Experiences · Winter evenings
Sleigh ride and snowcat dinners in Aspen
A horse-drawn sleigh through Ashcroft to Pine Creek Cookhouse, or a snowcat up Snowmass to The Cabin after the lifts close. How each works, and how to book it.
A horse-drawn sleigh through Ashcroft to Pine Creek Cookhouse, or a snowcat up Snowmass to The Cabin after the lifts close. How each works, and how to book it.
The classic Aspen sleigh ride dinner is at Pine Creek Cookhouse, 11 miles up Castle Creek Road past the ghost town of Ashcroft, behind Percheron draft horses. On Snowmass, The Cabin is reached only by snowcat after dusk, from a 6 p.m. departure at Base Village.
Details below come from Pine Creek Cookhouse, Aspen Snowmass and the Aspen Chamber, checked October 2, 2026. Winter 2026–27 dates and prices are not yet published; figures from 2025–26 are labelled as such.
Paul Montiel · Aspen · Updated October 2026
Lessons, rentals fitted at the house, lunches, and a quiet evening for the parents.
The holiday week at the house: the tree up, the table set, lessons booked and every evening planned.
From the aircraft door to a warm, stocked house, with nothing to carry and nothing to chase.
Pine Creek is the one for a family or a first winter in Aspen: horses, blankets, a long valley and a meal at the end. Go at lunch for the mountain views; at night it is dark unless the moon is up, and colder.
The Cabin suits a group that is staying in Snowmass and wants dinner without a drive. For Aspen Highlands' Cloud Nine and other evening dinners on the mountain, see on-mountain dining; for snowmobile lunches and the Maroon Bells, see snowmobile tours.
We book the sleigh or the snowcat on the night you want, arrange the car to Ashcroft and back (the road up Castle Creek is narrow and dark after dinner), and bring warm layers for the children if you need them. You tell us the date and how many are coming; we confirm the reservation before anything is charged.
Yes. Pine Creek Cookhouse, 11 miles up Castle Creek Road, runs horse-drawn sleighs to dinner at 6 to 6:15 p.m. and to lunch at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., by reservation.
In 2025–26, $195 per adult and $235 from December 21 to January 5, before drinks, service and tax. Prices for 2026–27 have not been announced.
On select winter evenings a snowcat leaves the Base Village fire pit at 6 p.m. for The Cabin, a three-course dinner with shared plates, returning at 9:30 p.m.
Yes, Pine Creek is family friendly. Lunch is warmer and gives you the views; dress children in ski layers either way.
Lessons, a table afterwards and a driver home.
We find and brief a nanny or babysitter for the days the little ones aren't in ski school, or the evenings you go out: at the house, the same person all week if you like.
Come in from the mountain to the fire lit, something warm to drink and a spread laid out: set up while you ski by our chef or caterer, from groceries already in the house.
A car and driver on call for dinner and the night out, so nobody hunts for a taxi at midnight.
Reservations, timing, a driver and a picnic for Maroon Bells or a day in the valley, arranged around your group.
Sleigh and snowcat dates, holiday nights and the tables worth booking early.
Written from Aspen by Paul Montiel. A few letters a season, only when something matters. Leave any time; we never share your address.Pine Creek Cookhouse: winter · Aspen Snowmass: The Cabin snowcat dinner · Aspen Chamber: adventure dining — checked October 2, 2026.
Tell us the night and who is coming. We book the sleigh or snowcat and the car there and back.
Plan the evening
