I’ve had the privilege in my life to travel to so many wild and unique places, but please believe me when I say this Aspen trip sits at the top of my list. I’ve been to Aspen in the Winter and Summer, but wow. Fall is the time to go!! In October, all of the trees are a beautiful yellow, the temperature hits mid 60s during the day, and the mornings and evenings are a perfect crisp. It’s also wildly less crowded, which for me is a huge plus!
We Stayed at Hotel Jerome, located right in town and convenient to EVERYTHING. Blocks from the mountain in one direction, the hikes and creeks in the other, and in the epicenter of all the best restaurants. Not only does Jerome have one the best restaurants right in its hotel (J Bar), but the rooms are beautiful!! High ceilings, big, and even though Jerome is everyone’s pre-game meet up (the bar and lounge are STUNNING), the hotel and rooms felt awfully quiet and private.
We came two weeks into the “off-season,” which again bode well for the crowds, but sadly I missed the Farmers Market and Gondola by one weekend! If you have the chance, the Aspen Farmers Market on Saturday’s is an experience!! And no worries on the gondola; we did so many activities I don’t even know if we would have had the time!
Let’s start with what I think y’all are most interested in…
food
Clark’s Oyster Bar:
Clark’s is my favorite restaurant in Aspen!! And not just because of the incredible shoestring french fries that are piled a mile high. There is so much on the menu that I love, I could order something new each trip. Any of the fish, simply grilled, are gluten-free and so up my ally, the burger #nobread, the Cold Bar, and Caviar are my personal faves. And everyone will tell you to order the Oysters, except me because I don’t eat them.
Matsuhisa:
We all know how much I love Nobu, but we need to discuss how much I love Nobu’s cousin, Matsuhisa. Especially the one in Aspen!! I love the vibe, and it’s definitely the hotspot of town. Personal faves: miso black cod, new style salmon sashimi (ask for GF), hearts of palm salad, spinach salad, spicy tuna (ask for GF), new style salmon roll, and the baked crab hand roll. Oh, and they had an INSANE GF coconut cake with coconut sorbet that I would eat every day forever if I could.
Paradise Bakery:
Should I be embarrassed or proud that we came here minimum 3x a day? Coffee lovers, everyone will tell you Felix at Jerome is the best coffee in town, but my coffee-loving husband will beg to differ. We’re East Coasters and Ben loves DUNKIN, and Paradise has a HUGE $4 black iced coffee that made him feel right at his Dunkin home. Felix, on the other hand, cost $13 for a small coffee. ANYWHO, Paradise is THE SPOT whether you’re looking for a 8 am coffee and matcha or a yummy pastry (not too many GF options).
But let’s talk about why we really came here all the time. The ice cream!! They had the BEST gelato selection and so many DF options. The chocolate sorbet was so good, my dairy-loving husband even opted for it over the dairy creams!!
Jus & Spring Cafe:
Okay we’re grouping these two together and calling this section Nicole’s “Health Spots.” Let’s start with Jus. My smoothie heaven!! They also have sandwiches and wraps, but I come for the smoothies. They have every combination and smoothie topping possible and the smoothies are PERFECT. I also love buying their $2 almond butter balls- the chocolate chip one with pecan bits is my favorite.
Spring Cafe- This is every wellness girlies favorite place! Healthy salads and bowls, the restaurant is mainly vegan but they DO have eggs. This GF, DF chocolate chip cookie was so good! I treated myself to one daily.
Ajax Tavern:
I had one request this trip. I wanted a really good burger. Not a wimpy one… a HEARTY one. And damn, did I choose my burger well!! Ajax is known as the best smashburger in town, but little did I know they also had a gluten-free bun!! Double burger, avocado, bacon jam, and gluten-free bun, with a side of the most delicious, crispy truffle fries (no cheese for me).
Ben and I hiked early this day, and 25,000 steps later we were famished and in the mood to FEAST. This meal was so good I was full for the rest of the day! Ben had his burger with a side of avocado fries (gluten-free, not dairy-free) and loved his meal, too! Located right at the bottom of Aspen Mountain, this is “the spot” during the winter ski season. An absolute must for your trip!
Where we will be coming back for: White House Tavern (a Hillstone with a limited menu that isn’t totally the best for us GF folk), Meat & Cheese, Casa Tua (this was bucket list and we had a res, but my burger and fries at Ajax filled me for the day), The Little Nell, Steakhouse No. 310 (the locals say this is the superior steakhouse in town) and Poppycock’s!! (the local diner which was so our vibe, just not enough days in the trip)
TO DO:
HIKES:
Ben and I are hiking OBSESSED, and leave it to me to want a weekend full of hiking and activities for my birthday. The hikes in Aspen are breathtaking!! The beautiful fall colors are of course to thank, but the hikes are the perfect amount of difficult and beautiful.
Maroon Bells: When I asked my community for recs, about 99% of submissions started with Maroon Bells, so naturally we started our trip here.
Okay before I get into the hike, I’m going to tell you the things NO ONE SAID. Everyone will tell you this is the “easy” hike or a nice “quick loop.” Naturally with that context, I assumed the hike would take a quick 30 minutes. HOWEVER, you need to factor in a lot more! You’ll need to take an uber or bus to the Highland center (10 mins), buy tickets, and wait in a (potentially long) line to take another 20 minute bus ride to the top. Be sure to build in time for this because it is totally dependent on getting a bus up and back.
Now to the hike. You’ll approach Maroon Bells lake in the first 100 yards- it’s beautiful! The majority of people coming to Maroon Bells are here solely to see the lake and take a 30 minute casual stroll around it. We however took the Crater Lake trail which was about an hour and a half or two hours. It was a bit challenging as we adjusted to the altitude, but totally doable and FUN!
Hunter’s Creek and Smuggler’s:
These were our favorite hikes in Aspen!! The first day we took Smuggler’s straight up and straight down. This hour long hill will get your heart GOING. We were told by locals it’s called “Housewives Hill” because it’s the local mom hike in town. It’s quick and a great cardio burn if you have a busy day. It was also a 20 minute walk to and from our hotel, so we got a longer workout in.
The hike we REALLY REALLY loved was Hunter’s Creek to Smuggler’s. Hunter’s creek is astonishingly beautiful and a longer route to the Smuggler’s overlook. Once there, you take the same Smuggler’s hike down. Hunter’s had every type of terrain: road, rock, dirt, creek, hill. I would seriously move to Aspen for this hike!! It was such an amazing experience and plenty of photo opps (see above).
Hikes we will be coming back for: Ajax, UTE, American Lake. These hikes are all harder and longer, so adjusting to altitude a bit longer would be a must. Also, everyone recommended e-biking… we didn’t have time but that totally would have been fun.
Shopping:
Kemosabe:
You can’t go to Aspen and NOT go to Kemosabe. Even if you don’t buy anything (like me the few times I’ve been in the past). But this time was my birthday, and for my birthday I wanted to make my first ever custom Kemosabe hat!! I made it, I love it, and I’ll be wearing it for years to come!! You can also get boots, and they have a bar upstairs (Kathy’s tequila IYKYK) making it the perfect girls day activity.
Town: Louis Vuitton, Prada, Dior… you name it, town has it. Oh, and throw in a bunch of Aspen t-shirt stores, ha! Town is a big grid, and whether you’re window browsing or actually shopping, you’ll enjoy your stroll.
Horseback Riding:
Ben and I had never been horseback riding, so we for sure had some nerves. This experience was magical and I totally understand why people say horses are healing. I felt so at peace in the beautiful Aspen surroundings, I could have rode for so much longer. It was extra amazing when Ben’s horse got itchy and went to scratch himself off in a tree, and Ben disappeared into a bush, haha!
Independence Pass:
I have now been to Aspen in Winter, Summer, and Fall, and Fall is absolutely superior. If the real estate prices weren’t so psychotic I’d be buying a place right now!! Aspen I love you tons, I can’t wait to come back soon.