Accommodations
Boulder proper offers more than two-dozen places to stay, with nearly 2,500 rooms ranging from bargain-rate facilities to luxury hotels and romantic bed-and-breakfast inns. The choices expand when you head for the hills, where country cabins, great adventure ranches, and mountain retreats beckon. Many of the accommodations are popular way stations for travelers planning to continue on to Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park (see the chapters on those destinations for more information). In fact, Boulder itself is only 35 miles from Estes Park, which means roughly an hour’s drive up, down, and around the mountains. Many country places are even closer, so for these, we’ve listed the approximate driving time to reach both Boulder and Estes Park.
Towering over the Denver-Boulder turnpike just minutes from the city, the Omni Interlocken Resort features a 27-hole championship golf course. The new St. Julien Hotel & Spa is centrally located in downtown Boulder.
1. Alps Boulder Canyon Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 444-5445
Address: 38619 Boulder Canyon Drive
Description: Voted the best 2006 Boulder Bed and Breakfast by the Rocky Mountain News, the Alps Inn is a rustic yet luxurious getaway in Boulder Canyon. Perfect for romantic weekends, weddings, and company retreats, the Alps Inn has 12 distinctive guest rooms with authentic Mission furniture. All rooms have private baths, fireplaces, air-conditioning, high-speed wireless, and other premium amenities. Guests are served a gourmet breakfast, afternoon tea, and evening desserts. A variety of indulgent spa services are also available, rounding out a perfect stay.
2. The Bradley Boulder Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 545-5200
Address: 2040 16th Street
Description: Luxurious rooms and cozy comfort await visitors to Boulder’s newest bed-and-breakfast. The inn, which is located just one block from the Pearl Street Mall, has 12 sophisticated guest rooms, each with a private bath, fireplace, luxurious linens, Jacuzzi spa, wireless Internet, and flat-screen TV. The mountain views are on the house. A delicious breakfast is served each morning, and wine and cheese is offered every afternoon. Guests also can enjoy free health-club privileges at Boulder One Fitness.
3. Briar Rose Bed & Breakfast
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 442-3007 or (800) 786-84
Address: 2151 Arapahoe Avenue
Description: This was Boulder’s first bed-and-breakfast, established in 1981, and it remains one of the coziest. This English-style inn has a landscaped courtyard and garden complete with lovely little pond and waterfall. Each of the nine guest rooms has Boulder-made featherbed comforters. Two of the rooms feature wood-burning fireplaces. Tea is served in the afternoon, and a homemade breakfast—delicious baked goods, granola, and fresh fruit—greets the guests every morning. The inn is within walking distance of Crossroads Mall, CU-Boulder and downtown, Naropa University, and the Village Shopping Center.
4. Boulder Mountain Lodge And Campground
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 444-0882, (800) 458-0882
Address: 91 Four Mile Canyon Drive
Description: Twenty-two rooms, many with kitchenettes or full kitchens and all with whirlpool-jetted bathtubs, are available at this rustic motel with homey touches. The campground has 25 first-come, first-served sites with electricity and access to water for RVs (25-foot-maximum) or for tent campers. The lodge is in the mountains, and the office is in an old narrow-gauge train depot. The property features a private fishing pond for kids, a heated outdoor pool (open seasonally), and hot tubs. Pets are welcome with a deposit. Their meeting room is great for company retreats and accommodates up to 30 people. The lodge is less than 10 minutes from Boulder and about an hour from Estes Park.
5. Boulder Twin Lakes Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 530-2939, (800) 322-2939
Address: 6485 Twin Lakes Road
Description: With 33 spacious, non-smoking studio suites, each with a mini-kitchen and cable TV, this is a great place for business travelers, people relocating or traveling with families. There’s one common kitchen with a house-style range, an oven, and utensils for preparing full-scale meals. A membership at Synergy, a full-service sports club, is complimentary for guests. A cold breakfast buffet, served in the common kitchen from 6:30 to 10 a.m. daily and from 8 to 10 a.m. on weekends and holidays, is included in the rate. It’s a 10-minute drive to Boulder and about an hour from Estes Park. The inn owners also rent one- and two-bedroom condominiums, normally on a monthly basis.
6. Best Western Boulder Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 449-3800, (800) 233-8469
Address: 770 28th Street
Description: This motel’s 112 rooms are right across the street from the south end of the CU-Boulder campus. Room options include units with two queen-size beds, or just one queen-size bed, or upgraded rooms that have a king-size bed and a wet-bar area. Admission to the nearby health club is included in the rate, as is continental breakfast daily and wireless access. The motor inn has a hot tub, sauna, and outdoor pool (open seasonally).
7. Best Western Golden Buff Lodge
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 442-7450, (800) 999-BUFF
Address: 1725 28th Street
Description: This comfortable, well-located business and family motel has 112 guest rooms with king- or queen-size beds; some suites; and conference/banquet space accommodating up to 40 people. On-site is The Buff Restaurant, which is open for breakfast and lunch daily. There is a seasonal outdoor pool and an indoor hot tub, and free Internet access is also available.
8. Rodeway Inn & Suites/The Boulder Broker Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 444-3330, (800) 338-5407
Address: 555 30th Street
Description: Formerly known as the Boulder Broker Inn, this hotel has 118 guest rooms with free continental breakfast and wireless high-speed Internet access. Services include valet parking, room service, and bell staffs. There’s also a seasonal outdoor pool and hot tub, and the hotel is equipped with banquet and meeting rooms. Just south of the campus, this hotel is a short walk or a CU-Boulder shuttle bus (take your pick) away from the university. It is also normally the location where passengers leaving and arriving via the Super Shuttle Boulder transportation service switch from smaller city vans to the larger vehicles that run hourly between Denver International Airport and Boulder.
9. Boulder International Youth Hostel
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 442-0522
Address: 1107 12th Street
Description: Visitors from all over the world have stayed at this hostel, which is a member of the American Association of International Hostels. Accommodations are scattered among several buildings on University Hill. The hostel has separate dormitories for men and women, where beds are as low as $17 a night, as well as private rooms for couples and families that go for $50 a night for two people. Apartments are available for those wanting longer-term facilities. Each room has a phone, but televisions are located only in common areas. Cable TV hookups are provided, but you must bring your own apparatus. Kitchen and laundry facilities are on-site.
10. Boulder Marriott
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 440-8877, (888) 238-2178
Address: 2660 Canyon Boulevard
Description: This business and meeting hotel opened in 1997 with 155 deluxe guest rooms and suites. It is tucked into a shopping center in central Boulder with magnificent views of the Flatirons, especially from the rooftop terrace. Facilities include underground parking, an indoor pool, a whirlpool, a health club and gift shop. JW’s Steakhouse and a lounge are inside the hotel, which also houses a jewelry store, an art gallery, and the Essentials Beauty Clinic. The Boulder Marriott is within walking distance of shopping, restaurants, movie theaters, and the CU campus.
11. Boulder Outlook Hotel & Suites
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 443-3322, (800) 542-0304
Address: 800 28th Street
Description: This hotel is conveniently located across the street from the CU-Boulder campus. The hotel welcomes a diverse collection of travelers and local guests, from families to business travelers. Families with children will appreciate the poolside rooms for easy access to the many activities there. Travelers with pets enjoy special amenities such as a complimentary “Fido Gift Pack,” a fully enclosed dog run, and the in-room pet carriers. Quiet business corridors are designed for business travelers as are the special extras such as the executive-class rooms and the services of the on-site business center. All rooms have free wireless Internet access. Skinny Jay’s Pizza & Pub is on the premises.
12. Colorado Chautauqua Cabins
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 442-3282
Description: More than two dozen lodge rooms and about 60 cottages are available for rent. The one- to three-bedroom cottages offer full kitchens but no telephones, air-conditioning, TVs, or swimming pools. What you get here is a great deal on lodgings, one of the most beautiful locations in town, hiking and superb cultural events right outside your door, and a wonderfully nostalgic step back in time. Bookings start in November for the following summer. Ask about pets. For more information about Chautauqua Park, see the Attractions chapter.
13. Courtyard By Marriott
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 440-4700, (800) 321-2211
Address: 4710 Pearl East Circle
Description: This smoke-free business hotel has 12 suites and 137 rooms with either a king-size bed or two doubles; there are work desks and coffeemakers in every room and separate seating areas in the suites. Each room is wired for Internet access. The hotel offers conference rooms, the in-house Courtyard Cafe, and an indoor pool, whirlpool, and workout room. It’s right next to the Boulder Creek Path in a quiet location just east of Foothills Parkway (Highway 157) on Pearl Street.
14. Days Inn
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 499-4422, (800) 329-7466
Address: 5397 South Boulder Road
Description: This motel is on a main thoroughfare, just off US 36 and near the Table Mesa Park-n-Ride. It is just about the most convenient lodging to the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the National Bureau of Standards and Technology. Some of its 76 rooms have mountain views. The hotel offers free high-speed Internet access. The Boulder Super Shuttle airport vans also stop here. The Eggcredible Café is on-site.
15. Foot-Of-The-Mountain Motel
City: Boulder, CO
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (303) 442-5688
Address: 200 Arapahoe Avenue
Description: Each of the motel’s 18 rooms is in a red-trimmed log cabin, making this place a quaint and rustic charmer. The mountain against whose foot the property nestles is Flagstaff. On a quiet street near the pretty Eben Fine Park and the Boulder Creek Path, it is also just 9 blocks west of CU-Boulder and the downtown Pearl Street Mall. All rooms have refrigerators and free HBO. Pets are welcome.