Steamboat Christmas holidays
Colorado’s ski resorts are famed for celebrating Christmas in style, and Steamboat is no exception. The mountains provide the perfect backdrop to the festive season, with the town coming alive with its twinkling lights, cheer and seasonal events.
The myriad of events here are sure to turn even the biggest Scrooge or Grinch into a jolly holiday maker, with the build-up almost as exciting as the big day. Santa usually visits preceding Christmas, most of the time on horseback (to give the reindeer a break before their tiring journey on the night before Christmas..). Carol Singers can usually be heard around town, and most years there’s the opportunity for the kids (and the adults) to send a letter to Santa through his special post-box. On Main Street, the Merry Mainstreet Holiday Celebration typically goes into full swing, with its gingerbread house building competition, holiday store window displays and Santa’s light parade. For the adults there’s usually the Steamboat Santa Crawl, which is a bar-crawl sampling some of the best holiday beverages in a number of bars – the main rule is you have to commit to dressing up in something festive.
Another important factor of Christmas is obviously the need to eat yourself to the point of bursting - Bistro C.V is one of the most luxurious and prestigious restaurants in resort, and their typical taster menu on Christmas Day is likely to get your taste buds tingling. Alternatively, try the family friendly Mambo Italiano for an Italian twist. Of course, whatever you choose, make sure you call ahead and book well in advance due to this being one of the peak dates in the year.
During the festive season, temperatures can be pretty darn chilly so make sure you wrap up warm. This doesn’t mean you won’t typically find some absolutely cracking snow – prior seasons have seen some monster snowfalls in the month of December, so be prepared for some silky smooth skiing through powder.
Christmas snow and skiing conditions in Steamboat
Christmas Snow History
Top alt:3224m
Average snow depth
Christmas110cm
Bottom alt:2103m
Average snow depth
Christmas92cm
Resort alt:2052m
Christmas ski rating