Fun for the Whole Family and Fun for the Whole Town
The Santa Crawl and other holiday-related events make the Crested Butte-Gunnison area the place to be for having a great time with family, friends, and strangers. The 13th of December will in fact provide the greatest opportunity for Santa sightings you are ever apt to experience in a lifetime. It’s a kind of ‘come-on-down-and-have-a-good-time’ type of day.
The Wirsing Family Outing
Whether you’re a ski bum traveling by yourself, with a friend or partner, or coming as a family, it doesn’t matter. You’ll enjoy yourself and your friends and family will as well. The Wirsing family from Crested Butte is a case in point. When they participated in the Santa Ski a year ago, the parents didn’t go off to enjoy the festivities and leave their children behind. Connor, who is 12 and his sisters Cassidy, 9 and Tessa 6, had a blast. Like their parents, they dressed in Santa suits, and like their parents, they took part in the Santa Group Ski along with a few hundred others who were also dressed in Santa suits.
The children were able to ski on their own, listen to the live music, drink hot chocolate, and be with their friends. There were also able to do things together, something that does not always happen when kids are12, 9, and 6 years old and have different interests.
Web Cams and Fat Tires
There is much more to Crested Butte than the Santa Group Ski and Pub Crawl however, although both events will leave you with pleasant and lasting memories, especially if you bring a camera along. There are tree lightings the evening before the main event, and a parade down Crested Butte’s main street, Elk Avenue, the headline event being the appearance of Santa riding down the street in a fire engine. If you don’t make it in person you can always go online and view the Cantina Cam, which will show you what is happening along Elk Avenue, practically second by second. You can even go bike riding through the snow! That’s not as ridiculous as it may sound, since you can rent bicycles that have big, fat tires that are meant for snow travel. Check to see if one of the fat tire bike races is scheduled during your visit and join in the fun.
Arts, Music, and Money-Saving Packages
Both Gunnison and Crested Butte have art shows happening during the holidays. An art walk and musical event is usually held the first Friday in December in Gunnison and you can watch a stage play in Crested Butte during the third week in December.
You’ll have a great time and save some money in the process if you sign up for a family vacation package where you can save on airfare, car rentals, lodging, and more.
A visit to any of the major ski resorts during the holiday season usually results in a good time, but you’ll find a visit to the Gunnison-Crested Butte region has more than a little bit of something extra to offer.