A Tale of Two Cities: Crested Butte, Colorado

“Here, have this tomato,” said the guy on the free bus. That was my first experience in Crested Butte; receiving a fat, heirloom tomato from a friendly hippie high on life and Vinotok, the town’s annual celebration of nature, community and harvest. 

That was in 2015. I was staying at a bed and breakfast downtown and attending a tourism conference. Fast forward to 2018, and Ryan and I spent three nights on the mountain attending the Chili & Beer Festival. We loved the entire experience even becoming “locals” at watering holes like Avalanche Bar & Grill and The Brown Dog, aka The Bakery (if you know you know). Both places are gone. 

“On mountain” refers to the ski resort area which is officially a separate town from the Town of Crested Butte. It’s called Mount Crested Butte and there is a free bus that runs between the towns every 15 minutes. It’s a short 10-minute-ish ride. 

Ski towns often have a free bus, plus they are usually quite walkable. I never have to worry about driving anywhere when I’m in places like Crested Butte, Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone, or Steamboat Springs. 

This trip was a work trip for Ryan, my husband. While he usually designs and builds freestanding furniture, he’ll take a bunk bed project occasionally, and this was one of those times. He was installing the bunk beds in a home in Mount Crested Butte, and I decided to tag along, with Fritzi in tow. 

I got a media rate at Grand Lodge Crested Butte, where we stayed in 2018. All our experiences at the hotel have been good, from the staff to the dog-friendly nature of the place. And when I say it’s dog friendly, I mean it’s great with a dog. There are easy walks with the dog, plus, our room was just steps from a stairway, so taking her inside and outside was a breeze. 

Grand Lodge isn’t super modern, but the dog-friendliness makes up for a lot. The dog rate is only $30 per day which is cheap when it comes to Colorado hotel dog rates. I’ve seen as high as $175 per night for a dog at a five-star resort in the Rocky Mountains.  

Also, Grand Lodge is in the perfect location at Mount Crested Butte. The base area isn’t large, so most lodging is relatively close, but Grand Lodge is located steps away from where the free bus arrives. 

Lastly, with regards to Grand Lodge, they have a restaurant called Highlife Crust & Craft. We didn’t try the food, but the bartender was the best we had in Crested Butte, both town and mountain. He was friendly, genuine and chatty. All things we sincerely appreciate when we travel. 

The Magic of Old Colorado Hotels

The fact is, the hospitality in Crested Butte isn’t unfriendly, people are just doing their jobs. In other words, you’re treated like any other rich tourist who breezes through for a week. Considering ourselves Colorado locals, this doesn’t always go over well with us. We ran into no other locals either working in the resort or town or visiting. For some reason, there were a lot of Floridians while we were there.

I spent an afternoon in downtown, just browsing, eating and drinking. Of course, I loved the pet store, Mountain Tails, which I believe has been there for a while. I bought Fritzi treats and played catch with the inhouse border collie. I’ve never seen a dog so focused on a tennis ball, and I’ve been around many dogs.

Walking the snowy streets of Crested Butte, past buildings of purple, yellow, and blue, one feels as though they are in a quintessential town in the Rocky Mountains, because they are. It’s ridiculously picturesque, like stumbling onto a Hallmark movie set of some charming Colorado town.  But, the price of things today is somewhat shocking. Behind almost every colorful door are $25 hamburgers, $17 glasses of wine, and a design motif akin to a collision of Kevin Costner and Gucci. 

I do not remember having sticker shock in 2018. Of course, that was before the pandemic and before inflation. Both things have done a number on all Colorado mountain communities, but I think Crested Butte was in a position to have more repercussions. Vail Resorts bought the ski resort in 2019. It had been one of the last family-owned ski resorts in Colorado. The town’s motto was Colorado’s last great ski town. I’m not sure any Colorado ski town could boast that now.

Crested Butte has lost something, and I’d argue that it’s the authenticity that could be felt when visiting this mountain community. However, while there have been changes, there are good times to be had in this former mining community if you know what to expect (and that’s a ding to your wallet). 

The art community appears thriving with a gallery on every corner and an incredible Center for the Arts. The town also hosts one of Colorado’s premiere art festivals, Crested Butte Art Festival.

Vail, Colorado: The Land of Flowers, Peace & the $25 Burger

Secret Stash has delightful pizza as well as an energetic atmosphere. Bonez, a Mexican restaurant I have frequented throughout my travels to Crested Butte, has the best lunch special in town. The bagels at Butte Bagels, which were recommended to me by HeidiTown readers, are off-the-hook delicious and loaded with ingredients. 

There are some good happy hours. One of the best deals in Crested Butte has to be the $2 PBR at Kochevar’s Saloon. Oddly, there are a lot of deals on PBR around town.

I still enjoy Crested Butte, but it is the tale of two cities, and I don’t just mean Mount Crested Butte and the Town of Crested Butte. There’s a palpable difference between today’s Crested Butte and the one we experienced in 2018. 

When it comes to remoteness and beauty, Crested Butte’s still got it in spades. The surrounding wilderness is some of my favorite mountain country in Colorado. If you’re prepared to get a little spendy, or pack your food and stay at a place with a kitchen, Crested Butte can be a wonderful town. And you must bring the dog.