"We started this process this summer and it's happening fast," Raj Kumar told The Aspen Times about Guest House, the restaurant and lounge he is opening at 415 E. Hyman Ave. with Snowmass resident Cedric Gervais. The target opening is New Year's Eve.
That makes Dec. 31 the last of this winter's new arrivals, more than a month after the lifts start turning. Aspen Snowmass is marking its 80th season with a new chairlift on Aspen Mountain and a rebuilt restaurant on Snowmass. Neither is tied to opening day. The new pieces of this winter arrive on separate dates from late November through the last night of the year.
Nov. 26 is the scheduled date
Aspen Mountain and Snowmass are scheduled to open Thursday, Nov. 26, according to Aspen One's 2026-27 winter announcement and the resort's Aspen Mountain page. Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk follow on Saturday, Dec. 12.
The Aspen Chamber Resort Association's winter preview lists two hotel programs that start before the lifts. The St. Regis Aspen starts its daily Alpine Winter Afternoon Tea and turns its pool deck into an Alpine Winter Village on Sunday, Nov. 22. The village runs from 3 to 5 p.m. with a free hot chocolate station, a s'mores garden and a pop-up bar serving Glühwein, raclette sandwiches and mini fondue. At MOLLIE Aspen, Chef Ludo Lefebvre's rooftop Petit Familia reopens Wednesday, Nov. 25, the night before the lifts. It's open Wednesday through Sunday from 4 to 10 p.m. New this winter are a $12 après margarita from 4 to 6 p.m., DJs on Fridays and a firepit on the Roof Terrace.
The new Ajax lift is expected in December
The biggest change on Aspen Mountain this year is at Gondola Plaza. The Nell Bell high-speed quad takes the place of two lifts that served the mountain for a combined 109 years.
| Bell Mountain | Little Nell | Nell Bell | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installed | 1957 | 1986 | 2026 |
| Type | Double | Fixed-grip quad | Detachable high-speed quad |
SAM Magazine's November construction survey puts the new lift at 8,712 feet long, climbing 2,656 vertical feet in 8.7 minutes. Its bottom terminal sits next to the Silver Queen Gondola. A mid-station near the old top of Little Nell was considered and dropped because of the terrain and expected low demand. Crews needed a spider excavator and several helicopter days for the tower foundations, and the towers were flown in by mid-September. The same survey notes that a third old fixed-grip lift, Lift 1A, also came out this year because of two private real estate projects being built nearby.
The Aspen Times reported on Oct. 22 that the lift cable had been spliced and chairs were being hung. SAM expects the lift to open to skiers in December. For anyone skiing Ajax from the base over Thanksgiving weekend, that means planning for the gondola as the way up.
The old chairs have new homes already. Aspen Snowmass auctioned chairs from both retired lifts online from July 4 to 19, with proceeds going to climate-action and civic-engagement groups, The Aspen Times reported. The plan also set aside 24 chairs for community organizations, 11 for art projects and 75 for an employee raffle.
Ullrhof nearly doubles its indoor seats
Snowmass's mountain opens on Nov. 26, and its new lunch spot is expected in December. The old Ullrhof was torn down and replaced with a $42 million, two-story building. Aspen Public Radio calls it the ski company's first fully electric on-mountain restaurant.
The size change is easy to feel at lunch. The new lodge covers 26,115 square feet and seats 425 people indoors, up from 220 in the old building, according to SAM. It's built from cross-laminated timber and glulam beams instead of steel and concrete. It has triple-glazed windows, a heat pump hot water system and insulation 15 percent above code. Construction began in May 2025, and subcontractors worked through last winter by reaching the site on snowcats. The Aspen Daily News photographed the rebuilt restaurant at an Oct. 22 preview, and SAM lists Ullrhof alongside Nell Bell as expected to open to skiers in December.
Downtown's newest arrivals face their first ski season
On the town side, the newest places opened in summer, and this is their first winter. White Elephant Aspen opened June 15 at Main and Garmisch streets in the West End. This winter it offers a free ski shuttle to Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk, early-access runs on Aspen Mountain for hotel guests, and outdoor hot tubs. Its restaurant, Lola 41, opened the same day with Executive Chef Seth Halpin, The Aspen Times reported. The kitchen focuses on seafood and sushi inspired by places along the 41st parallel, from Japan to Nantucket. This winter it adds an après menu and a new lounge, 41 Below.
Guest House arrives last, in a space downtown already knows. Kumar and Gervais were both partners in Madame Ushi at the same address. They bought out the other partners and redesigned the room, according to The Aspen Times. "We decided to restructure the venue we had because the venue is incredible. It's a great spot," Gervais told the paper.
The new place has a 220-seat dining room serving New American food, with the RSVP Lounge for cocktails, music and late nights. Guest House started in Austin in 2024 and has since opened in Las Vegas and Scottsdale. Aspen is its first mountain town. ACRA says Aspen will be the first Guest House to serve sushi and Asian dishes. "We are going to make it approachable so anyone can make a reservation and come in and have a great night," Kumar told The Aspen Times.
The Gant has both an opening and a closing date
Everything above is getting started. The Gant is the one property with a firm end date this season. ACRA says this is the resort's last winter before it closes temporarily on March 29, 2027, for a property-wide renovation of its exteriors, grounds, pools and shared spaces. A "Last Chair" offer and a "Last Splash" winter pool party will mark the occasion, and the Winter Market Series of local makers returns.
Its newest addition arrives in that same final season. 73 Café, named for the year The Gant opened, sits off the lobby across from the pool. It's an all-day, come-as-you-are breakfast and lunch spot with a seasonal menu from culinary partner Red Maple.
December, in order
After opening day, the rest of the year's new and anniversary events fall into a short run of dates:
- Dec. 10 to 13: Wintersköl turns 75. The usual Soupsköl, bonfire, torchlight descent and fireworks over Aspen Mountain return, and a drone show is added for the 75th year and Colorado's 150th.
- Dec. 12 and 13: Aspen Snowmass sells lift tickets for $80 both days as part of its 80th anniversary. Saturday is also opening day at Highlands and Buttermilk, so all four mountains are open that weekend.
- Sometime in December: Nell Bell and Ullrhof are both expected to open to skiers.
- Dec. 20 to Jan. 4: Angelo's and Duemani put up their winter yurts.
- Dec. 31: Guest House's target opening at 415 E. Hyman Ave.
The $80 weekend overlaps with the last two days of Wintersköl, and the first time locals can ride the new lift up from Gondola Plaza should come within the same month.
If you're an Aspen broker with a listing or a closing scheduled between Thanksgiving and the holidays, the busy calendar is a good reason to set dates early. First Alliance Title offers named escrow teams, mobile closings and digital earnest-money collection, so a December file can stay on schedule even when your clients are on the mountain. Place your order to set it up.
