Destination overview

The US states of Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming are all part of the region known as the Rocky Mountains. If you’re into the great outdoors and thrilling sports, you will find this area to be absolute paradise. From skiing and snowboarding, hiking and biking, white-water rafting and 4-wheel driving, the steep slopes, plentiful valleys and infinitely stunning and beautiful wilderness will capture your heart and keep it pumping throughout your visit.

If you’ve been brave enough to cross Independence Pass through the famed Fourteeners to Aspen in Colorado, you’ll have as much fun celebrity spotting as you will on the slopes. You can go horse riding through fields of wildflowers around Mount Crested Butte, raft the snow melted swollen river in Roaring Fork Valley and drive along the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway and enjoy the 360° views at Cathedral Lake. From Victorian Telluride, hike through the picture-perfect glacial canyon to spectacular Bridal Veil Falls, fish the Dolores or San Miguel Rivers and drive the dramatic San Juan Skyway to Durango to ride the narrow gauge railroad.

Have a soak in the hot Pagosa Springs pools before heading off to the ancestral Puebloan ruins at Chimney Rock or play the challenging 7,000 feet (2,133 metre) high golf course. Sledding in Fraser, near Winter Park, is a real experience, as is ice-skating the big lake at Keystone. The town of Breckenridge is quaint enough to have 250 buildings on the Historic Register, and the snowcat up to the saddle of Copper Mountain is free. The fantastic skiing at Vail draws even more celebrities than Aspen and sophisticated Beaver Creek is known for its top chefs.

Close to the Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park is a favourite with rock and ice climbers, Steamboat Spring is popular for hunting, fishing, rodeos and natural hot springs, and try not to miss Silver Creek for the thousands of bones at Dinosaur National Monument. The most famous national park in Wyoming is the incredible 2.2 million acre Yellowstone, one of the world’s largest intact eco-systems. Fishing Bighorn Canyon in Black Hills National Forest is simply stunning, as are the mammoth views, rushing streams, climbable peaks and the lovely old homestead of Menors Ferry at Grand Teton National Park.

World-renowned Jackson Hole, with its après ski atmosphere, rodeos and Wild West entertainment, or Wilson, in its lovely hay-meadow strewn valley, are first-class ski destinations. They also make excellent exploration bases. Cody has notable Firearm, Buffalo Bill and Plains Indian museums, and you can catch wild salmon in Yellowstone Lake. Take a visit to Old Faithful’s geysers and rejuvenating Mammoth Hot Springs. You will most likely come across bears, bison and elk in Hayden Valley, and take time to ride the snowmobile to West Thumb Geyser Basin in winter.

Across in Montana, there are other Yellowstone icons. West Yellowstone, Big Sky, with its wildflower-covered meadows and Arnold Palmer-designed golf course, and historic Red Lodge make the best bases. Take your binoculars to Lamar Valley for wolf and grizzly bear sightings and ski or snowshoe to Tower Fall in winter. You’ll find elk grazing Mammoth Village’s grassy surrounds and the Terrace Drive is a must to see.

The other important national park is Glacier, right in the north. Seeley Lake is perfectly positioned to enjoy another spectacular scenic drive - the Chain of Lakes Highway. Here you can whizz across 20 amazing snowmobile trails or go bird watching on Old Squeezer Loop Road, which is world recognised. The scenic drive ends in exceptionally picturesque Bigfork, which is also known for its excellent flathead fishing and the renowned Eagle Bend golf course.

Across in Idaho, Hope, Blanchard and Harrison are close enough to visit Glacier, if you can drag yourself away from the delights that surround you including the magnificent skiing at Schweitzer, beaches, trails and fishing at Lakes Coeur d’Alene, plus an excellent golf course, complete with floating green. Here you will also find the serenity of Lake Pen Oreille and the Silverwood Theme Park for the kids.

You can snowmobile around the world’s largest crater, Island Park and watch wildlife at Big Springs. America’s first ski resort, Sun Valley, is near Ketchum. Near Lava Hot Springs, Pebble Creek’s vertical slopes attract nearly as many people as the healing waters. Then there are the enormous cedars at Ross Creek, the bears around Cabinet Wilderness, the magnificent Kootenai Falls and swimming at Dunn Creek Flats.

Right on the border with Utah is Garden City. Nearby Bear Lake’s waters may be cool, but they’re Caribbean blue and are great to scuba dive, swim, fish, sail and ski. In summer, laze on Rendezvous or East Beach or go down to Pineview Reservoir near Eden and Henefer. In winter, ice fish or snow kite – if you’re not flat out skiing Powder or Wolf Mountains, or Bear River Lodge. Bonneville Salt Flats draws speed freaks, the Great Salt Lake attracts millions of migratory birds, while East Canyon State Park entices skiers, anglers, hikers and historians.

If you don’t want to ski or hike the majestic landscapes of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, drive the Mirror Lake Scenic Byway. If you don’t like fly-fishing or golf, shop Park City’s historic Main Street. The Colorado Plateau houses the state’s beautiful Mojave Desert rock formations, where you’ll find red Navajo sandstone, black lava rocks and sand dunes at Snow Canyon. Take the tram to see the soaring spires and towering monoliths of Zion and, if you’re lucky, a mountain lion or other wildlife.

It may be across the border in Nevada, but Mesquite is close enough too. Play the casinos or one of the award-winning golf courses at the Oasis Golf Club and Wolf Creek. Of course, Las Vegas is the casino capital, but there’s also a lot more to do. Quirky museums such as Liberace’s are worth a visit and don’t forget the lions in the MGM Grand tunnel and shopping at Mandalay Bay.

Must-sees include the great views of the Colorado River and Black Canyon from the incredible Hoover Dam, and try to cross the Californian border to the mind-boggling Death Valley. From there you can head to Lake Tahoe for casinos and skiing.

Also try and visit the gold and silver mines of Virginia City and watch the camel races while you’re there. Take the back country Rubicon Trail near Reno, where you can check out the famous Reno Arch and get up close and personal with a wild mustang.

It would be hard to find many areas in the world that offer as many exciting and memorable experiences as the Rocky Mountain region. It would also be hard to find anywhere that exudes such splendour, with magical scenery almost everywhere you turn.