Steamboat Springs Transportation

Steamboat has a free bus system. Bus stops are located all around the mountain and downtown. At the stops there are posted schedules for the different lines. (ie blue, red, orange) It's an easy way to get around, allows you to have a few drinks downtown and then ride the bus back to condo/hotel. It can get a bit crowded when the mountain is closing and people are going downtown from skiing. (between 4-6pm) but hey....it's free.

Also, Alpine Taxi is available. They pick up single passengers or groups, are timely and a group of great people.

Most condos or hotels have shuttle service from the airport to your place of stay. Alpine Taxi also has services available from airport (about 25 minutes out of town) to town.

Remember....tip your shuttle driver or your taxi driver!! A tourist town is very expensive to live in, and these professions don't get paid a very large base pay, so they depend upon their tips for pay.

Most of the day and some of the night they have free shuttle busses to cruise you around. Of course you might wait like we did for 45 min out in the snow at 9pm for one to show up. But it was free and we didnt have to drink n drive, so I guess its ok. Its kinda a nice courtesy to the town.

No need to drive in Steamboat - if you're not used to driving in snow (it can be treacherous) or if you're drinking AT ALL - Steamboat is very DUI conscious. The SST - Steamboat Springs Transit - is FREE, leaves about every 30 minutes from downtown to the ski mountain, all around condo-land, past both the grocery stores, into Ski Time Square, to Gondola Square, almost anywhere you want to go, starting very early in the morning and running until around 11pm on the 30-minute schedule and then every hour until 1am-ish or so. It can be crowded, so be prepared. The buses have holders outside for your skis.

If you're feeling really lazy, Alpine Taxi runs 24-hours per day and is relatively inexpensive. Just call 879-TAXI.

I got to Steam boat Springs from Estes Park and I got there by going thru the Rocky Mountains. I got very lucky because the road was open and it had not started snowing yet therefore it made our drive alttle shorter. You do have to pay a small fee to enter the Rocky Mountain National Park but save your receipt because you can use the same receipt for about a week without having to pay again.
When the road is shut down you would have to go around the Rock Mountains and your drive will be much longer.
As you are going up through thr mountains you might see different wild life. We drove slow so that we could see the elk, big horned sheep and other animals. we also drove slowly in case one of these animals just happened to walk onto the road.
You can also pull over and do little hikes.

Park at your condo or hotel when you get to Steamboat , we already have too many cars and most of you folks really shouldn't drive around in the snow and ice(well, maybe you don't drink)but you can get a lot closer to most places with the bus. BESIDES IT'S FREE and goes everywhere! chances are if you drive your car to go skiing you will have to take a shuttle bus to the ski area from the remote lots anyway.

157 miles Northwest of Denver, an easy 3 hour drive. Take I 70 west through the Eisenhower Tunnel to Silverthorn, Exit 205 (67 miles). Take CO 9 North to Kremling (37 miles), then West on US 40 to Steamboat Springs (53 miles).
While traveling on US 40 to Steamboat you cross Rabbit Ears Pass. Be careful, during wintertime slick spots and blowing snow might be a hazard.
If US 40 over Rabbit Ears Pass is closed and you’re coming from Denver or Colorado Springs. Take I 70 west (through Vail) until Exit 157. Take CO 131 North to Steamboat Springs (75 miles), then left on US 40 to town (4 miles).

Getting to Steamboat isn't all that easy. It was a long enough drive just to Colorado from Texas then making our way through the mountains slowed us a lot. The nearest major airport is in Denver, about a 3 hour drive from Steamboat Springs.

There are basically two airport choices for those who must fly to reach Steamboat Springs: Hayden Regional Airport (HDN) and Denver International Airport (DIA). I flew into Hayden Airport on American Airlines...

Hayden:
Hayden is about 20-25 minutes from Steamboat Springs and is serviced by American, Continental, Northwest & United Airlines. Many of these airlines only offer 'seasonal' service during the winter months for the ski season. Although Hayden is one of those 'small' airports with only three gates, large jets (Boeing 737s & 757s) are used by many of the airlines. I flew in on a 757 from Dallas and out on a 737 to Chicago. United Airlines seem to be the only airline flying smaller commuter jets into Hayden, probably from their hub at DIA.

Denver:
My friend, Action Jimmy, drove up from Denver (which is serviced by all major and some minor airlines) and it took him 5 hours to get there and 3 hours to get back, weather being the difference.

Ground Transportation:
If you are not renting a car, ground transportation can be arranged through Alpine Taxi from either airport (HDN or DIA). Contact Alpine Taxi at (http://www.alpinetaxi.com/ or 1-800-343-7433) for reservations.
Alpine Taxi seems to be the only taxi service in Steamboat; however, there is a free shuttle service (Steamboat Springs Transit or SST) that hits all the major stops at the ski mountain, various condos and downtown Steamboat Springs. The buses run about every twenty minutes and the drivers are excellent sources of general information as well as where to go or what to do.