Aspen

Aspen is a high mountain town in the middle of the Rockies, about two days' drive from any sea. In summer, locals cool off on the shores of small reservoirs and alpine lakes, or float the Roaring Fork River on a raft. The water stays cold even in July. If you want a swim, use a hotel pool. Nobody comes here for a beach.

For a town of a few thousand people, Aspen eats far above its size. The downtown grid has polished chef-led dining rooms, steak and sushi counters, Italian places and wine lists built for wealthy winter visitors. Après-ski is a ritual of its own, with slopeside terraces at the base of Aspen Mountain filling up as the lifts close. Every June the Food & Wine Classic brings chefs and winemakers to town.

The range is narrow, though. There is no local cuisine, no street food, and little in the cheap and cheerful middle. In summer a Saturday farmers' market sets up downtown. In the quiet weeks of spring and autumn, many kitchens close altogether.

Aspen began as a silver-mining boomtown in the 1880s, and the core of its downtown still has red-brick Victorian blocks. The Wheeler Opera House and the grand old hotel across from it are the best of them. In the West End, painted miners' cottages and Victorian houses line quiet streets. The Aspen Art Museum shows contemporary work in a timber-latticed building with a rooftop terrace. The Aspen Institute campus is a small modernist set piece by the Bauhaus designer Herbert Bayer.

It makes a pleasant afternoon's walk, but there are no major museums or landmarks. The mining ghost town of Ashcroft, up the Castle Creek valley, adds a little more history.

In ski season, Aspen has a glossy party reputation. Après-ski starts on the slopeside decks as the lifts close and moves into the downtown bars and lounges. On peak weeks around Christmas, New Year and the winter X Games, the hotel bars and a few small clubs stay busy late with a well-dressed, high-spending crowd.

It is still a small town, though. There are only a few streets of bars, and the scene depends on the season. Summer evenings are mellower, with drinks on patios. In the shoulder seasons of spring and autumn, the town goes quiet and many places close.

Aspen sits at about 2,400m in a narrow valley ringed by the Elk Mountains, and the outdoors is the reason to come. In winter there are four ski mountains, all linked by free shuttles. Aspen Mountain's gondola rises straight from the edge of downtown. Highlands has steep expert terrain, Buttermilk is gentle, and Snowmass is huge. There is also backcountry skiing, with huts for overnight tours.

In summer, trails start at the edge of town. The Maroon Bells, twin peaks reflected in Maroon Lake, are a short bus ride away. Above them, wilderness routes climb to high passes and several summits above 4,000m. You can also drive over Independence Pass, ride mountain-bike trails, raft or fly-fish the Roaring Fork, or watch the aspen groves turn gold in late September.

The places within reach are mostly small mountain towns rather than major sights. Glenwood Springs, about an hour down the valley, has a historic railway-era centre. On the way you pass Carbondale, a small ranching and arts town. Up the Crystal River valley, Redstone has a coke-oven heritage strip and Marble a historic quarry village. Closer in, Ashcroft is a preserved silver-mining ghost town.

In summer, the road over Independence Pass leads to Leadville, a high-altitude mining town with a well-kept Victorian main street. Vail is roughly two hours by road. The pass closes in winter, which shortens the list noticeably.

Aspen works well for a ski vacation with children. Buttermilk and Snowmass have gentle terrain, well-run ski schools and dedicated kids' areas. The town is small and safe, and the free buses make shuttling between mountains easy. In summer, families can ride the lifts up for alpine coasters, ropes courses and easy trails, and there are nature programmes at the local environmental centre. Children can also play in the fountains and parks downtown.

Beyond that, there is little built for children: no zoo, aquarium or theme park. Much of the town is aimed at well-off adults. The altitude, about 2,400m, can leave young children tired or headachy for the first day or two.

Within the valley, Aspen is easy to manage without a car. The downtown is a flat, compact grid you can walk end to end in minutes, and the Aspen Mountain gondola leaves from its southern edge. Free buses link the town with Highlands, Buttermilk and Snowmass, and a valley bus line runs down to Glenwood Springs. In summer, a shuttle bus takes visitors to the Maroon Bells. The small local airport is a few minutes from town.

Beyond the valley, it gets harder. Mountain passes and long drives separate Aspen from anywhere else, so trips further afield usually need a car. Winter storms can close the roads in and out.

Aspen's few downtown blocks hold a surprising run of international luxury boutiques, alongside high-end ski wear, jewellers, Western-style leather and fur, and a cluster of commercial art galleries. You can find designer labels here that you would not expect in a mountain town of this size, and window-shopping in the pedestrian malls is part of an evening out.

The range is narrow, though. There are no department stores, no real markets beyond the summer farmers' market, and little in the way of local crafts or affordable independent shops. It suits visitors with a taste for luxury goods rather than browsers.

Aspen is one of the most expensive places to vacation anywhere. Hotel rooms and rental condos in ski season cost far above big-city norms, and lift tickets, ski school, restaurant meals and drinks are all priced for a very wealthy clientele. Summer and the shoulder seasons are somewhat easier on the budget, and the free valley buses save on getting around. Many budget-minded visitors stay down the valley in Glenwood Springs or Carbondale and travel in, but even then this is not a cheap trip.

Aspen's summer is built around the Aspen Music Festival and School. For about eight weeks, it brings together leading soloists, conductors and hundreds of students for orchestral, chamber and opera performances. Most concerts are in the Benedict Music Tent, where people picnic on the lawn outside and listen for free. Jazz festivals and the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet add to the summer calendar, along with lectures and talks at the Aspen Institute.

The Victorian Wheeler Opera House hosts concerts, comedy and film all year. A downtown club books touring bands and DJs most nights in ski season. Outside summer, though, the choice is modest, and there is no resident opera or theatre company of note.

In summer and the quiet seasons, Aspen is a calm place to slow down. The air is clear, the pace is unhurried, and there are riverside paths and yoga classes in the parks. The large resort hotels have spas offering massages, treatments and altitude-recovery programmes. The town has no bathing tradition of its own, but the hot springs of Glenwood Springs are about an hour down the valley, with big mineral pools and cave vapour baths. Conundrum Hot Springs, high in the wilderness, rewards a long hike. In peak ski season, the busy streets and full calendar make the town less restful.