Good getaway from the usual. Nottingham Park is a nice place to center outdoor, non-slopeside civic…read moreengagement -- with a library, playground, and sledding, when the temperatures cool in the winter. Compared to other activities in the area, it feels like a four-star outing, but compared to parks of the world, it is certainly five star. So, five stars in generality.

Initial impression soured my experience MINUTES upon walking through security from (several)…read moredifferent entitled young girl groups who would walk right into you if you didn't get out of their way. Lots of other people also didn't seem to care or be aware of other people's presence. The general demographic here was definitely not my scene. Though middle aged to older population seemed kind and genuine. Drink prices are to be expected but food trucks are a little overpriced. Recommend finding food and a spot to sit earlier in the evening--lines for food are crazy near and after sunset. Expect to stand in line for 15+ minutes. Concert opener and headliners were pretty good considering technical difficulties. Employees were stationed at all trash receptors to ensure trash, food and recycling were allocated into the correct bins--that was neat to see! I hadn't ever experienced that.

This is a lovely and perfectly located public space to catch a breather from village pace. Also…read moregreat for dog walking. Two paws up!

Huge playground next to the Vail Nature Center and the Betty Ford Gardens. After you walk around…read morethe trails at the nature center the kids will love the forts, slides, basketball court and the adjoining enormous lawn area. Great way to spend an hour or two with a child.

The guides that teach are unprofessional. They are constantly on their phones when they send the…read morekids off to explore, which is more like playing. They give them many of those opportunities, too. At one point, one of them was on the phone and cheering about getting something like a job. I wasn't sure. The other guide joined her and started cheering. They also encourage the kids to use the bathroom outdoors since that's what they would do in nature. I didn't know that and had nothing, such as tissue, to give to the kids. I don't recommend them.

I had the pleasure of participating at one of the walking tour of the at the walking mountain…read morescience center this past week with our guide, Reese. Reese was a great tour guide that was super knowledgeable of the area (animal, plants, and the seasons). This was a super easy hike for those who doesn't hike often or has kids with them and wanted try something else than skiing or snowboarding. When we got to the top, Reese gave us all the opportunity to take photos and he was also our own personal photographer. Definitely coming back to take one of the self tour/hike that this location also offers.

This garden one of the world's highest botanical gardens at an 8,200 feet altitude in the Rocky…read moreMountains. We did a family trip up to the mountains for a couple of days and on our way back home, we stopped by the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens because I knew my mother in-law loved flowers and I thought she would enjoy it here. We parked in the parking lot next to the big open field. Unfortunately there was an event that day and we had to pay I think $10 (can't remember the exact amount). I guess it evened out since the garden is free? Anywho, the garden was a short walk from the parking lot. It's named after the former first lady who preferred Vail as their vacation spot and helped the community flourish to what it is today. There's signage throughout the garden to read about Betty Ford, the plants, and wild life. It's a small garden, but there are plants from all over the world and we enjoyed strolling through the various paths. My mother in-law enjoyed it as well, so mission accomplished! If you're in the area and love plants and flowers, it's worth a quick stop, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

An absolutely beautiful botanical garden that the family didn't expect to be found in the ski town…read moreof Vail. The garden focused on alpine trees, plants, and flowers. It was so peaceful and enchanting to walk around the garden. In addition to plants and flowers, we also saw lots of butterflies and hummingbirds. Admission and parking were free, donation gladly welcome.

What a beautiful, large wooden park! Similar to the one in Georgetown, it's like a big treehouse…read morewith multiple sections to play in. Park looks new and clean. Fun and areas sized for little and big kids. I posted pictures.

I've been to several major ski towns by now, but this village really stands out for me…read more.. For some reason, I expected some changes, but the place looked exactly the same as I remembered it from over 10 years ago! Every square inch is just so picturesque! I did feel that there were a few negatives...for me (the non-skier). I just wished they had more boutiques that weren't so ski-oriented...and nicer coffee shops. Despite being such a swanky village, they also seemed to run short on nice bakeries and coffee shops. In fact, I was nearly shocked how basic some places were! Plenty of nice restaurants though...and many had cool European ambiance. Again, I'm not a skier, but I had no problems spending my time (up to 6 hours or more) walking around this pretty village. It truly felt as if I was in Germany or Switzerland. LOVE this place!!

Always a great experience. While the crowd is similar to Aspen, Vail is an appeal all its own. Well…read moredeveloped, it's a great remake of a high mountain European village. With the river, legendary restaurants like Sweet Basil, Mountain Standard, Matsuhisa and Up The Creek, concerts in the garden, wowzsies, what more could one want? Oh, just one thing... To call it by its name. It is Vail Village. It is beside Vail Mountain. So, a note. To the Yelper who created the entry: very few people say Vail Mountain Village. In fact, I've never heard it uttered that way. Not once. Yes, I know, it seems I'm being ill-tempered. An ol' bag. Nit-picking. Semantics though are some times reflective of sensibility.

Wonderful, pleasant little park in East Vail with a cute lake along Gore Creek. Nice for children…read moreand or people with dogs.

Ice Skating at Big Horn Park is the best part of East Vail. Thank you to the legend that shovels it…read moreevery day. On behalf of all hockey players, thank you for your kindness. I left two new hockey sticks, and a puck for you. I hope it brings the same joy that your efforts brought to us on our trip.

Super cute and unique playground! Love the structures, and sound traveler things. Late elementary…read morekids would love this. Plus very close to everything else in Lionshead.

A sweet little park in Lionshead Village that has just enough of everything. A few rope climbing…read morenets, a little rock climbing, net bridges, two slides and a few cool multi levels for climbing. Exposed to the sun but mitigated by the actual construction with the netting its good on sunny days. There are a few mom rest benches in the shade too. Its a wood chip bottom playground. There is also a splash pad in the plaza area right next to the park.

5 of 5 stars all the way!!…read more Nice foot trails, beautiful playground and grass field, bridges, river, Mountain Views...great for sunrise!! What more could you ask for!? Heated restrooms!? This park has 'em!

The park is on a beautiful creek. It has a fence protecting the dogs on the interstate side of the…read morepark but is open on the creek side, entrance side and back side. I went twice while visiting vail. It's a short 10 min drive from vail. There were about 5 or 6 dogs there and they played well with our dog. Also have a couple of picnic tables and benches to sit at and the dogs love swimming on the creek on warm days