Hotel Aspen

Hotel Aspen is the value play in town, run by the same family that owns Molly Gibson Lodge a few blocks away. Forty-five rooms on Main Street, breakfast included, an outdoor heated pool, and the same close-walk-to-everything access that the more expensive properties charge double for. It's not a design hotel and doesn't pretend to be. It's a working Aspen lodge with prices that don't require an explanation when you book it.

Aspen accommodates a wider income spread than its reputation suggests. The locals who actually ski 60 days a year have to stay somewhere too. Hotel Aspen is one of the answers.

The setting

On East Main Street, four blocks from the Silver Queen Gondola and three blocks from the pedestrian core. Walk to Pinons, Meat & Cheese, the bar at the Hotel Jerome, and most of Aspen's dining within ten minutes. Main Street has a steady flow of cars, but the pedestrian center is right there.

The drive in from Denver is four hours through Glenwood Canyon. Aspen-Pitkin airport (ASE) is fifteen minutes by cab. Four-mountain skiing in winter, music festival and trailheads in summer.

The building

Two-story stone-and-timber lodge structures with a courtyard pool in the middle. The aesthetic is mountain-functional — log accents, fireplace in the lobby, a guest sitting area with newspapers. The recent updates to rooms have been deliberate rather than dramatic; nothing here is competing for design awards, and that's fine.

The honesty about what it is, and isn't, is part of the appeal.

The rooms

Forty-five rooms in standard, deluxe, and suite categories — from around $395 in shoulder up through suites with kitchenettes and balconies in peak. Beds are queens or kings, linens are clean and updated, bathrooms are functional. Some rooms get gas fireplaces; some get balconies onto the courtyard. The pool-facing rooms are quieter than the Main Street side.

It's the kind of room that's perfectly fine and that you don't spend much time in because you're skiing.

Food & drink

No restaurant on site. Continental breakfast is included, served in the lobby — eggs, oats, breakfast meats, fruit. Afternoon cookies and hot chocolate run in winter. For dinner, four blocks gets you to most of Aspen's restaurants. A casual lunch up the road at the Aspen Brewing Company is a local move.

On the property

What you get is a clean ski hotel with the right amenities for the trip.

• Heated outdoor pool and hot tub (year-round)
• Continental breakfast included
• Ski storage and tune-up room
• Free in-town shuttle on call
• Open year-round

Who it's for

• Skiers on a budget that still wants in-town access — the value play in Aspen
• Families who need a pool and a hot tub more than they need marble bathrooms
• First-time Aspen visitors who don't want to pay luxury rates to learn the town
• Travelers who'd rather spend the savings on lift tickets and dinner

Who it's not for

• Travelers looking for a design-forward boutique
• Anyone who needs a full restaurant, spa, or 24-hour room service
• Guests who want true ski-in, ski-out — you walk or shuttle

Nearby

Silver Queen Gondola at the base of Aspen Mountain is four blocks. Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk are short shuttle rides; Snowmass is fifteen minutes by free RFTA bus. In summer, the Maroon Bells trailhead is a half-hour drive plus shuttle, and Independence Pass over to the Sawatch opens up the whole eastern side of the valley. The Aspen Music Festival runs through July and August at the Bucksbaum Campus. The bar at the Hotel Jerome is the standard evening detour.