Find Your Colorado Budget Ski Vacation

What's the best way to find a budget ski vacation to Colorado? There are plenty of travel agents and ski package deal websites dangling their promos out in front of you. Is that package really the best deal for you? If you have the time and determination, you will find that great Colorado ski vacation-it might be a package or it might be your own invention.

Survey the Ski Vacation Packages
Search online for special deals and packages to ski areas you want to visit. There are tons of websites promoting Colorado ski vacation packages. In fact, a fellow Associated Content writer, Trudy Chavez has a list of them at this link. Review the deals and choose a few to analyze. Look at the details. Some packages are for hotel and ski lift tickets only. Others include airfare. Make a detailed list of what is included and what you still need to research.

Research
This is the time-consuming part. You need to look at each piece of the puzzle. For instance, if you are looking at a hotel/lift ticket package deal, it's not enough to determine the regular prices of a room or lift tickets and compare. You need to get the best prices for the individual pieces of your package as well as the best package prices. Search and save. As you do your research, you will get a feel for the prices and will be better able to make a final decision.

Compare & Choose
Once you have completed your research, you will need to check if the best individual deals you found can be combined to beat the package deal. Try several different combinations. The goal is to determine the cheapest deal you can create. If it's cheaper than the package, you just made your own budget ski vacation deal. If it's not, you still know that you found a winner. Either way, it's extra cash in your pocket.

Additional Tips for Saving Money on Ski Trips
Don't forget to consider staying in a nearby hostel. Not only do you save on lodging, you save on food if you make use of the shared kitchen. Sometimes, the hostels have ski special deals too. Here are two hostels within range of the Colorado slopes:

Fireside Inn Bed & Breakfast and Hostel (http://www.firesideinn.com/) in Breckenridge:
Slopes are a free shuttle ride or quick walk away.
The dormitory rates range from $30-$43 per night depending on the season.

Crested Butte Int'l Lodge & Hostel (http://www.crestedbuttehostel.com/) in Crested Butte:
Free shuttle to the slopes is only a hop and a skip away.
The dormitory rates range from $30-$43 per night depending on the season $34-38.