Winter Activities | Things to Do in Telluride

Whether you ski, ride or just want to get away to snuggle, Telluride offers endless ways to enjoy your winter vacation.

Skiing-Telluride Ski Resort

Fly in, fly out. Ski in, ski out. Open your backdoor and ski onto 1,700 acres and 84 trails for all levels of skiers. Just outside your doors at the mid-mountain Hotel Madeline, another resort begins. Telluride Ski School offers group and private lessons, clinics, complimentary daily tours of the ski mountain just 100 yards away. The Children's Nursery, Lifts #1, #4 and free gondola are located just a swish and a glide away from our hotel.

Nordic and Skate Skiing

Take a break from lift-served slopes and explore Telluride’s wild and wonderful backcountry. Topaten Touring Center on the ski mountain offers 10 kilometers of groomed trails for classic and skate skiing. The Town Park Nordic Center offers group lessons with equipment for $45 per person at 10:30 each day. Private lessons by appointment are $55. 

Heli-Skiing

Designed for intermediate and advanced skiers, helicopter ski tours offer miles of off-piste, untracked powder in the San Juan Mountains surrounding Telluride. Telluride Helitrax is the only licensed heli-skiing company operating in Colorado. A single-day tour includes six runs and 10,000 to 12,000 vertical feet of skiing. The all-inclusive tour is $1,195, beginning with orientation at the Hotel Madeline or the5 Inn at Lost Creek with the heli-pad nearby and post tour après-ski refreshments at 9545 Bar. Custom tours to the isolated ghost town of Dunton for a visit to the hot springs and lunch in the saloon are also available. More information.

Dog-Sled Tours

Experience the peace and tranquility of the Colorado backcountry as you fly through the snow on a dog-sled pulled by eight to ten Alaskan Huskies. This fun activity for all ages carries our guest stamp of approval. There are two passengers per sled; children under three may sit on parent’s lap. Morning and afternoon half-day 4 to 6 person tours are $200 per person.

Snowmobile Tours

Snowmobile tours will whisk you through a snowy wonderland of wide open alpine meadows or to the remote historic town of Alta, where wilderness mining was done by hand. Guides with expert knowledge of the history of these areas will add enjoyment to your tour.

Mountain Sleigh Rides with Dinner

It takes more than a few horses to pull a sleigh up the ski mountain, so this ride features a sleigh pulled by a high horse powered snow-cat to Goronno Ranch. Guests will enjoy a delicious western style dinner and a drink by the fire. Sleighs depart at 6:00 pm and 6:30 pm, in the plaza next to the Inn at Lost Creek and return from Goronno Ranch at 9:30 and 10:00 pm. Adults-$80. Children 4-12-$40. Children 3 & under free.

Snowshoeing

The easiest way to experience mountain scenery and wildlife, especially for non-skiers, is on snowshoe. Topaten Touring Center offers 10 kilometers of groomed trails, a warming hut, snowshoe rental and guided tours featuring wildlife, forest ecology, geology and history. For snow shoeing on the Mountain Village Golf Course or surrounding area, snowshoe rentals are available at Christy Sports. Guided Tours are also available.

Ice Skating

The ice rink at our sister Hotel Madeline Telluride offers day and evening skating with music. The rink is located a few steps from your door and maintained nightly. In Telluride the Town Park features a recreational skating rink with music and lighting. The new Hanley Ice Pavilion is also located in the park with recreational skating, hockey and broom ball. The Pavilion opens mid-November, ice rinks are open in December, weather permitting. Rentals are available at sports stores or in Town Park.

Snow-biking

For a different mode of fun on Telluride’s ski slopes, try snow biking. Snow bikes require no pedaling, no climbing and no prior experience on snow. The bike sits low to the ground on two skis, instead of wheels, and the rider straps snow blades on his feet for extra balance. Private lessons are available during peak ski season and group lessons at all other times on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Group lessons are $70 per person from 1-2:30 pm.

Ice Climbing

Whether a novice or an advanced climber, you can experience the exhilaration of an ice climb on icy waterfalls near Telluride with experienced guides. For enthusiasts, the Ouray Ice Climbing Park, located in the historic mining town of Ouray, offers half and full-day climbs, with world-renowned instructors, an hour and a half drive from Telluride.