Sunlight Mountain opens for the 2026-27 season on Saturday, Dec. 12. On the calendar, that date is the start of winter in Glenwood Springs. Six weeks before any lift turns, the season is already running somewhere else. Ski films play on a dinner-theater stage on Grand Avenue, the Community Center ice gets its first skaters, and a fire-and-ice party goes up on Iron Mountain. Even the ski area's money is raised downtown.
In this town, the ski hill is the last part of winter to arrive. The weeks between Halloween and Dec. 12 run on venues that never close: the Glenwood Vaudeville Revue, the Community Center, the Caverns gondola and the hot springs. Here they are in order.
Three nights at 915 Grand Avenue
The first three marquee nights of the season all happen in one room. Tonight, Thursday, Oct. 29, the Wild & Scenic Film Fest's Glenwood stop takes over the Vaudeville Theater at 5:30 p.m., according to the Visit Glenwood event calendar. It's the environmental and adventure film side of the season. Nine days later the same stage turns to skiing.
Warren Miller's 77th annual ski film, "DAYS OFF," screens at the Glenwood Vaudeville Revue on Saturday, Nov. 7. Doors open at 6 p.m. for dinner and drinks before the film. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for kids 6 to 12, and the night includes a drawing to support the Sunlight Winter Sports Club. Sunlight's event listing sends ticket buyers to the Revue's own site, gvrshow.com. So the ski area's club does its pre-season fundraising five weeks before opening day, in a downtown theater, with dinner served.
A week after that, the room settles in for the long run. The Glenwood Vaudeville Revue Holiday Show runs Nov. 13 through Jan. 16, with two hours of comedy, dance and original acts. The venue lists Friday and Saturday doors at 6 p.m. and curtain at 6:45 p.m. That makes the Holiday Show four weeks old when Sunlight opens. One booking note on the show page: parties of two will likely be seated with another party of two, and the box office at 970.945.9699 takes requests to do otherwise.
The first ice is indoors and two days away
The first frozen surface of the season isn't on Sunlight's slopes. Glenwood Springs Parks & Recreation calls its Saturday, Oct. 31 Spooky Skate the "First Ice Skating of the season" in an announcement posted Oct. 12. It's part of the department's Halloween Spooktacular that night.
Opening rink season on Halloween puts skating six weeks ahead of skiing. Both happen inside city limits. Among the town's indoor venues, the Glenwood Springs Community Arts Center at 601 E. Sixth St. is new this year. The Post Independent reported that the remodeled center reopened Aug. 15 with an expanded lineup of art, dance, theater and music instruction. Late fall is its first full season of classes in the new space.
Sunlight's one deadline lands Sunday
Sunlight has one date before Dec. 12 that costs money to miss. Season pass prices go up on Nov. 1, according to the resort's individual pass page. Most tiers rise by $20. Two of them rise by more:
| Pass | Through Oct. 31 | From Nov. 1 | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | $699 | $719 | $20 |
| Young adult | $459 | $479 | $20 |
| Senior | $459 | $479 | $20 |
| Student | $349 | $369 | $20 |
| Child | $269 | $289 | $20 |
| Military/first responder | $569 | $609 | $40 |
| Midweek | $439 | $489 | $50 |
The midweek pass has the biggest jump in dollars. It goes up $50, while the full adult pass goes up $20. After Nov. 1 the two passes sit $230 apart instead of $260, so the midweek option gets relatively more expensive the day the deadline passes. The same page lists the RFID gate and reload system as a passholder benefit. It also says the free Powder Pass came only with passes bought before May 31, so that perk is gone for anyone buying now.
The mountain above town starts first
By Nov. 21, Sunlight is still three weeks from opening, and the other mountain in town has already started its winter. Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, at 51000 Two Rivers Plaza Road, holds its Winter on the Mountain kickoff on Saturday, Nov. 21, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The park's event page describes the Fire & Ice celebration this way: "Watch fire dancers & pyrotechnics light up the night against the backdrop of an ice tower glowing with fire and additional ice castles."
The week before, the gondola does double duty. From Nov. 13 to 25, Glenwood Caverns runs Gondola Giving with Lift Up. Guests are invited to donate a $25 City Market gift card at the gondola, according to the park's Gondola Giving listing. The drive overlaps the Holiday Show's opening weekend and ends the day before Thanksgiving. That makes the gondola base one of the season's earliest gathering points.
Nov. 21 is also a Saturday in the Holiday Show's run. A long day on the mountain and an evening on Grand Avenue fit on the same date.
One Tuesday the big pool drains
Every year-round venue has a down day. For Glenwood Hot Springs Resort, this season's falls on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2026, when the pool, shop and grill close for scheduled maintenance. Breakfast isn't served on closure days either. The resort's closure page explains that these closures cover repairs that require draining the pool. During the closure, the resort offers a discounted day membership at its Athletic Club, which includes the fitness facility, yoga and Pilates classes, and an adults-only wet lounge with a jacuzzi, sauna and steam room.
The same page lists the next closures for anyone planning ahead: Jan. 12, March 2, and April 20 and 21, 2027. The resort notes that the dates can change.
On Nov. 17 the town's other soaks are the alternatives. Iron Mountain Hot Springs advertises its Sauna Summit, with five saunas and three plunge pools. Yampah Vapor Caves has a Fall 2026 seasonal package, available since Sept. 14, that pairs the caves with a private mineral bath and a spiced-cider body wrap and scrub.
Thanksgiving morning at Veltus Park
The last big community date before the lifts start is a footrace. The Glenwood Springs Turkey Day 5K & Fun Run is set for Thursday, Nov. 26, at Veltus Park. The 5K starts at 9 a.m. and the 2K fun run at 10 a.m. Proceeds go to Roaring Fork Phoenix Youth and the Glenwood Springs Elementary School PTA. The race is on the holiday itself, and the Holiday Show's Friday and Saturday nights fall that same weekend. That's a full holiday weekend in town, still more than two weeks before opening day.
The six weeks, in order
Put on one calendar, the season builds from downtown up to the mountain:
- Thursday, Oct. 29: Wild & Scenic Film Fest, Vaudeville Theater, 5:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Oct. 31: Spooky Skate, first ice skating of the season, Glenwood Springs Parks & Recreation
- Sunday, Nov. 1: Sunlight season pass prices increase
- Saturday, Nov. 7: Warren Miller's "DAYS OFF," Glenwood Vaudeville Revue, doors at 6 p.m.
- Friday, Nov. 13: Holiday Show opens at the Revue and Gondola Giving begins at Glenwood Caverns
- Tuesday, Nov. 17: Glenwood Hot Springs Resort pool, shop and grill closed for maintenance
- Saturday, Nov. 21: Fire & Ice Winter on the Mountain kickoff, Glenwood Caverns, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Wednesday, Nov. 25: Last day of Gondola Giving
- Thursday, Nov. 26: Turkey Day 5K & Fun Run, Veltus Park, 9 a.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 12: Sunlight Mountain opening day
Seven of the ten dates take place within the city, on Grand Avenue, at the Community Center, at Veltus Park and in the pools. One more is up the Caverns gondola above town. By the time Sunlight's first chair loads on Dec. 12, the Holiday Show will have played four full weekends and the Friday night of a fifth.
If you own in Glenwood and spend part of the year away, Mary Kate can help you time your visits, guests or a seasonal lease around these six weeks before Sunlight opens. Mary Kate Farrell works with owners across the Roaring Fork Valley and is glad to share what she's seeing in Glenwood this winter. Let's Connect.
