In all the years I’ve vacationed in Telluride, I’ve never stayed in Mountain Village. No particular reason, really; I guess you could just call me a creature of habit. But this year, we decided to break the mold and stay over the hill. Let me tell you, it was such a nice change and we had a terrific stay. Our condo was in the Westermere Building (#312), right in the Village Center. It was a two bedroom unit, which was all we needed, but a very spacious one, which was a bonus. The master was large with a queen bed, television and private bath; the guest room had two queens and our kids thought having their own big beds (not to mention TV) was the coolest thing ever. While the kitchen wasn’t huge, it was well equipped and featured a nice bar counter with stools, which we used at breakfast time. As for the living room, it had a big flat screen TV and fireplace, as well as a south-facing deck and lots of windows. Afternoon sun was aplenty and we were on the third floor, which provided a great perspective of the Village (our bird’s eye view of the Conference Center, in particular, was very handy on the nights we didn’t get a babysitter and wanted to know if we were missing out on anything good). The location was superb, especially with two small kids. Restaurants, shops and the gondola were virtually right outside our door. One morning, I got the kids bundled and we headed out bright and early (thought we’d let daddy sleep in…yes, I’m a saint and I know it). We went to Telluride Sports to get my daughter a balaclava for underneath her ski helmet; then picked up coffee and breakfast to bring home. It was so pleasant to walk through the Village on a quiet Sunday morning and so convenient to be within such close proximity of everything. In the evenings, we rode the gondola to town for dinner sometimes, but on other nights we happily stayed in the Village. Our meal at 9545 was especially good (hopefully it’s sticking around despite recent Inn at Lost Creek rumors) and there’s a Sweet Life in the Village Center so really, what else does one need. As far as skiing was concerned, my husband and I didn’t notice much of a difference between staying in Town versus the Village with regard to our skiing, but for the kids who still ski primarily on lifts 1, 10 and 4, it was a big change. We could walk right out the door and head to Lift 4, or head to the Peaks trail and lifts 1 and 10 via the Peaks Hotel across the street. As much as we all love the gondola, it was definitely a faster excursion not to have the commute from town. But probably the best thing about Westermere #312 (and anyone who embarks on family ski vacations with young children will know what I’m talking about), was that the elevator was steps from the unit’s front door, and practically on top of the allotted parking space down in the garage. Needless to say, my husband was thrilled to shirk some of his Sherpa duties.