NotALawyer

I'm currently planning a September trip to Colorado/Rocky Mountain National Park. Are there any recommendations (edit - for hotels/motels, etc.) in/around Estes Park? The first half of our trip will be at Gateway Canyons but I am having trouble picking anything decent near RMNP. We're a mid-30s couple, avid hikers, so I would rather stay closer to the park to cut down on driving time and allow for early starts. I'm open to any ideas at all, just needs to be clean! thanks.

Reindeerflame

We liked our choice, the Alpine Trail Ridge Inn, where we stayed 3 nights in September 2016. It's very close to the park entrance, and away from the occasional traffic congestion in the middle of Estes Park. There were also dining discounts available by showing one's room key at a couple of nearby restaurants.

ajoy

YMCA of the Rockies

NotALawyer

Thanks, I saw both of those in research and will consider! Has anyone tried Silver Moon Inn? That one looked to be in a good location as well.

backprop

I have. It's actually a great location - adjacent to the strip but just two blocks beyond the super heavy traffic going through Estes Park on BUS-34 to the RMNP Beaver Meadows entrance. You can easily sneak out of the inn parking lot and get up to 34 to use the Fall River entrance, or over to Safeway or gas stations, etc.

This is very important in September as it gets extremely crowded.

Plus of course, it's just a couple blocks from the downtown strip.

The Inn itself is nice. Clean motel-style rooms, nice sitting areas out next to the river, snacks in the lobby.

My best advice for RMNP, if you plan on hiking and can tolerate it, is to get up way before sunrise and get to your trailhead before the sun comes up. I've taken the most majestic hikes without seeing a single person until getting to the trailhead at the end of the hike. An LED headlamp was invaluable to do this.

The shuttles are a great service and I used them a lot, but it's also nice avoiding the need to wait for and use them.

NotALawyer

Thanks everyone. I think we're going to try the Silver Moon. It's just a place to sleep as it is, we are always on the trails by sunrise.

djp98374

I have stayed at the best western and the Choice hotel--I think now its a quality in, previously I think it was a comfort inn.

DenverBrian

Another vote for YMCA of the Rockies - if you really want the "in the mountains" Colorado rustic cabin experience, it's hard to beat this location.

And if you're willing to pay more, it's hard to beat the novelty of the Stanley Hotel - where "The Shining" was filmed.

Reindeerflame

While the story of "The Shining" takes place at a hotel that could be the Stanley, it appeers that the movie itself was largely filmed elsewhere, such as at the TImberline Lodge on Mt. Hood, in Oregon, and much of the scenery is from the Going-to-the-Sun Highway in Glacier National Park, Montana.

DenverBrian

Stop it, Buzz Killington.

OK, OK, The Stanley is where Stephen King stayed and inspired him to write The Shining; and it was where The Shining TV series was filmed. Happy now?

Blind and Green

Our family (four kids all seven and under) is going to head up to RMNP in the late spring and early summer. They YMCA of the Rockies looks like a great option. We're also considering the Best Western. Any thoughts on the best family lodging?

honores41

TRRed

To chime in a little late:
I think there are YMCA facilities on both sides of the park. You've gotten info on the one near Estes, near the east side of the park. There is (or at least used to be) one on West side, north of Grand Lake I believe. The times I have stayed at the one near Estes (in one of the group lodges), I was warned by other members of my group to avoid the guest dining rooms, that they were terrible.

If your visit overlaps when the leaves are turning, expect heavy traffic at times. In the park, that often means slow (think of large travel trailers that can barely get up the hills and make the curves and refuse to pull over to allow others to pass. It can happen anytime, but there seem to be more of them that time of year).

A little south of RMNP, closer toward Black Hawk and Central City, is Golden Gate Canyon State Park, which has a number of decent trails and views (significant portions of the park are above 9.000 ft.) and is likely to be less crowded than RMNP on weekends. (BH and CC are casino towns, so lots of rooms and often deals mid week. IIRC, at least most of the casino floors are non-smoking.)

TRRed

Blind and Green

Thank you for the info and the Golden Gate Canyon recommendation. We recently moved to Colorado Springs so I intend to take in as much of the area as possible.