Weekend Getaway: The Ranahan by Welk is Steps from Denver but a World Away
The most romantic time of the year is quickly approaching. With Valentine’s Day on a Monday this year, planning a
Ivy Griffith
The most romantic time of the year is quickly approaching. With Valentine’s Day on a Monday this year, planning a trip around the lover’s holiday can be tricky. However, with Weekend Getaway we’re examining best-of-the-best accommodations that you can spend a week at – or just escape to for the weekend, if you’re short on time. Just a short drive from Denver – and the airport, if you’re flying in – The Ranahan, Breckenridge, by Welk Resorts is the perfect close-enough but far-enough weekend getaway in Colorado.
The Ranahan’s Rooms
The first thing people are concerned with when booking a vacation, aside from location, is rooms: what am I going to be looking at when I lay my head down at night after a long day on the ski slopes? The good news is – The Ranahan? It’s gorgeous.
The brand-new destination is a combination of modern and rustic, with the exterior evoking a log cabin – albeit a gigantic lob cabin – or a lodge. Rooms come in 1- and 2-bedroom options. The 1-bedrooms are designed with sleek modern lines, dark woods, and a cream-and-white palette with thoughtful rustic touches throughout. The 1-bedrooms include a kitchenette and spa-like bathroom, with a private patio, modest dining area and your very own fireplace.
The 2-bedrooms offer a spacious 1,240sqft of room with a full-sized kitchen, a dining table on your private patio, a full-sized lounge and indoor dining area and fireplaces in each bedroom and the living room.
Each room has luxury features like granite countertops and oversized tubs, perfect for relaxing after whatever you’ve planned for your day.
A Resort with Something for Everyone
But you don’t come to a ski resort solely for the rooms – or maybe you do, we don’t judge – so what else can you find at Ranahan? Here’s a rundown of what you’ll be able to enjoy while at your Breckenridge hideaway:
- Water: While a pool might not be the first thing that comes to your mind when you picture a ski resort, The Ranahan will surprise you. With several pools, a play area and splash pad for the kids, and an indoor water slide – it’s the perfect place for some splashing fun. Ranahan also offers a spa experience for unwinding and a hot tub, of course!
- Ski/Bike Valet: If you’re ready to hit the slopes, the Resort will take you straight there. And just behind The Ranahan are a number of fishing spots that will soothe your outdoorsy soul.
- Shuttle: The Resort will bring you right to whatever activity you have in mind. Whether your eyes are trained up the mountain on adventures above, or you’re thinking of hitting the Village to ride the Gondola, Ranahan makes it easy to get where you’re going.
- Blue River Lobby Bar & Lounge: Ranahan invites guests to, “eat, drink and be merry” at the Blue River. This premiere dining destination offers two daily happy hours along with daily activities and bar games.
As Breckenridge’s newest resort, The Ranahan will be a part of shaping the region’s future. With a steadfast dedication to the past mixed with all of the luxury and amenities of 2022, Ranahan promises great things for guests and the Breckenridge vibe alike. Nestled among the mountains surrounding Denver, with the majesty of the Rockies as far as the eye can see, and all the amenities of the world’s finest ski resorts, Ranahan is exactly the weekend getaway an outdoor lover might dream of. To plan and book your stay at this four-star resort, visit the website.
Breckenridge – From Hunting Grounds to Luxury Lodges
The area that is now called Breckenridge has long been the hunting grounds of the nomadic White River and Middle Park Ute Native American tribes. By the mid-to-early 1800’s, white trappers had found the region and moved in, but an official settlement wasn’t established until 1859, when the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush was in full swing.
Breckenridge was a hive of activity as gold was found in the region, and the settlement grew quickly. Within a year of being established, the town was already home to around 100 settlers. Through the rest of the 1800’s, the town called Breckenridge continued to grow – by the 1900’s, the population was well over 1,000. Breckenridge kind of tells the story of the United States’ Wild West era, with saloons, brothels, and even a famous hotel hold-up.
In 1898, Pug Ryan and his gang held up the Breckenridge Denver Hotel, and that same year record snowfall blanketed the down for nearly 80 days and forced the residents to move through the city in snow tunnels.
By 1900, electricity and phones had moved into Breckenridge. However, dredging dried up by the advent of World War II and the population dropped to under 400 by 1960.
In 1961, the first ski slope was opened – and from there, the city began to regain life. For the next thirty years, more slopes opened and the population began to climb again – to around 3,000 by 1999.
Over the past 23 years, more resorts and slopes have opened, bringing the Gold Rush city back to life. As close as it is to Denver, Breckenridge is the perfect lodge atmosphere village for your quick outdoorsy getaway but you won’t spent hours winding through the mountains to get where you’re going. It’s the perfect mix of close enough for convenience but far enough away to not feel the spectre of modern civilization over your shoulder.
At Breckenridge, nowhere is more up-to-date than the village’s newest resort, so if it’s luxury you seek in the heart of the Rockies wilderness, you’ll want to stay at The Ranahan.