New and shiny is popular right now, especially in Colorado—new neighborhoods, new bars, restaurants, new cars, new hotels. However, I think Colorado’s old hotels have a sort of magic about them that simply doesn’t exist in new builds. Don’t get me wrong, I like new boutique hotels purpose-built in charming Front Range towns. However, do not discount the stories an old hotel can tell or the stories you’ll create there.
For longtime followers of HeidiTown, this isn’t new information: Ryan and I like history. A lot. He tends to like the nuts and bolts while I like the overall story. That makes us a good team. Our love of history has inspired road trips to the Dust Bowl area and cattle trails that led us to Dodge City, Kansas, and McCook, Nebraska. Teller County was a good choice for exploration.
In an increasingly robot-run world, travel and tourism have not been immune. The self-check-in hotel is one example. I haven’t encountered this much in Colorado, or nearby states. I am not, after all, living or visiting the cutting-edge parts of the tourism world (and I prefer it this way). While not frequent, unless it’s a traditional AirBnB, I have encountered one example of self-check-in, and it worked for the property.
Last month, we visited Telluride for the first time in eight years. We’d been invited to an Ah Haa School for the Arts Artist Retreat Dinner Series at the Madeline Hotel & Residences at Mountain Village (the ski resort part of Telluride). What I was most excited about, however, wasn’t a stay at the only five-star hotel, I was most excited about taking Fritzi. Not only is Madeline dog-friendly, but
Our recent trip to the San Luis Valley was far from our first and won’t be our last. As I have written many times on HeidiTown.com, this is one of our favorite places on earth, not just in Colorado. Located in the southcentral part of Colorado, not many make it here. SLV is just over Poncha Pass from Salida, and take it from me, it’s worth the little more time
This post is a little different, as I seldom highlight other bloggers. However, I feel OttsWorld not only deserves it, but I’ve gotten to know Sherry Ott personally, and I like her, so I know you will too. She’s been blogging since 2006, and traveling the world. Sherry has done many things in many places, but I want to share with you her Capitol to Capitol quest and the kittens
I strive to be truthful on HeidiTown so let’s face a not-so-fun-fact. Colorado has gotten super expensive. I should know, I live here. And Vail is one of those places that is not cheap. I used to say, “Vail is home to the $17 burger.” With today’s inflation, you’ll pay that price for a burger in Denver. A burger in Vail will set you back $25. I’m not kidding. There
22 Years of Love Celebrated in McCook, Nebraska It’s no secret that I have a little soft spot for Nebraska. I didn’t grow up there and didn’t even visit until 2019. However, I’ve been going back every year since. Why? First, despite growing up thousands of miles west of Nebraska, the small towns there remind me of the one where I grew up; a rural, agricultural town, where everyone gave
I’ve been singing the praises of Nebraska since 2019. Sheila Jenkinson, host of “Growing Small Town Nebraska,” has been singing those praises her entire life. She is, after all, a proud native of the Cornhusker State. I cannot recall how I found her podcast earlier this year. In doing research for HeidiTown Consulting, I think I was searching on the Internet for anyone talking or writing about small towns, and
Surprised by Kansas, Little Jerusalem & A Norman Rockwell Town Part 3: On our last morning in Dodge City, we got up as we did every morning and walked Fritzi at Wright Park. While we paid more than I thought we would, staying at the Holiday Inn Express was worth it. The location is ideal for enjoying downtown on foot, and there’s a water park and a big beautiful park
