A new look at Winter Park: Rendezvous Center offers a new-urban lifestyle five minutes from the ski slopes
If you haven’t been up to see the town of Winter Park lately, you’re going to be surprised at the new look the resort community has in the wake of the pandemic— revealed from two luxurious new-urban flats you can tour today, each of them wrapped by taverns and entertainment.
It’s been 20 years since
Denver developer Koelbel and Company launched Rendezvous, an 1,100-acre resort community perched alongside the town, ten minutes from the ski area. While builders have been busy creating new custom homes and cabin-type designs here, Koelbel has worked with city planners to re-envision Winter Park’s downtown presentation into a kind of ‘front porch for the Rockies.’
Rendezvous Center
You’ll see Hideaway Park and amphitheater, where concertgoers were back in force this past summer for music, including for the popular Winter Park Jazz
Fest. Koelbel has transformed the town’s old visitor center across from the park into Rendezvous Center—a welcoming center operated by the Chamber of Commerce, along with luxury new-urban townhomes (they’ve all sold at prices from $1.5 to $1.8 million) and those two luxury flats open today, at $1.3 million and $1.4 million.
Meanwhile, Winter Park is seeing the same rush of pandemicweary buyers that have supercharged the mountain resort markets in Aspen and Steamboat. For that audience, the town has a whole new line of taverns and dining—not just venerable places like Deno’s and Fontenot’s, but Volario’s northern Italian (it’s operated by Devil’s Thumb Ranch); two breweries (Hideaway Park and Big Trout); a wine-tasting adventure; Idlewild Spirits Distillery; and a number of other bistros.
“Visitors are experiencing a resort town where attractions are much more accessible,” says Rendezvous’ Hanna Corbin, who will show you those luxury flats, right across from a shuttle stop that provides free service up to the slopes—or back from the taverns in the wee-small hours (it takes pick-up calls until 2 a.m.).
As Winter Park earns awards for its familyfriendly demeanor, Rendezvous’ buyer traffic has been skewing toward those with kids, often comparing the lower prices here to what they see over in Eagle County, or at Steamboat or Breckenridge—areas that aren’t as accessible to Denver as this and where there’s more congestion.
These two flats, each threebedroom/three bath, reach for that exact buyer by way of premium finishes—all-bosch kitchen appliances, Tharp cabinets, vaulted ceilings, and dedicated indoor parking. Buyers have an option to join Club Rendezvous, a private après-ski club over at Winter Park resort.
And you’ll hear about singlefamily cabins and townhomes coming soon; and custom home sites starting in the $300s. Winter Park is 70 minutes from Denver; take I-70 west past Idaho Springs to U.S. 40; then head west 28 miles.
Recent buyers often have kids, and are comparing the lower prices here to what they see in Steamboat or Eagle County