Apres Ski in Keystone

Keystone Village

Keystone is an attractive, purpose-built development comprising three pedestrian-only villages: Keystone Village, River Run, and Mountain House Base Area.

Each of the village areas is located along the base of Keystone Mountain and closed to vehicular traffic. They are modern Colorado-timber in style and feature stores, restaurants, ski schools, and cafés. Keystone Village also has a large lake that becomes the nation’s largest outdoor ice-skating venue in the winter. Very family-friendly, Keystone also caters to business parties with the expansion of the large Conference Center-now the largest and most sophisticated facility in the Colorado Rockies. The River Run village has developed significantly during the past several years with many condos, restaurants and stores making up the new, biggest hub of the resort.

Keystone Restaurants & Bars

The Vail area offers a wide variety of nightlife from the upscale to the downhome and Keystone, to be perfectly frank, does not cater to ravers. This is really a resort for families and that tones down the wilder spirits.

On the other hand, look at the facilities. Night skiing until 9:00 pm, sleigh rides, ice skating, snowmobiling and tennis. Of the 20 bars in the resort, the Goat is the locals’ hangout for all ages; Kickapoo Tavern attracts the 25-35 group, as it’s close to the slopes and is a good place to see and be seen; Ski Tip has high-end cocktails in a cozy, romantic setting, for mostly 35 .

Kickapoo is the “sports bar” at Keystone and twentysomethings go there to catch their favorite games. LaBonte’s Cabin is another place to seek Keystone’s après-ski vibe. Liquor and licensing laws are strict in Colorado with no open containers except at restaurants and in designated events/locations, and a minimum age for consuming alcohol of 21. However, children can accompany parents in bars and other places serving alcohol and there are no closing time restrictions.

There are 35 restaurants in the resort catering mainly to families. They range from Kickapoo, a sports bar with appetizers and burgers, to Parrot Eyes for Mexican food if you’re budget-minded, through to Summit Seafood Company, serving fresh seafood, Bighorn for mid-wallet spenders looking for prime rib and salad bar, and the aforementioned Ski Tip, Keystone Ranch, and Alpenglow Stube for more pricey meals. The Ranch has been voted Colorado’s Number One restaurant in a recent Denver/Salt Lake City Zagat Survey.

There are several nightclubs: Kickapoo, Snake River Saloon, The Green Light, Parrot Eyes, Great Northern Tavern and the Last Lift Bar all with live music of different kinds, drink specials, and a cool night scene.

Keystone Other Activities

Keystone’s non-skiing key ingredient is its Adventure Passport (free with your stay), which is good for more than a dozen free activities at Keystone Resort and is worth up to US$300.

During the ski season you can try the outdoor ice skating and hockey rink, Nordic Center (including skate, classic, and snowshoe trails,) tubing at Adventure Point, fitness center and pool, indoor tennis courts, sledding hill, and jogging trail. For non-skiers there’s ice skating, tubing, gym workouts, sledding, tennis, swimming, horse-drawn sleigh rides, wine tasting, yoga, snowshoeing, Nordic skiing, spa services, shopping, fly fishing, hockey clinics, Living in Wellness lecture series, and a wine appreciation seminar.

Many, but not all, of these activities are free with the Keystone Adventue Passport. Most of the stores are in River Run Plaza or Keystone Village and offer everything from handmade jewelry to luxury coffees and fine wines. To rent or buy ski equipment check out Specialty Sports in River Run, and the Mountain House.