcony which had an amazing view of the pool, two hot tubs and mountains.

It had a washer and dryer (ya right, I'm on vacation!), a fitness center with the coolest equipment I've ever used (and yes, we worked out every day!), and a little funny looking car that would shuttle you around for free. We called it several times to come and pick us up at various locations to get us back to the hotel when we wandered too far! They thought of everything from robes and slippers to a humidifier. And get this...there were people who came in every day and cleaned. They even did the dishes! ;) I was in HEAVEN! They brought us a paper every morning and turned down the bed at night; leaving the yummiest chocolate covered toffees on our pillows.

We had a delicious breakfast in the "Wine Spot" every morning (think of a decadent, lush spot with overstuffed chairs and large sofas surrounding a fireplace where, during the winter, skiers come in to relax and mingle) with pastries, yogurt, fresh fruit, waffles, bagels, and hot chocolate among other things. They would open the doors and you could hear the rushing water from the waterfall that was at the head of the swimming pool. With the green mountainside in the background and birds greeting the sun, it was a beautiful, relaxing start to every morning. They also had a fire pit surrounded with benches, but we never actually made it there in the evening. This Hotel was so amazing that we actually spent almost 24 hours without leaving it just because it was so enjoyable to just relax in our room.

Aspen is a beautiful town - and actually rather small. It took about 15 minutes to walk from one end to the other. (More about what we encountered on our walk in another part of our "Aspen" series!) We had AMAZING weather the entire time. It could not have been more perfect.

I'll leave with you with these pictures of Aspen and end this post for tonight. Check in soon for more of our adventures!