Top 10 Getaway for Tiny Travelers - The Peaks Resort And Golden Door Spa, Colorado

The Peaks Resort & Golden Door Spa won a Top 10 Getaways award in 2003 for its support of parents with infants and toddlers

For 2003's "Top 10 Getaways for Tiny Travelers" awards, our staff and contributing editors selected the Peaks Resort and Golden Door Spa for its enhanced recreation facilities, excellent spa services, expert childcare and customized amenities to rejuvenate any parent. Here's a look at The Peaks today.

The Peaks Resort and Golden Door Spa
136 Country Club Drive
Telluride, Colorado  81435
970/728-6800, 866/282-4557

Recognized by Family Travel Forum as the "Top Snow and Summer Resort" in 2003, and "Top Spa" in 1998 and 1999, The Peaks Resort and Golden Door Spa offers recreational facilities, excellent spa services, extensive childcare options and resort amenities aimed at rejuvenating parents.

Surrounded by the breathtaking southern ranges of the Rocky Mountains, the Peaks offers an ideal setting for a wealth of recreational activities. In winter, you can enjoy the snow on skis at the Telluride Ski Resort's new Prospect Bowl, or on extended snowmobile, snowshoe or dogsled routes. In summer, nearby trails are perfect for hiking and biking. Guests can also enjoy the Wyndham Resort's indoor/outdoor pool, steam, sauna, whirlpools, Cybex weight room, cardiovascular deck and other year-round exercise facilities.

Golden Door Spa at The Peaks Resort, which has already won accolades from Condé Nast Traveler, is a branch of the legendary California Spa founded on ancient Japanese principles of personal well-being and rejuvenation. New parents can be completely immersed in indulgences. Special services are offered for a variety of needs (from stress relief, to those of pregnant guests), and renewing treatments range from sports massage to Reiki, Thai massage, Shiatsu, Acupuncture, Ayurvedic techniques, skin care based on indigenous ingredients and others too numerous to mention.

Knowing that your children are safe and happy enables parents to relax and absorb every bit of luxury. Base Camp at Golden Door welcomes infants from 12 weeks through 5 years for half days or full days of playing, swimming, arts'n'crafts and other fun activities under the care of a trained staff. Childcare rates are $80/D, $50/HD, $25/HR and include lunch and snacks. Base Camp is open from 8:30am to 5:30pm, year-round (except when the resort closes briefly to prepare for the busy winter and summer seasons). Extended hours, party nights, play-groups, and special programs are offered.  Evening in-room babysitting can also be arranged through an outside company.

Pioneers offers 12 weeks - 2 ½ year olds an outdoor play area in a stunning mountain setting, as well as songs, story time, arts n' crafts, nursery, colorful play area and more.  Rates run $70/D, $50HD, and $15/HR.  Explorers provides a similar program with age-appropriate activities for 2 ½ - 12 year olds and runs  $60D, $40HD, or $12/HR.

From May to September, the resort offers Explorer Camp for kids ages 6-12 years, featuring a varying roster of indoor and outdoor activities focusing on local Telluride history and the surrounding mountainous terrain.  Explorer Camp is offered daily from 9am to 4:30pm at a rate of $75 per day.  During the winter months, parents may consider enrolling younger skiers in the Telluride Children's Ski School.  Available for kids ages 3-12 years old, Ski School divides children into programs that offer age-specific learning for either ski or snowboard fundamentals.  Ski school begins at 10am daily, and can be arranged through the resort concierge.

All guests over 16 can immerse themselves in the Golden Door Spa "Kivas" (ceremonial shelters in native American lore) for a complimentary Peaks Purification Ritual including use of the steam room infused with Colorado aromatic herbs and the use of a cedar-filled sauna and mineral-water whirlpool.  Also available through the Golden Door Spa are two "family fitness" programs designed for kids and parents to enjoy together.  The Peaks Family Yoga and Family Walk are classes tailored for the family dynamic, and the perfect way for families to work out and stay fit together.

In addition to 174 luxury rooms and suites (with ski in/ski-out access) and 12 penthouse condominiums, The Peaks Resort now offers 15 "See Forever" Cabins, the perfect accommodation for a large group or family reunion. Built of logs and stone, these well-appointed three to six-bedroom lodges, decorated in a mountain style, are luxurious get-aways with private whirlpool tubs and other amenities. They are within walking distance of the Telluride Gondola, the Golden Door Spa, and the village's fine restaurants and golf, and are connected by a heated cobblestone walkway.