Plan your Keystone trip
Getting here, the altitude, our hours, lift tickets, the free buses and the weather. Four decades of answering these questions at the counter, written down.
Ten minutes off I-70, at the entrance to Keystone
We're at 23110 US Highway 6, Suite 110, in Gateway Plaza — the first shop you reach coming into Keystone on Highway 6 from Dillon and I-70. About 75 minutes from Denver International Airport when the road is clear, and roughly ten minutes off I-70 at exit 205.
Park at the door and keep the spot all day. It's the practical reason to rent here rather than at the resort: you're not paying for village parking or hauling boots across a car park at 7am.
In winter, check CDOT before you drive over Loveland Pass or through the Eisenhower Tunnel. I-70 westbound on a Friday evening and eastbound on a Sunday afternoon is a known quantity — leave earlier than you want to.
Free buses stop out front
Keystone Resort runs a free shuttle through the valley, and the countywide Summit Stage is free as well. Both stop in front of the plaza on Highway 6.
That means you can leave the car with us, ride to the Mountain House or River Run base, ski all day, and collect it on the way back. It also connects Keystone to Dillon, Silverthorne, Frisco, Breckenridge and Copper — so a car-free week here is genuinely workable.
Riding a different mountain each day?
Keep the same rental. Plenty of guests pick up here and ski Keystone, then A-Basin, then Breckenridge on one multi-day reservation — the rate drops the longer you keep it.
Google always has our live hours
We keep it current, so check there if you're arriving late or in a shoulder season. These are the seasonal patterns.
Winter · from Thanksgiving
Sun–Thu 8am – 7pm
Fri & Sat 8am – 8pm
Fri and Sat run to 8pm on night-ski days, 7pm if there's no night skiing. From late March to closing day, 8am–6pm.
Summer · Memorial Day to Labor Day
Daily 8am – 5pm
Vail Pass shuttles depart 9am and 11am. The 5pm close is why the last pickup window is firm.
Spring & autumn shoulder
Please call
Opening and closing dates move with the snow. (970) 468-0396. Mid-April is when we sell off demo skis and boards — worth a call if you want high-end used gear cheap.
9,400 feet: what to actually expect
Keystone sits at 9,400 feet, with roads nearby climbing toward 12,000. There is about 66% of the oxygen you get at sea level. Most visitors adjust within a couple of days; some take weeks. If your trip is four days long, you may simply not acclimatise — so plan around it rather than hoping.
Symptoms worth knowing: headache, nausea, poor sleep, no appetite, fatigue, a fast pulse and shortness of breath.
- Drink far more water than feels necessaryThe air is dry as well as thin. Replacing electrolytes helps more than plain water alone.
- Take the first day easyA half day of skiing on arrival day beats a full one followed by a lost second day.
- Go light on the alcoholOne drink at 9,000 feet does roughly what two do at sea level. Most people learn this the hard way.
Lift tickets & weather
We don't sell lift tickets. Vail Resorts — Keystone, Breckenridge, A-Basin, Vail and Beaver Creek — offers the deepest discounts through snow.com, but only if you buy well ahead of time. Walk-up window prices are the most expensive way to ski Colorado.
For weather, we're honestly not forecasters. Summit Daily, snow.com and NOAA are what we check ourselves — our zip code is 80435.
Summer afternoons
July and August bring near-daily afternoon thunderstorms. Locals are off the high ground by 1pm, which is exactly why the shuttle departs at 9am and 11am rather than after lunch.
And who does rent it
Telemark & cross-country
Wilderness Sports in Dillon rents telemark skis and boots. The Keystone Nordic Center has cross-country and snowshoe gear.
Downhill park bikes
Our bikes aren't permitted in the Keystone Bike Park. Norski Sports rents for the park — code MVS20 saves you 20%.
Goggles, gloves & gaiters
For sale, not for rent, all year round and at fair prices. Waterproof jackets and pants we do rent.
Snowshoes
These we do have — first come, first served, no reservation needed.