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From Jackson, WY to Vail, CO

From Jackson, WY to Vail, CO

Jamey Smith |

Denver International Airport

If you're flying United into Denver and have a decent layover until the flight out to Jackson, there are a couple of good restaurants / bars in the B concourse at Denver:

  1. Elways
  2. New Belgium Brewing
  3. Snooze AM (for breakfast)
  4. Mizu Sushi Izakaya
  5. El Chingon (for Mexican)
  6. VooDoo Donuts (if you love donuts). 

Jackson Hole

The ski resort itself is actually the part called “Jackson Hole”, and is about 20 minutes outside of town. There are a couple of restaurants / bars up there.  The area at the base is small enough to walk around and see if anything strikes you.  They have everything from a mountain bar with live music (The Mangy Moose) to several upscale restaurants. 

The Town of Jackson

This is the list of our favorite spots in town, but there are some we also simply never made it to.

Before we get into restaurants and bars, the drive around the base of the Teton's is of course a must to see as is the National Elk Refuge Observatory (this one is hit or miss depending on how far away the elk happen to be that day).  There are a few grills along the Teton drive, but they are usually very busy - Jedediah's, Spur Bar, Trapper Grill and John Colter's Ranch House.  Unless you're really hungry, there are better spots in town. 

  • The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar is definitely worth a stop – it is fun to see during the day and has great night life.  (Google)
  • The Silver Dollar Bar and Grill in the Wort Hotel is another iconic cool spot that is fun doing the day and usually has decent night life. (Google)
  • The Roadhouse Pub has a great people watching balcony, and the food – depending on what you get, is pretty good.  I wouldn’t necessarily go here for the food – just the balcony.(Google)
  • The Bunnery has great breakfast. (Google)
  • We had a great margarita at KALU.(Google)
  • Orsetto is great Italian with a cool vibe and a great wine selection. (Google)
  • Bin22 is a fun little wine bar. (Google)
  • Snake River Brewing is a cool brewery with good bar food on the healthier side and great places to sit outside and in. (Google)
  • Eleanors Still (Eleanors Again) is a great little sports bar if you're looking to catch a game. (Google)
  • The Bird has good bar food with a a cool ambiance and a great back deck, but is a bit out of town to the south.(Google)

The drive between Jackson and Vail

You have two options.  One is about 7.5 hours, mostly flat driving through high desert, the other is about 8.5 hours and takes you through more mountainous terrain.  You’ll see both routes when you Google the “Jackson to Vail” directions.  There are a couple cool spots along each route, but as you know, every stop will add more time. 

Route 1

Through Pinedale, WY to Baggs, WY, to Oak Creek, CO… etc.  This drive doesn’t really get pretty until around Craig/Hayden, CO. 
The only real spot to stop on this route is Pinedale.  Pinedale is the typical Wyoming town in the middle of nowhere that has amenities for all the ranching, farming and hunting in the area. 

    Route 2

    Tthough Lander, Rawlins, Saratoga, Walden, etc.  This drive is mostly pretty with a bit of it being high desert in the middle.  However, it is longer (and much longer if you stop at places).
    Lander is a beautiful town with great restaurants and bars and coffee shops.  Lander used to be a small Podunk town that then got discovered and gentrified. 
    Saratoga is a great town that we have started to go to annually.  It is an extremely small town with a ton of surrounding money from oil and gas and ranching.  That gives it quite a few amazing restaurants and bars.  It also has one of the busiest small private airports in the country. 
    The rest of the drive from Saratoga to Vail will take you through a few other old small towns – namely Walden and Kremmling.  They both have one or two small bar/restaurant places that are fun and the typical old tavern. 
    .

    If you ask me which route I would take… well… I’ve seen it all so I would just get Vail as fast as I could.  However, if I had the time and was willing to make it a ten+ hour day, I guess I would take the more scenic route.  Both routes will show you some pretty country and also a lot of not so pretty country in southern Wyoming. 

    Vail

    Vail is broken into two areas – Vail Village, which is the side you are staying in, and Lionshead which is the western side of Vail.  You can walk between the two or take a bus between the two.  There are so many places to choose from, so I am just going to highlight our favorites.  One thing to note is that we almost always sit at a bar if we can.  Some exceptions are the view or sitting next to a river, etc. 

    Vail Village:

    Lionshead:

    This is where you would catch the other gondola up the mountain for different views of the area from The Eagle's Nest.

    • Garfinkel's is an iconic Vail spot that has been here forever.  It has a base mountain ski lodge meets sports bar feel.  Drinks are good.  Food is upscale bar food.  The view of the mountain can’t be beat.  They have a huge deck facing the mountain. (Google)
    • Bart and Yeti’s is another iconic spot that has been here forever and is always worth stopping in for the local vibe, ambiance and drinks. (Google)
    • Montauk Seafood Grill has great seafood. (Google)
    • The Little Diner has great breakfast. (Google)

    There is absolutely plenty to do and see in Vail and it is definitely the best place to be.  However, if you feel like venturing out of Vail… about 15 minutes down the road to the west is Avon and another 16 minutes up the mountain from Avon is Beaver Creek.

    Avon

    Beaver Creek

    If you feel like seeing Beaver Creek, it is just up the hill from Avon.  Here are some suggestions up there.

     

     

     

     

     
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