Whether you’re a snow bunny or like to soak up the sun, your Breckenridge vacation rental puts you in the hub of kid-friendly family activities for winter and summer. The Breckenridge Ski Resort makes the town a popular destination for skiers, and it attracts active families in the summer with its hiking and mountain biking trails, alpine slides, and fly-fishing. The shops and restaurants up and down Main Street feature log exteriors that add to the quaint atmosphere of the charming little town. Zip lining, rock climbing, panning for gold, and four wheeling offer plenty of adventure for the kids during the summertime, especially. If sightseeing is your passion, check out the view from the back of a horse or from a hot air balloon to gain vastly different perspectives. To help you create your Breckenridge bucket list, here’s a list of the nine best things to do with kids.
1. Try Zip Lining
Breck Summer Fun Park features three levels of zipline adventures to serve the kids, teens, and adults in your family. The Little Flyer Zipline is for your younger kiddies who weigh from 30 to 100 pounds, while Breck Flyer Zipline riders must weigh from 55 to 275 pounds. Expedition Zipline Tour riders must be at least 10 years old and weigh at least 70 pounds. Staff members fit each flyer with a harness and explain the safety rules and give general instructions. As you zip along, look for wildlife on the forest floor, including deer, marmots, and pika.
2. Enjoy a Sleigh Ride or a Horseback Ride
Your winter vacation makes an ideal time to take the kids on a Breckenridge Stables sleigh ride in a custom-built sleigh, pulled through a wonderland of snow by beautiful Belgian or Percheron draft horses. Your family sits in the sleigh, snuggled down in cozy blankets, listening to the sleigh bells as the sleigh glides smoothly along the snowy trail. In summer months, Breckenridge Stables offers horseback riding for all ages and skill levels. One of their guided tours includes exploring the Ten Mile Range in the Rocky Mountains above Breckenridge.
3. Soar Above the Trees in a Hot Air Balloon
It’s time to take your vacation adventures to new heights with Colorado Balloon Rides, which launches just an hour from Breckenridge in South Park Valley. Guests may meet the company representative in Breckenridge and take the complimentary transportation to the launch area, or drive to the valley and meet at there. South Park Valley sits about 9,000 feet above sea level in Colorado’s geographic center, giving you ideal territory for spectacular scenery and views of native wildlife from above.
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4. Hit the Hiking Trails
Among the many hiking trails around Breckenridge, some of the best one for kids feature round-trip distances that range from less than two miles to just over five miles each. Sapphire Point is about 1.5 miles and is an easy hiking trail for small children that features great views of Lake Dillon and the surrounding forests. The trailhead is about 8 miles from the center of town. The 2.5-mile Blue Lakes-Monte Cristo Gulch trail takes you through some historic mine relics and alpine lakes above the tree line. Mohawk Lakes trail features lakes and historic mine ruins and is a 5.5-mile hike out and back.
5. Cruise About on Four Wheelers
A four wheeler gives you access to all the roads, back-roads, trails, and even off-road recreation areas in and around Breckenridge. In the winter, you can use four-wheelers to get around instead of taking your car out in the snow. In the summer, the historic roads developed by 19th-century gold miners come alive with wildflowers and wildlife, and four-wheeling lets you enjoy the beauty of the area at your own pace. Stay on the 16-mile Georgia Pass Trail or the 25-mile Apex/Kingston Peak Trail, taking side-trips for off-road adventures. If you want guided tours, those are available by the hour, half-days, full-days, and even overnight.
6. Zoom Along the Alpine SuperSlide
Kids ages seven and older ride the Alpine SuperSlide alone, but ages three to six must ride with an adult. There are three one-quarter-mile, fiberglass and plexiglass tracks. The sled car includes a handbrake, and flies down the track, propelled by gravity, twisting and turning for an adrenaline-pumping three-minute ride. When you reach the bottom, you’re ready to go again. To start, you get to enjoy a 10-minute chairlift ride to the face of Peak Eight, where you choose your track.
7. Visit Country Boy Mine
Breckenridge is gold country, and you can give your kids the thrill of a lifetime by touring the Country Boy Mine to learn about the gold mining operation and pan for real gold. Your visit includes a gold pan to use, panning instructions and assistance, petting the burros, exploring the mine site, shooting the chute, and visiting the general store. Whatever you find is yours to keep, whether it is real gold or fool’s gold the mining guides help you determine the difference. You may pan for an hour or an afternoon, according to your own wishes. In the olden days, the miners sent ore down the big chute; now, the kids get to slide down the 55-foot chute-slide as many times as they choose.
8. Scale the Climbing Wall
If you have older kids, Epic Discovery’s Gold Summit Climbing Wall features 16 routes that allow all skill levels from beginners to advanced climbers to scramble to the top. Climbers who weigh from 45 to 240 pounds challenge their abilities on this 40-foot tall rock-climbing wall that measures 38 feet at the base. All climbers use the TRUEBLUE Auto Belay for ascending and descending. Novice and beginning climbers often prefer the 35-foot Silver Summit Climbing wall. Climbers explore the nooks and crannies of the wall while safely strapped into a climbing harness, making this attraction accessible and fun for all ages and abilities.
9. Paddle Kayaks on the Lake or River
For an exhilarating guided kayak excursion, Adventure Paddle Tours Colorado offers several tour packages. You can choose a one-and-a-half hour family tour on Dillon Reservoir or a four-day camping tour on Blue Mesa Reservoir outside of Gunnison. The company provides kayaks, paddles, a 15-minute paddle lesson, and safety instructions. Dillon Reservoir includes a 26-mile shoreline along with several islands and coves. It is possible to see beavers, moose, deer, and various birds during your guided tour.
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