Dog-Friendly Vail
Alice at the Children’s Fountain in Vail Village
Vail is my favorite mountain town in the world. Growing up, we spent a week in Vail every summer, and some of my fondest and clearest childhood memories are from these vacations. Vail Village is beautiful, in an Alpine style that I just adore. The town is very walkable and dog-friendly with a lot of outdoor seating at restaurants, and there are so many great hiking trails nearby. At only about a two-hour drive from Denver, Vail is a great location for a weekend trip! You’ll definitely want to book accommodations early, as dog-friendly hotels/rentals tend to go quickly. Vail is a bit pricy too - but it isn’t bad coming from New York City.
Restaurants generally don’t allow dogs inside, but there are plenty of options for outdoor dining with your pup (though a few restaurants do not even allow dogs in outdoor areas, which is so strange for Colorado). For this reason, and the hiking opportunities, I would only bring a dog to Vail in the summer. It snows very late in the spring in Colorado, so even May is pretty dicey. I’d stick to June through August, or mid-to-late September to see the leaves change!
Stops Along the Way
If you’re driving to Vail from Denver, I suggest stopping at one of these places on the way to hike or walk. I do at least one of these every time I’m visiting my family in Colorado.
This is probably my favorite place in Colorado - maybe the world! The trailhead is a bit north of I-70, maybe a 15-20 minute drive off the highway. There are two parking lots, and you have to pay cash (exact change, I think it’s $5) to park. The trail is short, but it’s steep and rocky! It’s about 3/4 of a mile to get up to the lake, and you can hike further around the water and up to the actual glacier from there. So the round-trip mileage is 1.5-2 miles, depending on how far you go. My favorite view is from the glacier (which is there year-round) looking over the lake to the mountains beyond. I’ve also climbed to the top of the glacier and camped above it.
This huge reservoir in Dillon has a walking trail around much of the water with stunning views. You can also rent a pontoon boat and spend an afternoon on the water! Lake Dillon is right along I-70, so a very easy stop to make. (Note: for some silly reason, Dillon Dam Brewery does NOT allow dogs - inside or outside!)
The trailhead to Lily Pad Lake is in Silverthorne, just across I-70 from Dillon. This is one of my favorite hikes, which leads to a small lake covered in lily pads and a larger lake with beautiful views. The trail is mostly shady with lots of aspens and a creek for doggos to play in. It’s about a three mile out-and-back hike with little elevation gain. The most strenuous part of this hike is at the trailhead when you walk up a steep dirt path to a meadow with an unbelievable view of Lake Dillon. If you search “Lily Pad Lake Trailhead” on Google Maps, it will not take you to the correct place. Use the link above, or search for “Stephanie’s Way, Silverthorne”. The trailhead is right next to the Stephanie’s Way/Ryan Gulch Rd intersection. There is limited street parking, so choose your time/day wisely!
Where to Stay
I recommend staying in, or extremely close to, Vail Village. It’s so beautiful, and you can easily walk to anything you need. Alice, my mom, and I stayed at a darling VRBO in June that was reasonably priced and included parking (and the owner was extremely friendly and kind)! However, it can be pretty expensive to be in the village. The good news is, the Vail Village parking garage is free in the summer! So if you do find accommodations further away, driving in isn’t too much of a hassle.
When we returned in September, we stayed in West Vail at the Grand Hyatt - formerly known as The Cascade. It’s about a thirty minute walk from Vail Village (there’s a trail that follows Gore Creek that’s very nice) or a five-minute drive. Our room had an east-facing balcony that looked over Gore Creek (you could hear the water babbling) and the very colorful fall foliage on the mountain. There’s a pool, restaurants, and a coffee shop & convenience store on site. It was really nice, but also not cheap… but very dog-friendly!
Where to Eat
We spent a weekend in Vail in June 2020, so I’m not sure how COVID may have changed the amount of outdoor seating at restaurants. I certainly remember many places with outdoor seating in Vail as a kid, but there are also a lot of restaurants we frequented that did not have outdoor seating. During our stay, the village was emptier than I have ever seen it. Restaurants had only been allowed to open a week or two earlier, so the town was still adjusting. Though eerie at times to see Vail so abandoned, we appreciated how easily we could find a table outside! This isn’t usually the case, so make reservations when you can! When we returned in September, things were much more lively (but still plenty of outdoor seating, even as the nights were getting much colder).
It’s also important to note that in the mountains, once the sun is down, it can get pretty chilly - even in the summer! So bring layers or eat a little earlier, while it’s still warm out.
This is a Geist Family staple. It’s usually the first place we eat whenever we arrive in Vail! Up the Creek is right next to Gore Creek, and has several outdoor tables for doggos to enjoy with their humans. When we were kids, my brother and I would try to cross the creek while my parents watched from their table. (PSA: this is only safe at the end of summer, NOT early summer when the snowmelt causes the water to be super high and fast!) Up the Creek has good, straightforward American food, and they do fill up quickly! The restaurant only takes reservations for parties greater than six.
Jill and I had the most magnificent, rich, mouth-watering Italian food here! I had the truffle gnocchi and she had the veal over fettuccine. We also had a bottle of the Berne rosé which was just as incredible. This cute restaurant has quite a bit of outdoor space, and we started on their patio… but as it became quite chilly, they allowed us to bring Alice inside to a corner table next to the door. They do take reservations on Open Table!
This Mexican restaurant is directly above Up the Creek! We’ve seen this space go through many phases over the years, but I am so glad El Segundo is here now. The nachos, the tacos, the salsa, the margaritas - everything is delicious! They have a large, L-shaped deck with a ton of seating that is dog-friendly, and it’s a great place to watch the sunset. El Segundo also takes reservations through Open Table - and I would definitely take advantage! Even though we were there on an extremely quiet weekend, every table was occupied.
Two Arrows is a really cute coffee shop that turns into a bar later in the day. I stopped in twice to get a chai latte and they had no problem with Alice accompanying me. They also have breakfast items in the morning.
This place perfectly matches the Sonenalp across the street. Alpenrose is a fun, German-Austrian restaurant with a dog-friendly patio.
I haven’t been here, but my mom loves it. Their patio allows dogs!
What to Do
Explore around Town
As mentioned before, Vail is a beautiful mountain town and I love to wander around Vail Village. There are plenty of shops that allow dogs. Vail also has a lot of art galleries and sculptures throughout the village. Be sure to check out the covered bridge, the Children’s Fountain, Betty Ford Gardens, and Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. My favorite view from Vail Village is looking East from the Einstein Statue (seen below).
You’ll definitely want to walk or bike along Gore Creek - the creek running through the middle of town. You can also walk along it to Lionshead (another part of Vail, not far from the village), which has been completely redone over the last several years and is beautiful! Lionshead has plenty of restaurants and hotels as well.
Vail is small, and you can easily explore it in a day. Some other nearby mountain towns you might want to check out are Beaver Creek and Avon!
Hiking
Booth Falls is an amazing 4-ish-mile out-and-back trail that takes you up to a very impressive waterfall! Alice, Jill, and I were there at peak snowmelt time, so the power and speed of the water was almost overwhelming. Highly recommend this hike! It certainly has some steep and strenuous parts, but I would describe it as moderate difficulty overall. And all the VIEWS - so worth it! The trailhead is only about a ten-minute drive from Vail Village. There’s a very small parking lot at the trailhead, but another overflow lot just off the I-70 frontage road.
Strawberry Lane is a must! This trail winds up Vail mountain, passing underneath the gondolas and over the ski runs, through plenty of aspen forests. You’ll have beautiful views of Vail Village and the surrounding Vail Valley peaks. If you’re there in September, or maybe early October (depending on first snowfall), the golden aspens are to die for! This is a relatively easy hike, not too steep, but be aware of the altitude (as is true for any hike when you’ve just arrived in Colorado). This short out-and-back trail also connects with Cabin Trail and Berry Picker Trail, which can take you further up to the peak. The trailhead is about a two-minute walk from Vail Village, directly underneath the gondolas.
Cougar Ridge Trail, in nearby Minturn, also takes you to Lionshead Rock… but unfortunately, that section of the trail was closed when we were there! So we stayed on Cougar Ridge Trail the entire time, which had amazing fall colors in late-September! We only did about 1.5 miles up, then turned around, but it continues much farther. Cougar Ridge Trail runs along a creek, which Alice enjoyed jumping in and out of several times. Make sure you stop by the nearby Minturn Saloon (the trailhead is super close to town) for a drink or snack afterward - the large, nice patio is dog-friendly and backs up to Eagle River!
There are plenty of other trails nearby - I usually consult AllTrails to find what I’m looking for. When I was much younger, we would do short family hikes around Vail in the summer, but I don’t remember what their names were or have any pictures of them! But it is impossible to go on a hike in Colorado and not have beautiful views, especially in Vail Valley!