We checked in with ease. We preferred a different campsite than we had originally and they worked with us to move to one we liked better. The bathrooms and showers (in the front) are so clean and well appointed. It shows they care. They even had granite countertops!! The roads are dirt/gravel but they are also well cared for, little dust, easy to walk and no major potholes. We loved seeing the horses every day and they were very happy to see us when we had carrots and apples to share. The WRR is close to the lake and town. Also a good location for exploring Granby, Fraser, Winter Park and more. The people that work there are all great. Pleasant, helpful and knowledgeable. We will be back. read more

Winding River Ranch - The horses we visited in our morning walks. - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Grand Lake, Colorado

See all

My family and I spent 5 nights here at the end of July for a family retreat event. GENERAL LOCATION: The ranch is in a great location nestled near the entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park at approx. 8,000 ft in elevation. It's also a 5 minute drive to Grand Lake and horseback riding. The town is definitely on "mountain time" meaning they start shutting down when it gets slow, or just before nightfall. THE RANCH: The ranch in general does have a lot to offer and it appeared that it's mostly used for weddings. They have a basketball court, volleyball court, kids play area, petting area with various farm animals, indoor pool, workout area, kitchen area, gazebo, fishing stream, 2 bridges, yard games, s'mores fire pit, BBQ grills, and a ton of places for photo ops! There were also several cabins throughout the ranch of various sizes that could hold families of 4-5 in each cabin. I think there were close to 15 different cabins to stay in. PROS: We really liked being on the ranch and got to spend some great quality family time doing family events on the ranch. We fished, rode horses, played BB, cornhole, and a few other yard games. We also saw a large Moose and her baby grazing about 100m from our cabin. It's really common to see Moose in the area, but it was a special treat to see her with her baby. We also saw humming birds and tiny chipmunks around all cabins each day. CONS: For 2 days we became overwhelmed by mosquito's. It got so bad that they called in a local company to fog the area with repellent to help kill them. The fogging did help and significantly reduced the number of mosquito's in the area. The rooms, bedding, beds, bathrooms, and cabins in general are nothing to brag about. They are old, and in need of big updating. I tried not to let this cloud my judgement about the ranch as a whole because we were there to enjoy the outdoors but it would have been nice to come back to a nice room and shower at the end of the day. If their main focus is a wedding venue, I was expecting to be in a much nicer cabin, especially considering they cater to people on one of their most memorable days. The cell phone coverage in the area is very hit and miss. Overall, the family and I enjoyed our time here and made some great memories!! read more

WOW ! If I could give this place more than 5*'s I would !! I am NOT a camper. My idea of camping is a Holiday Inn and no blow dryer. This place offers tent, RV and cabins that range from 4-12 people. They do have bathrooms and showers you can walk to. I was impressed that there was always someone cleaning the bathrooms whenever we went. They were pristine which speaks volumes since people track dirt in and out of them all day long. For the scaredy cat campers, they also have a nightly patrol that drives the grounds while everyone sleeps to watch troublemakers and wildlife (think bears). You can enjoy a chuckwagon breakfast, chuckwagon dinners, nightly ice cream socials, hay rides, horseback riding and a small baby farm animals in the summer. You can see Rocky Mountain National Park from the campsite and saw Moose almost daily walking right through the campgrounds. I don't have enough praise for this campground !! We'lll be back for sure !! read more

See all

The best word to describe the ranch is magical! We held our wedding over Memorial Day weekend and it was absolutely perfect. If you are looking for a rustic yet elegant wedding venue in a spectacular setting- Winding River Ranch is for you! We used the Ranch House on Fri for our rehearsal dinner with a bonfire for all guests afterwards. Perfect way to kick off the wedding weekend! Melissa and Travis are beyond accommodating! Melissa is always available for questions. Travis is the man behind the scenes- always working to make the r act a more spectacular place and also willing to help move, hang stuff, lighting bonfires and cleaning up while on site. And they even created a custom sign at the entrance for us. Thanks to previous brides- Melissa has a wide range of mason jars, linens, chalk board, etc. such an amazing asset for the DIY bride. Having the ability for our wedding party to stay on property made for such a relaxing and easy weekend as well. From the moment our guests arrived- they kept commenting about on the beauty of the ranch and how amazing the setting was. So if you want a magically rustic wedding- look no further than Winding River Ranch! read more

See all

We held our wedding at the Ranch and I can honestly say it was one of the best weekends I can imagine. After our prior wedding venue fell through only a few months before the date, Melissa went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable at the ranch. She was always accommodating, accessible, and quick to respond to my questions. We rented out all of the cabins for the weekend as well, which really made it feel special to spend so much time with all of our guests who had travelled so far. There is a designated ceremony site with gorgeous mountain views. The colorado river runs through the ranch. We had our reception in the historic barn. Access to a kitchen made it easy for us to host the rehearsal BBQ and day after brunch on site as well. This is a rustic venue- more fitting for a "laid back/rustic/elegant mountain wedding" than black tie affair (Which IMHO is the way to go!) I can't think of a single thing that I would change about our wedding weekend at the ranch. If the mountain views, river access, and on site cabins aren't enough, working with Melissa (and dancing with the owner Granny!) were really the icing on the cake. We will definitely be returning to the winding river ranch!! read more

Horseback riding excursion is the best. If you can, go at 8 AM to enjoy the wildlife. Moose, elk, and deer are just a few of the animals that you may see. read more

Great facility! Located conveniently just outside the pay entrance to the RMN Park, close to a Park visitor center. 30/night and well-worth it. Had a campsite right next to a horse pasture and a stream. Fire rings, picnic tables, large sites. Some RV's, but lots of tenters. Convenience & gift shop sells firewood, ice, campsite essentials. Newly remodeled bathrooms, complete with nice hot showers (open 24 hrs) were definitely a big bonus. Family-owned & run. Very friendly and helpful staff. Nicely maintained grounds overall. Horses and other animals expertly & humanely cared for. All looked very healthy and happy! Took the 4 hour a.m. ride (90/person), which takes you into Rocky Mountains National Park, and it was the icing on the cake! read more

Great horses, great staff, good price. Had a great time on the trail ride. Saw some wildlife, the guide was very friendly and knowledgeable, and the scenery was great. The horses were all mild mannered which made it a very easy ride. The one hour ride was only $45, and money well spent for a good morning. read more

Besides actually marrying my husband, Winding River Ranch was by far the best decision we made in our wedding planning. Melissa and Travis are the ultimate dream team in making your vision come true. Melissa is helpful and so sweet and Travis is the wedding magic McGyver. They work WITH you to make everything how you would want it and have the best attitude around. But even besides the amazing people, the place just cannot be beat. All of our guests were blown away by how beautiful the location was - stunning views everywhere you turn. AND the facilities are top notch - still giving the rustic ranch vibe, but classy, sophisticated and polished in every detail. I cannot say enough positive things about this place. If you are considering it know that it will be one of the best decisions that you can make. read more

I love this place, I love the people, and Elaine is the most incredible woman you will ever meet. If you're wondering if you should go, for whatever reason it is, go. read more

These guys know how to treat their guests! The scenery was unbeatable and we could not have asked for more. Travis Granny and the rest of the staff was so helpful and way above and beyond! We had an amazing wedding filled with love, laughter and incredible memories! read more

we had our wedding at the winding river ranch this past weekend, and I couldn't imagine a better place to have a wedding. The property is unbelievably beautiful - views of the rockies in every direction, and the colorado river running through the ranch. Melissa and Travis were remarkable hosts - they were kind, generous, accommodating, and incredibly helpful all weekend long. The ranch also has several cabins on the property, so we were able to house a large amount of our guests on the property for the course of the weekend. This made it so we could spend even more time with our guests on a weekend that really flew by. I couldn't imagine having our wedding anywhere else, and I feel so thankful to have had Melissa, Travis, and Granny as a part of our wedding. read more

Had a wonderful experience last weekend. Wonderful stable with well cared for animals, enthusiastic guides, gorgeous trails. Just two of us for a two hour ride with a great man named Jim! read more

We could not have asked for a better venue for our wedding. Not only is the venue and scenery absolutely beautiful, Melissa and Travis are amazing to work with. They were so flexible and helpful every step of the way. The setup make it perfect for us to have all of our bridal party stay on site with us. Since we had many out of town guests and we wanted to spend time with them before and after, the ability for everyone to stay on-site and have access to the large kitchen/dining area was a wonderful plus. The commercial kitchen made it so easy to prepare meals for all our guests and accommodate everyone in a communal way aside from the actual wedding day. We are so happy we picked Winding River Ranch. We will definitely be visiting the ranch for years to come!! read more

It is quite unfortunate that such a beautiful place is so poorly managed. I was victim of the change from Melissa to Kristin, and my wedding weekend could have easily been a disaster due to an abundance of over promising and under delivering by Kristin. She said all of the right things until it came down to take action to make my wedding weekend flawless. Thankfully I had a great support system of 12-15 family and friends that were willing to work hard for three days straight to make the best of the situation Winding River Ranch put us in. Leading up to wedding weekend, I attempted to communicate via email with no response and had to call on multiple occasions to have questions answered. Guests had trouble booking cabins and getting confirmations from Kristin as well. We showed up Friday as discussed with the Ranch and the reception space was a mess from a wedding earlier in the week and reeked of stagnant beer. My friends, family, groom and myself had to sweep and clean for over an hour before we could even begin setting up for my own wedding. Craig was fantastic and super helpful but Kristin never once acknowledged our presence or offered assistance. That continued into the next day (my wedding day) when rain began and we were never asked where the ceremony would be held. She failed to offer help relocating the ceremony indoors and the outdoor benches were not covered. The ceremony ended up being outside, and we (the wedding party) had to request that guests were given towels or trash bags to sit on. Kristin gave us attitude over this request, which is something that should have been done without asking. We were assured numerous times (including on Friday) that the ice machine was in working order, yet it was not making ice Saturday and a wedding guest had to go out and buy some. Throughout the cold, rainy/snowy weekend, Kristin never had heaters up and running for the comfort of us and guests and was not responsive to messages to do so. People were rushing through dinner in order to get out of the tent. We had reserved the Loveland cabin from day one (although Kristin dropped the ball on taking note of that information) and no heat was working in there either so we slept in a 47* room - happy wedding night to us! In summary, many empty promises were made leading up to the event but once wedding weekend arrived, Kristin was completely absent and difficult to work with. The Ranch touts its five star rating (notice that most all reviews are based on Melissa's service and she's no longer there); however, in my mind "five star" service does not include walking all over the bride, groom, and their families for the ENTIRE weekend without speaking. It does not include the inability to respond to emails and answer questions as brides prepare for their big, stressful day. Nor does it include a lack of proactive behavior to make your paying guests feel comfortable and cared for. I hear prices have nearly doubled for bookings now; however, service and attention to detail is severely lacking. Wedding days are a once in a lifetime thing, and you only have one chance to get it right. Winding River Ranch proved that they were not capable of doing so. read more

They do not honor their own scheduled events! Went to the "ice cream social" no one was there in fact nothing was there including the ice cream. I've been coming here for some time and it has continued to get worse and worse when it comes to dependability. Winding river cont7to go lower and lower on my list of places I want to go camping. read more

We loved EVERYTHING about this venue. Mellissa, Travis and Granny were so easy to work with and flexible on everything we asked for. The setting was perfect for pictures, the ceremony and the reception. There is not a thing we would have changed about this venue. There were plenty of hotels within a few miles of the ranch for all of our 200 guests. We also rented out all of the cabins on the property for the immediate family and wedding party so once the party was over, it was just a short walk to bed. We were allowed to decorate with all of our own items the entire day before and clean everything up Sunday morning. (I think this was because there was no other wedding the day before or after) but that was a huge help for us since we DIY'ed everything. Travis was around all day to help us move the bar, add lights, set up another tent for the DJ. Everything we asked of him he was on top. of. I cannot recommended this venue, the location or the owners enough! Book this place now if they have your date open and you will be very happy that you did!!! read more

We took a trip to the Ranch with some friends a few weeks ago and had such a great experience. So peaceful and what hospitality, we really felt at home. We'll be back! read more

I can't say enough about what a great experience we had at the Winding River Ranch. Melissa and Travis were incredibly helpful, professional, responsive, and flexible. The ceremony site (an island in the middle of the Colorado River) was beautiful and the reception site (the Bible Barn) what just what we had hoped for. I would recommend this venue to anyone who wants to get married outdoors in a beautiful setting and have a rustic, indoor/outdoor Colorado-style reception. read more