Posts Tagged ‘dude and guest ranch’

Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

 NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Gaylene Ore, Ore Communications, gaylene@orecommunications.com, 970-887-2536

Colorado Dude Ranches Offer End-of-Summer Rates, Workshops

– Late-season specials in Grand County include discounts, adults-only weeks, women’s riding/yoga retreat  –

Granby, Colo. – Still trying to squeeze in a summer vacation? There’s a cowboy or cowgirl in just about everyone, and come end of the season, it’s never been easier – or cheaper – to heed the call of the West.

The Dude and Guest Ranches of Grand County, Colo. (www.dude-ranch.com) are all-inclusive ranches in the heart of the Colorado Rockies, located 100 miles west of Denver. Several of the ranches are offering discounts for singles, couple, families and groups in late summer and early fall – when the crowds are gone, the skies are clear and the leaves are just starting to change.

Latigo Ranch (www.latigotrails.com)
Visit between Aug. 22 and Sept. 18, and the weekly rate drops from $2,600/week to $2,250/week. Partial-week stays also are available. For grown-ups preferring a quiet vacation without kids, Sept. 12-18 is adults-only week.

Accommodations at the intimate Latigo Ranch are limited to 35 guests, who receive homemade caramel corn upon arrival. For horsemanship activities, the ranch works carefully to closely match guests with horses, and for experienced riders, offers an authentic cattle drive with a local rancher each September. The ranch has been named “Best Dude Ranch in Colorado” in Colorado’s Best: The Essential Guide to Favorite Places.”

Drowsy Water Ranch (www.drowsywater.com)
Weeks after August 29 are designated for adults only, including special-event groups. These weeks carry a 15 percent discount. The prices per individual, with discount applied, are $1,585.25 (single occupancy), $1,581.00 (double occupancy), or $1,517.25 (triple occupancy).

During the week of Sept. 5, Drowsy Water will hold an art workshop, with a professional art instructor onsite. The week of Sept. 12 will focus on cowgirls – though all cowboys are welcome, too.

Nestled in its own private mountain valley, the 600-acre ranch has specialized in providing authentic western vacations for more than 70 years. Focusing on horseback riding and meals, Drowsy Water also offers swimming, horseshoes, steak fries, trout fishing, square dancing, jeep trips, hayrides, movies, pack trips, gymkhana rodeos, raft trips and golf. TripAdvisor® named the ranch the “#1 All-Inclusive Resort in the World” in its 2010 Travelers’ Choice® awards.

Bar Lazy J Ranch (www.barlazyj.com)
The week of Aug. 22, and all of September, are adults-only time at the ranch. During these periods, Bar Lazy J also offers an additional 10 percent discount, making the per-person rate $1,552.50.

Relaxation and personal attention are the passwords at Bar Lazy J, the oldest continually operated guest ranch in Colorado. The owner even keeps a supply of hats and boots for visitors who arrive without them. The ranch is popular with fishing enthusiasts – on site are Gold Medal trout-fishing waters of the Colorado River.

CLazyU Ranch (www.clazyu.com)
The upscale CLazyU will hold the LyricQuest event Oct. 8-10. Songwriter Monty Powell, writer for many of popular music’s biggest stars, will highlight the weekend. A 25-year music business veteran, Powell collaborates with artists such as Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts, Chris Cagle, James Otto, Dee Meesina, Chuck Wicks and more. Cost is $750, which includes horseback riding, swimming, fishing hiking, biking, a songwriting workshop, campfire jam session and special performance by Anna Wilson, the critically acclaimed jazz artist and songwriter whose recent album, Yule Swing!, reached #12 on the Billboard jazz chart.

All of the ranches are all-inclusive, meaning that food, beverages and all activities are included in the base price. Every guest can try many activities – no extra charge – and stay with them for as little or as long as they’d like. Typical activities include swimming, river rafting, horseback riding, mountain biking, hiking, cattle work, fly fishing, western dancing, archery, riflery and cowboy skills. The ranches are located near golf courses and shopping.

Dude and Guest Ranches of Grand County, Colo. (www.dude-ranch.com)
Five all-inclusive dude ranches are nestled in the heart of the Colorado Rockies, located 100 miles west of Denver. The ranches offer family and group pricing, and early- and late-season specials.

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Winter Dude Ranch Vacations Offer Unexpected Surprises

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

Granby, Colo. –  Mention a trip to a dude ranch, and you typically conjure up visions of horses trotting through green meadows, weekend rodeos, hayrides, jeep trips and more. But come winter, a dude ranch vacation can offer a pleasant surprise when it comes to relaxation, natural beauty and affordability.

Most dude and guest ranches in northern climates close for the winter, but two in Colorado remain open for the best of the state’s renown snow and winter scenery.

Latigo Ranch (www.latigotrails.com) – Located near Kremmling, Colo., about 100 miles west of Denver, Latigo is one of the state’s most personal ranches. Family owned and operated, it transforms into a cross-country resort and winter playground for a capacity of just 25 guests to take advantage of the area’s 216 inches of annual snowfall.

Latigo machine grooms more than 50 km of cross-country ski trail, covering varied terrain from flat beginning track to challenging advanced. All track is groomed for both classic and skate skiing.  Backcountry and telemark skiers head to more than 200 square miles of deep powder in adjoining national forest land.

Guests also can snowshoe, sled and tube, with magnificent views of valleys, mountains and frozen waterfalls. They’re likely to spot at least some of the wildlife in the area: elk, deer, coyote, snowshoe rabbits, owl, ermine, blue grouse, fox.  After a full day of activity, there’s a hot tub, pool table, foosball and library for relaxing – along with “nouveau ranch” cuisine: healthy, hearty, fresh and plenty of it. The ranch will even pack lunches for skiers taking off on day-long tours.

Latigo’s all-inclusive rates may be the best surprise of all. For adults, the daily rate is: $175/day; for children age 5-13, $105/day. Children five and under are free when staying with a parent. Rates include accommodations with sitting room and wood-burning stove; three meals/day; use off all Latigo facilities; use of groomed cross-country ski trails; and ski lessons. Latigo Ranch is open for winter stays through March 21.

C Lazy U Ranch (www.clazyu.com) – An upscale, family style dude ranch, C Lazy U offers luxury accommodations, gourmet cuisine, five spur service and is the only guest ranch in North America to have attained both the Five-Diamond and Five-Star ratings during the course of  its 91-year history.   

C Lazy U is very much a skiing destination, whether it’s of the Nordic or Alpine variety. On site are more than 400 acres of skiable terrain.  For downhillers, the ranch offers ski packages and shuttle service to nearby Winter Park and Sol Vista Ski Resorts. C Lazy U’s private snowcat skiing provides access to trails of all levels, including boundless backcountry skiing for advanced levels.

Winter guests also will find sleigh rides, a tubing hill, sledding, ice skating, ice hockey, horseback riding, trap shooting,  archery and a fully equipped game room. For those looking for relaxation and rejuvenation, there are spa services, yoga classes and personal training services.

C Lazy U is open for winter stays through March 28.  Children 12 and under stay free.  The ranch can also accommodate business retreats and weddings.

Dude ranch vacations continue to grow in popularity year-round, says Gaylene Ore, president of Ore Communications, largely because of their all-inclusive nature. “When you have so many activities included, it’s easy to try out as many or as few as you wish without worries of additional cost,” she explains. “For families with kids who have short attention spans, this can be a real budget-saver.”

All food and beverages are included in one cost for dude ranch vacations, which eliminates hidden costs. In addition, Ore points out that time savings can be significant. “There’s no intricate planning involved with an all-inclusive dude ranch vacation. You make one phone call and your trip is done.” 

Ore Communications, Inc. (www.orecommunications.com)

Ore Communications, based in Granby, Colo., specializes in public relations, branding and strategic marketing for the lifestyle, leisure and travel industry. Clients include destination areas, visitor and convention bureaus, tourism boards, resorts and dude ranches.

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