The Best Lodging Outside the Park

Allenspark Lodge Bed & Breakfast (Allenspark, 16 miles south of Estes Park; tel. 303/747-2552): This handsome historic property offers the perfect ambience for a visit to Rocky Mountain National Park. Built in 1933 of hand-hewn ponderosa pine logs, the lodge includes a large native stone fireplace, handmade 1930s pine furniture, and beautiful mountain views.

Aspen Lodge at Estes Park (Estes Park; tel. 800/332-6867): Although not actually inside the national park, this huge log cabin certainly captures the park's atmosphere, and most rooms and cabins have a splendid view of Longs Peak. Trails from the resort's 82 acres lead directly into the park.

Baldpate Inn (Estes Park; tel. 866/577-5397): This small inn is open only in summer and most rooms share bathrooms, but it has personality galore. There are handmade quilts, early-20th-century furnishings, and a large stone fireplace in the living room. It also offers an excellent soup-and-salad buffet dinner.

Grand Lake Lodge (Grand Lake; tel. 970/627-3967): If you came to Rocky Mountain National Park for the scenery, this is the perfect place to stay. The lodge bills itself as Colorado's "favorite front porch," and with views of Grand Lake and a backdrop of spectacular mountains, we can't argue with that assessment.

Daven Haven Lodge (Grand Lake; tel. 970/627-8144): As they say in the real estate business: location, location, location. This group of modern cabins is set among pine trees, about a mile from the lake, in a setting so peaceful and serene you may want to stay forever. But actually, one of our favorite aspects of the lodge is in the lobby -- a wondrous collection of antique jukeboxes.