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I have two different job offers- one in Vail and one in Breckenridge. I figure they are quite similar, but I would still like some insight into both towns. Fun things to do, places to live and visit, and general advice for moving to these areas from Austin, Texas.
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Jun 25, 2015 01:03
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 07:37 |
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I did a winter season in Breckenridge in 2008/2009 and it I would definitely recommend it. The biggest bonus of living in Breck is that there is a free bus service (hopefully it still exists) that goes to Keystone and A-basin ski resorts and the towns of Frisco and Dillon. The town itself is much more condensed with bars and restaurants being on one main road, which creates a pretty awesome apres lifestyle. Rent in town wasn't too horrendous but that may have changed now that the US economy has recovered since 2008. I only visited Vail about 3-4 times during my stay, but I found that it's a lot more isolated and the village tends to cater towards big spenders. Breckenridge is pretty well set up for locals and seasonal workers with a full size supermarket and leisure centre. There were loads of local sport teams looking for people to join throughout the year, so meeting people in Breck is quite easy. It's pretty easy to get to Frisco or Dillon from Breck for retail goods and a cinema and it's closer to Denver.
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Jun 25, 2015 06:11
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Poolparty posted:I did a winter season in Breckenridge in 2008/2009 and it I would definitely recommend it. The biggest bonus of living in Breck is that there is a free bus service (hopefully it still exists) that goes to Keystone and A-basin ski resorts and the towns of Frisco and Dillon. The town itself is much more condensed with bars and restaurants being on one main road, which creates a pretty awesome apres lifestyle. Rent in town wasn't too horrendous but that may have changed now that the US economy has recovered since 2008. Yep, the bus still exists. I was in Breck a few years ago and it's a super cool town. It has all of the nice features you'd expect from a ski town (ie. good restaurants and some non-skiing related attractions), but it doesn't have the same sort of "if you're not super rich, you're the help" feel of Aspen. Not to mention the mountain is pretty good. Relish was really great if you want a semi-pricy meal, and the Blue Moose is a solid if unremarkable greasy spoon. The only downside of Breckenridge is that it gets loving cold in the winter. Colder than the vast majority of mountain/ski towns I've spent time in. I haven't been to Vail since I was a kid, so sadly I can't compare the two.
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Jun 25, 2015 18:04
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Thanks for the tips so far. The bus system and sports leagues are exactly what I'm looking for. Having Dillon, other towns, and only being 45 minutes away from Denver is a big plus for Breckenridge. The cold weather won't really be an issue for me. The good night life is a major plus too.
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Jun 27, 2015 00:17
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It's more than 45 minutes from Denver. In the winter is can be much more than that. Normal conditions it's prob 1.5 hours from main street breck to downtown Denver. Vail is definitely the more "resorty" of the two towns, but they are both resort towns. Summit county (including Breck, Frisco, Dillon and surrounding) is more affordable of the two. Living right in Breck town is very expensive, especially if you don't want roommates. All of things previously mentioned (sports teams, grocery stores, bus) all exist in Vail valley as well, in basically the exact same capacity. Same with nightlife, but I think Breck definitely skews younger and is more of a post college scene. People party pretty drat hard in both, that is for sure. Both towns are dead in the off season, especially mud season (may-july). Socializing is pretty easy in both because of the alcohol and everyone is from out of town, and most likely just got there. You'll prob run in to someone from Austin who have a crew of people from there, people seem to group up naturally like that. From my casual observation Summit county has a lot more men than women. Also Vail and Breck are only about 30-45 mins apart so it's easy to get between them.
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Jul 6, 2015 20:33
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Vail also has free bus service that's really good and a full size supermarket - at least West Vail does - Safeway. Honestly, I'd ask in the skiing and snowboarding thread in YLLS. Also Yellow Chicken next to the safeway in Vail is the best food ever. Apparently the tacqueria in the basement of the bus depot is amazing too, but I didn't get to try it.
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Jul 9, 2015 23:11
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hbf posted:It's more than 45 minutes from Denver. In the winter is can be much more than that. Normal conditions it's prob 1.5 hours from main street breck to downtown Denver. HookShot posted:Vail also has free bus service that's really good and a full size supermarket - at least West Vail does - Safeway. Thanks for the advice / help! I am officially going with the Breckenridge job and I'm really looking forward to living there. I have one more question-- how prevalent are bears and moose around the area? I generally go running in the mornings and I try to do nature jogs as much as possible. When I visited yellowstone and the tetons I would always bring a bell and sometimes spray with me. Is that necessary in Breckenridge?
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Jul 10, 2015 07:45
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Since this seems to be the place to ask, I'm going to be at a conference that takes place at the Vail Marriott for a week at the end of the month. I've never spent a significant amount of time there during the summer, and unfortunately I'm going to be extremely busy during the day, but any places I should check out while I'm there? Bars, food, etc?
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Jul 10, 2015 21:28
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buddhanc posted:Thanks for the advice / help! I am officially going with the Breckenridge job and I'm really looking forward to living there. I have one more question-- how prevalent are bears and moose around the area? I generally go running in the mornings and I try to do nature jogs as much as possible. When I visited yellowstone and the tetons I would always bring a bell and sometimes spray with me. Is that necessary in Breckenridge? No I really don't think so. I've never heard of anyone doing that at least. For one thing due to being so close to an interstate a lot of the trails around Breck are pretty heavily trafficked, thus scaring away a lot of wildlife. They are still around of course, but pretty familiar with people and know how to avoid them. Most bear encounters are just people seeing them knock their garbage cans/dumpsters around early morning, or running across a big pile of bear poo poo on the trail. I'd maybe not use headphones though if you are going on some trails away from main areas, just so you could potentially hear stuff around you.
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Jul 12, 2015 20:01
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 07:37 |
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I would choose Breckenridge because it is close to Denver. I stayed in Denver in 2013 and took 3 trips to A-Basin. It's a beautiful drive. If you're from Austin you're gonna find Denver calling to you. Boulder is also very similar to Austin and I'm sure you'll be taking day and weekend trips.
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Nov 29, 2015 19:01
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