Dear Family:

We have a no-obligations reservation on an 8 Bedroom Cabin at the YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park Center, at Estes Park, Colorado.

The reservation is for Saturday July 6, 2013 and checking out on Saturday July 13, 2013.  We will lose the no-obligations reservation on Monday, January 2, 2012, unless we move forward with a contract at that time.

8 Bedroom Cabin

The 8 Bedroom Cabin that we have reserved has a massive dining and living area which will comfortably accommodate all of us to eat and hang out in one place.  This is one of two big selling points for this cabin: 1) we will have one place where we can all hang out together, and 2) the view is killer.

The best way for you to learn about the cabin is to watch the below video that I made when I toured one of them a couple days ago with Tony and Suzanne.  Please watch this, it will answer a lot of your questions:

You can also see some pics on the YMCA of the Rockies website. Just click here to go to their Lodging page and scroll down to “8 Bedroom Cabins,” about two-thirds down the page.  To the right of the heading is an image of one of the cabins (it’s a snowy picture), and in the bottom right corner of the image click on “VIEW”.  There you can see more pictures of inside one of the cabins.

To summarize: the cabin has 8 bedrooms, 7 of which have 2 queen size beds, and the 8th bedroom has 3 bunk beds.  There is a large kitchen with 2 stoves, 2 microwaves etc., and 4 dining tables so we could all eat together.  There is no washer/dryer in the cabin, but there is a 24 hour laundromat on the property (not far from the 8 bedroom cabins.)  The cabin has 2 floors, 6 bedrooms downstairs and 2 upstairs.  The upstairs area has a second (smaller) living area which is a mezzanine (overlooks the downstairs living and dining areas.)

Obviously, this cabin does not have enough rooms to accommodate everyone in their own room.  We will have an overflow issue, and we have a couple of options for that, which I have covered under the heading Overflow.

YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park Center

The YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park Center has a great website that will be helpful for you to look at.  Note: The YMCA of the Rockies has 3 locations, Estes Park Center, Snow Mountain Ranch and Camp Chief Ouray.  Our reservation is at Estes Park Center, which is bordered on 3 sides by the Rocky Mountain National Park. You can see that clearly on the map below, the green area is the Rocky Mountain National Park. The white area in the top right corner is Estes Park (the town), and the white part in the center (where the A is) is the YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park Center.

View Larger Map

The YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park Center is about 2 miles outside of Estes Park (the town), and they provide a free shuttle service to and from town.  There is a Safeway in town where we’d need to buy all of our groceries.

Here are some good places on the website to look at: Home Page, Activities.

You might be interested in checking out some reviews of the YMCA of the Rockies.  Here are some sites that have reviews: Trip Advisor, Family Vacation Critic, Yelp

Here is a 2007 New York Times article about YMCA locations that includes the Estes Park Center.

Estes Park, Colorado

Estes Park is known as the gateway to the Rocky Mountains.  It is about 1 hour 45 minutes from Denver International Airport (the nearest commercial airport), and about 45 minutes from Boulder (click on View Larger Map below the map to see map and directions.)

View Larger Map

A few places to look for info on Estes Park: Wikipedia, the official website for the Town of Estes Park, Trip Advisor, and a 2006 New York Times article about Estes Park.

The YMCA of The Rockies, Estes Park Center has a shuttle service that will deliver you to your cabin from the airport, and back to the airport on your return, for $85 return trip.

Overflow

The 8 Bedroom Cabin sleeps 32 in beds/bunk beds, however that does not give everyone their own individual room.  Obviously, we will have overflow.  We have a few options for overflow.

Squatting: As you can see in the video, there are a lot of couches in the living areas in the cabin.  In addition, a guy at the administration desk said they would be able to offer rollaway beds for people too tall for the bunks, so that could be an additional “squatting” option.  If there are people who would like to sleep on a couch or rollaway bed for a small contribution each night, this will both give a super cheap option for those of us who want that, as well as bring down the overall cost of the cabin for those in a room.  Obviously, I’m thinking of the younger generation here, and there are probably just a few who might be interested in doing that.

Lodging: There are several lodges at the Estes Park Center where our overflow can rent a room, hotel style.  As an overflow reservation, the price does not include the meal plan which other lodging reservations include, as you will be eating in the cabin with the rest of us.  The lodges range in price form $99 (Mt. Ypsilon Lodge) to $159 (the Central Lodges), depending of the age of the lodge and how recently it’s been renovated.  To look at pictures of the lodges, click here and click on VIEW in the bottom right corner of the images on the right.  The downside of the lodges is that they are probably a 10-15 minute walk from our 8 Bedroom Cabin, but the upside is that we have an option for those of us who do not want to share a bedroom, but also want something cheaper than the price of one of the bedrooms in the 8 Bedroom Cabin.

Vacation Homes:  Nearby the 8 Bedroom Cabins are 3 and 4 bedroom vacation homes that could manage most of our overflow.  However, we would not be able to reserve one of these until March 2013, and it is possible we wouldn’t be able to rent one at all due to the YMCA’s reservations priority system.  The priority system works like this: on January 1 of each year reservations for all accommodations during the peak months (June – August) are made available to Estes Park Center donors.  On March 1, all remaining reservations are made available to members of the YMCA.  So, on that date, assuming we have YMCA members among us, we can try to reserve one of the nearby vacation homes.  However, I have been advised that given the dates we are looking at, it is quite unlikely that the nearby vacation homes will not be fully booked.  That said, it is a possibility, and we should try!  To look at pictures of a 4 bedroom vacation home, click here and click on VIEW in the bottom right corner of the image next to the heading Vacation Homes (second from the top).  (These images are in fact of a 4 bedroom vacation home called Grandeur, which is the exact one we would be hoping to rent.)

Note: Obviously, the reunion cabins are not included in the reservation priority system, as reunions need to planned so far in advance, which is why we are able to make a reservation a year and a half out.  In addition, we would be able to reserve lodge accommodation at the same time as our reunion cabin, as part of an exception they allow to manage reunion overflow.  Unfortunately, the exception extends only to lodge accommodation, not to vacation homes.  So, if we try to get a vacation home in addition to the 8 Bedroom Cabin, we would need to reserve now the lodging we would need if we don’t get a vacation home, so that we have a fall-back.  Then, when the vacation homes are available for reservation, we will be released from obligation to renting the lodge rooms if we are able to get the vacation home.

Pricing

The 8 Bedroom Cabin is $1,749 per night for the summer of 2013.

The lodge accommodations range from $99 – $159 for the summer of 2013.

The 4 bedroom vacation home is $404 for the summer of 2012, so we can expect in 2013 it will be approximately $434 (they don’t have the pricing yet.)

So How Is This Going To Work?

The best thing about this reservation is that we would have one place where we could all comfortably hang out and eat together.  That said, the conflict that we have to balance is the desire for individual rooms against the need for affordable options for some of us.

If we divide the 8 Bedroom Cabin rate by 8 bedrooms, it’s $218 per room per night.  If 2 people share a room, that’s $109 per night (per person.)  Obviously, 4 people could share a room if they wanted.  That said, people could pack as many into a room as they want, so for example the room with the bunk beds could be a crash room for anyone who wants to save money, and that room could end up being quite cheap for those that want to sleep on bunks (or blow-up beds even).

If there are people that want to sleep on a couch, that reduces the cost of the entire cabin for every room.  For example, if there were 2 people that wanted to sleep on couches, and we decided it was fair that they contribute $30 per night each, that would reduce the price of each room to $166 per night.  (Divide that by 6 people in bunk beds, and that brings it to $27 a night for the 6 in bunks!)

So that covers the options for people willing to share rooms or sleep on couches or bunk beds in exchange for getting a cheap option for family reunion.  For those needing their own private room, the options are: a more expensive room in the 8 Bedroom Cabin, a less expensive room at a vacation home IF we get it, or a  room at a lodge. The latter two require a walk to/from the 8 Bedroom Cabin for meals etc.  So, if someone is not willing to share a room, but doesn’t want to pay for a whole room at the 8 Bedroom Cabin, then they can opt for a vacation home room or a lodge room, depending on what they are willing to pay (and how nice they want their room to be.)

What Happens Now?

You can discuss all of this below, in the comments section.  Ultimately, however, we need to make a decision by next Monday, January 2, 2012.

What we need to decide now is whether or not we want to more forward with the reservation for this 8 Bedroom Cabin, and put down a deposit.  I think the best way to make this decision is to decide: a) if Estes Park sounds like a fun place for reunion, b) this accommodation arrangement seems like it might work out for you given the options we would be working with, and c) you think one of these options will work for you financially.

If we all decide that we want to move forward, the next step would be reserving our lodge rooms for overflow (in case we don’t get a vacation home).  To do that, I will want to speak to each of you to discuss which options you prefer, and which you are open to if you don’t get your first preference.  Priority for rooms in the 8 Bedroom Cabin will of course need to be given to those of us who might not be able to easily get to and from the cabin if they are sleeping at a lodge or vacation home.

From there, we would just wait until March 2013, at which time we could try to get a vacation home.  If we can’t get one, we can always fall back on the lodge rooms we have reserved.

I’m anticipating that this plan is going to work really well for those who are happy to pay more, and those who want to pay very little but are happy to sleep on a couch/bunk.

PLEASE call me if you have ANY questions, on my cell (415) 378 0319.  I know this is all quite complicated, and I really look forward to speaking with you to discuss any questions you might have.  Personally, I find that option much easier than tracking all the emails.  However, if you have a clear and unambiguous vote and don’t have time for a call, please vote below in the comments.

My personal opinion: I find Estes Park stunningly beautiful, and I love all the outdoor activities we can do.  I love the idea of us all being able to hang out in one place so I’m open to sharing a room or whatever to make this work and affordable. Disclaimer: Estes Park is 45 minutes from my house.