Aspen Area Hotels at the Base of the Slopes and the Peak of Design

Sky in Aspen and the Viceroy in Snowmass display high style

Just 24 hours in the Aspen area gave the the opportunity to stay at the  super-cool Sky Hotel at the base of Aspen Mountain and attend a reception at another, newer Viceroy Hotel at the base of Snowmass. I'd been to events and had drinks at the Sky before but never stayed there, and I had a hardhat tour of the Viceroy last summer and popped in quickly to look at the lobby last December but never spent any time there. Both of these hotels abound with imaginative design and high style.

Sky Hotel

The Sky Hotel at the foot of Aspen Mountain is famous around town 39 Degrees, its swank, sophisticated lounge, great cocktails, light bites and desserts, huge fireplace and comfy couches and chairs, making it a popular après-ski spot. It's quieter in the summer (at least at the beginning of the summer season), and I didn't have time to linger in the lounge or the adjacent patio. Instead, I checked in for one night and headed straight for my third-floor room before I had to zip out again for a meeting.

The mattress was comfortable, the pillows abundant and the bed linens smooth.

Nice work area with well-lit desk, plenty of outlets, a comfortable swivel chair and a retro ski-fashion poster to gaze at.

Nothing unusual about the small bathroom's standard layout -- tub/shower on one wall, sink and vanity on the other and toilet between them opposite from the door. But quality amenities, more good lighting and soft towels are really what count.

Plush animal-print bathrobes and slippers (complete with price tag to underscore that they are available for purchase) are part of the Sky Hotel's cool factor.

Instead of a mini-bar, there's clear drawer to tempt guests with snacks. I wasn't tempted, because I was heading for a that cocktail reception at the Viceroy. And then, I checked out the next morning.

Viceroy Hotel

When I was in the Aspen area last summer, I was given a hardhat tour of the Viceroy Hotel in Snowmass' new Base Village development. The hotel was to be completed in time for the 2009-10 ski season. And it was. Without a camera, I nevertheless took a quick look at the lobby in December.

A group meeting in Aspen last week held a cocktail reception at this new hotel that has set a new standard for Snowmass Village. In winter, its location at the bottom of the Snowmass ski runs makes it a busy place. On a weeknight before Memorial Day weekend, our group had the place virtually to ourselves for a terrific cocktail party with great drinks, bubbly, wine and beer and first-rate hors d'oeuvres. It was crowded and excessively noisy, as these events inevitably are, so I took only few pictures when I could grab a clear shot of something.

Don't let the one person sitting on a banquette near the front entrance give you the impression that it was uncrowded or quiet in the adjacent spaces. The back wall is a line of aspen trunks upon which the initials of the organization partying there were projected.

Well-stocked and well-lit back bar. The front bar starts in the lobby and continues into the lounge, an interesting, seamless design.

The glass-walled wine storage unit serves as a room divider.

The catering staff put on a splendid spread, but I arrived too late to shoot most of the food before it got picked over and was no longer pretty. It was very food, however, with small pizzas, salads, Mexican items, sushi, a carving station and more -- something for everyone.Below is a cheese selection, and below that is the dessert table.

With a sampling like this, I hope to get back to the Viceroy and get a feel for what it's really like when there are overnight guests and no big private party occupying the lobby level. From the website's home page, click on "Photo Gallery" for the hotel's fine images of its public spaces and accommodations.