Getting there

By air: Flights land at the Vail/Eagle County airport, about 35 miles west of Vail, and the Denver International Airport, 110 miles east. Eagle County airport is served by American, Northwest, Delta, Continental, United Express and United.

Ground transportation between Denver and Vail is frequent and convenient. The trip to Vail takes about two-and-a-half hours. Contact Colorado Mountain Express (800-525-6363); Vail Valley Taxi (877-829-8294; 970-476-8294); or Airport Transportation Service (970-476-7576). For personalized private charter limos, vans and suburbans, make resrevations with VailCoach (877-554-7433). Though flights into Denver may be a bit less expensive than Eagle, also consider the cost of round-trip ground transportation, where per person rates from Denver are about double those from Eagle.

By car: Beaver Creek and Vail are right on I-70, 100 miles west of Denver and 140 miles east of Grand Junction. Beaver Creek is 10 miles west of Vail and just three miles south of Avon.

Getting around: Beaver Creek is very self-contained. There is a complimentary shuttle called Dial-a-Ride that takes you anywhere within the Beaver Creek Villages between 6 a.m. and 2 a.m. daily. The shuttle is like a taxi, so ask your concierge or restaurant hostess to call (970-949-1938), and allow 10-15 minutes for pickup. Shuttles between Beaver Creek and Vail cost $3. If you plan to commute frequently between Vail and Beaver Creek, or if you are staying in one of the outlying towns such as Edwards or Minturn, you may want to rent a car. If you're not staying at Beaver Creek lodging, you can park in two different locations. In the village, at the base of the mountain, there are two lots that charge to park. Two free parking lots are located just outside the entrance to Beaver Creek, a free shuttle takes you the two miles to the base of the mountain. Allow extra time for this.

Here's something that's pretty tough to pass up: BMW's Complimentary Mountain Driving Tour operates out of the Pines Lodge. All Beaver Creek guests are invited to reserve a BMW for a test drive or for an entire evening. Call the Pines Lodge at (970) 845-7900.