Telluride, Colorado is one of our favorite places to visit in the summer. It's a bit of a drive to get to, no matter where you're coming from, but worth the trip.
We go to Telluride to get out of the Texas heat in August every year and here's some of our biggest takeaways while you're here.
Best Things to Do in Telluride
Hiking Trails
Telluride has quick or direct access to multiple amazing hiking trails that you don't want to miss. But keep in mind, with the highest concentration of 13 and 14 thousand foot peaks in Colorado. That means a lot of steep climbing! Here's some of our favorite trails to explore:
On AllTrails, you'll notice there are more than one Bridal Veil Falls trail option. We did the shorter one just to the falls.
Along this 2 mile (round trip) steep trail, you'll have the opportunity to view 3 different beautiful falls, including Bridal Veil Fall - the tallest free-falling waterfall in Colorado. The first two falls (in my opinion, the best ones) you will come across will be accessible via very short off-shoots of the trail that should be marked with a "waterfall" sign.
However, once you get to the Bridal Veil Falls, you can continue your hike (an additional 2 mile round trip) all the way to the top where the historic power plant is. We haven't done this yet because we hike a ton in Telluride already and didn't want to overdo ourselves.
Next time, we might consider driving up to the Bridal Veil Falls and hiking the rest, or just driving all the way up to the power plant. It is accessible with a 4-wheel drive or OHV.
This trail has a great views of the town and Telluride valley. Like most trails in Telluride, it starts off very steep, then levels off at some point, then you'll have a steep decline back down.
We love this trail and it's a quick walk to the trailhead from the campground where we usually stay. Again, with a mostly steep incline most of the way up, you'll end at some beautiful views and a waterfall.
This one is accessible by the Gondola, where you will get off at the first drop off point (not all the way to Mountain Village). This is also an extremely steep incline the WHOLE way up, and back down, and a much longer trail. But you might have to hike half a mile or more before you even get to the trailhead.
I recommend following the AllTrails app GPS on this one because the path can get a little confusing and you may be unsure once you hit the "end" of the stop since there seems to be so much more to go. In case this helps, once you get the first unoccupied ski-lift at the top of the mountain (but not the VERY top top of another mountain), you should be at the end of the trail. Once you get to the top, you'll get some incredible views that looks like you can see forever - but keep in mind, you'll probably feel like you can see forever multiple points on the way up.
You'll pass by dozens of double black diamond ski slopes (including ones with “EX” on it meaning Extreme) since Telluride is a world-class ski resort town.
Campground
Telluride is a very expensive place to stay, which is why the Telluride Town Park Campground is extremely popular and hard to get with its cheap rates, convenient location to town, and beautiful views.
If you don't get lucky to get a spot here, there are a few campgrounds outside of town that are first-come-first-serve basis such as Sunshine Campground, Matterhorn Campground, or Priest Lake Campground near the beautiful Trout Lake.
Free Gondola
There is a free, high quality, covered gondola ride that goes from Telluride to Mountain Village. There are a few spots along the ride that you can get off at.
The first stop from Telluride will be at the top of the mountain where you can find several hiking (ski slope) trails and a nice reservation-only restaurant with an incredible view called Allreds.
The second stop will be in the main area of Mountain Village that is a great place to explore, shop, dine, drink and enjoy live music.
The last stop is also in Mountain Village but ends at a more residential area where there is a grocery store (and a great bathroom break spot) right by the drop off point.
Dogs are welcome on the gondolas as long as they are on a leash at all times.
Mountain Village
Mountain Village is basically an extension of Telluride sharing the Telluride Ski Resort, but it is a separate town on the other side of the mountain. They also may have live music playing across town specific days of the week and it's a great place to explore on your free time.
Parking
Parking in Telluride can get a bit tricky. They have limited parking on the main street that is only available for a limited time, and some areas around the surrounding neighborhoods have parking available.
If you aren't lodging or camping in town that comes with a parking spot and plan to spend quite a bit of time in Telluride, I recommend parking at the free parking garage in Mountain Village and taking the gondola all the way to Telluride.
Best Places to Eat & Drink in Telluride
Restaurants
We typically don't eat out much in Telluride because we get food to make at our campsite. So we only have a few place to recommend.
Wood Ear: We already had this on our list of places to go based on online reviews and cool places in town. What we discovered was much more than just a delicious ramen restaurant — it also happened to be owned and operated by multiple people from our hometown in Denton, Texas! Highly recommend starting out with the crispy brussel sprouts, and get either the Pork on Pork or Hill Country ramen dishes.
Stronghouse Brew Pub: We mainly came here for a snack and beer, but it was a great choice. We had their delicious Hot Salted Bavarian Pretzel with beer cheese dip and their Coconut Porter Brownie Skillet dessert — oh my this was good. Of course you also have to get a beer they brew!
Smuggler Union Restaurant and Brewery: You can't go wrong with any of their burgers. I'm also a big fan of starters and appetizers at any restaurant. And of course, enjoy a beer they brew in house.
This is a great coffee shop that also sells some breakfast and lunch food options and booze. It has a back patio, as well.
Bars & Breweries
Other than the breweries / brew pubs I just mentioned, there are a couple other great options we enjoy. However, because Telluride and Mountain Village have open container policies (spoiler alert!), we usually save on costs and buy our own booze to enjoy.
In Mountain Village, we order a local “Telluride Mule” drink to-go from Telluride Distilling Company.
Eating Cheap
Everything is generally more expensive in Telluride, so we usually like to save some bucks by making our own food or finding cheaper options to consider eating.
There are a couple grocery stores in Telluride, but we love the one at the edge of town called Clarks Market. If you don't want to lose your parking spot or not interested in walking far, you could opt to take gondola all the way to the end of Mountain Village where it will drop you off right in front of a grocery store called The Village Market.
Other cheaper options than a restaurant to consider for eating a quick bite are the following: Baked in Telluride, The Butcher & The Baker, Steamies Burger Bar, Caravan Middle Eastern Food, and you can't miss the delicious Gyro Cart that comes out for lunch everyday.
Another thing we have enjoyed doing is buying some charcuterie items and a bottle of wine from the grocery store to enjoy a picnic with beautiful views. This location is at a picnic table by the river at the edge of town by the campground!
Cool Facts about Telluride
Open Container
Mountain Village and parts of Telluride are considered open container, meaning you can walk around with your booze in hand. Many restaurants and bars offer alcohol to-go so you can enjoy it on the go.
Dog Friendly
Telluride is a very dog-friendly town and you'll see many pups everywhere you go. Even the gondola is dog friendly! So don't shy away from bringing your furry friend along on this trip.
No Chains
You'll also notice that there aren't really any chains in the entire town. If any chain, you might consider the small grocery chains they have available or a burger joint that is only well known in the general region. So most places you go, you can bet it'll be a local brand that gives you a unique experience!
Telluride Film Festival
The first time we went to Telluride in September, we discovered we had booked our visit during the same week as the Telluride Film Festival (a highly popular weekend to try to and get a place to stay!). Since we weren't there to experience the festival, we didn't want to fork over the money to get an event pass. But we found out that National Geographic was offering 3 FREE documentary films in the park that were absolutely incredible: Torn (bring out the tissues!), The Rescue, and Becoming Cousteau.
