The Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences

The Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences sits at 728 West Lionshead Circle, on the western edge of Lionshead Village. Locals just call it the Ritz-Carlton, Vail, and it is the in-town one, not to be confused with the Ritz-Carlton at Bachelor Gulch over by Beaver Creek. It is a residence club, two-, three-, and four-bedroom homes rather than standard hotel rooms, with the Ritz-Carlton running the front desk, the bell stand, the ski valet, and the concierge. There is a heated outdoor pool, hot tubs, a fitness room, and the Ritz Kids program for families.

That yellow was controversial when it was built. It's grown on people over time, and it's softened a little with the seasons. Today the Bavarian-style facade with its iron balconies reads as part of the village, and it anchors the quiet west end the way the Arrabelle anchors the gondola base.

We would rather you hear this from us than be surprised at the curb. The Ritz-Carlton Club is not ski-in, ski-out. It is a beautiful hotel a short walk from the lifts, not on the snow itself. More on why that is below, and it is a story worth knowing.

Getting you here, off any flight and in any weather, is the part we handle.

The arrival is the covered entrance off West Lionshead Circle, the stone porte-cochere with the lion crest over the door and the heated garage tucked underneath. You pull onto the cobblestone turnaround, the bell staff and valet meet the vehicle, your bags come off the back, and you are inside. That is the whole point of a private car here. Lionshead is a pedestrian village, and most people who drive themselves end up in the public parking structure, hauling bags across the plaza in ski boots.

We don't do that to you. We know the approach, off I-70 at the main Vail exit, through the roundabout under the overpass, west on the South Frontage Road, then in along West Lionshead Circle to the door. It is a short, specific sequence, and we have driven it in clear weather and in whiteouts for years.

When You Land, We Are Already There

The moment your wheels touch the runway, you get a text from your driver with exactly where to meet. We track your flight in real time, so an early landing or a delay is our problem to manage, not yours. Bag came out late? We wait. The whole vehicle is yours, direct from the curb to the door in Lionshead.

One private vehicle, one driver, all the way to the hotel.

From the Ritz-Carlton Club it is a short, mostly level walk east through the village to the Eagle Bahn Gondola and Chair 8 at the Lionshead base. Not steps from the door the way the Arrabelle is, but close, and an easy stroll once you know the way through the plaza.

The hotel makes it easier than it sounds. The ski valet holds the whole family's skis, boots, and helmets, so the gear stays at the hotel and you walk over empty-handed. Most guests rent right here in Vail anyway, so there is nothing to fly in but luggage and boot bags. The village is an easy walk, and the concierge can arrange a ride for anyone who would rather not.

For families, the Ritz Kids program and the short walk make mornings simple. And when you are done with the mountain, the playgrounds and the rest of Lionshead are right there, the parks we walk through in our guide to every Town of Vail park.

Getting the whole family and all that gear up here from the airport in the first place, car seats and all, is the part we take off your plate.

A few minutes east on foot and you are in the core of Lionshead, Vail Square with its open-air ice rink, the gondola wheelhouse, and the restaurants stacked around the base. From the Ritz you walk to all of it.

The short list of where we send people: Garfinkel's for the sunny deck and a burger, Bart & Yeti's for one of the last classic ski bars left in Vail, the Little Diner that locals will argue is the best food in town, El Sabor for tacos by the creek, Blue Moose for New York slices by the rink, and the Market at Vail for stocking the residence. The Ritz has the Lobby Lounge inside for an easy après drink without going anywhere at all.

We wrote the full Lionshead rundown, fine dining to grab-and-go, on our Arrabelle page, since it is the same village on foot. The beauty of staying here is you will not touch a car all week, which is exactly why the only ride worth booking is the one to and from the airport. That part is ours.

How much is a car service from the airport to the Ritz-Carlton Club?

Eagle County Airport (EGE) to the Ritz-Carlton Club starts at $290 in a Suburban and $430 in a Sprinter. Denver International Airport starts at $595 in a Suburban and $895 in a Sprinter. All pricing is flat-rate and all-inclusive, with no surge fees and no surprises at drop-off.

Is the Ritz-Carlton Club, Vail ski-in, ski-out?

No. It is a beautiful hotel a short walk from the Eagle Bahn Gondola and Chair 8 on the west end of Lionshead, not on the snow itself. The Ritz keeps a ski valet, so the gear stays at the hotel and the village is an easy walk, with the concierge able to arrange a ride. The part we handle is the airport shuttle, getting you from Eagle County or Denver straight to their door.

Where do you drop off at the Ritz-Carlton Club?

We take you to the hotel's arrival entrance off West Lionshead Circle, where the bell staff and valet meet you at the covered porte-cochere with the heated garage just below, rather than the public parking structure. Lionshead is a pedestrian village, so knowing the right approach matters.

How long is the drive from Eagle County Airport to the Ritz-Carlton Club?

About 40 minutes and roughly 35 miles, straight east on I-70 to the main Vail exit. From Denver International Airport it is about 2 hours via I-70 West, longer in heavy weather or holiday traffic, which we plan for.

Do you provide car seats for families staying at the Ritz-Carlton Club?

Yes, and always free. Every vehicle carries rear-facing infant seats, forward-facing toddler seats, high-back boosters, and backless boosters at no additional charge. Most car services in the valley charge $15 to $25 per seat. We never have.

Are you available for early flights and late arrivals?

Yes, 365 days a year. Red-eye landings, early departures before the lifts open, holidays, and storm days included. Call or text George and Kyla directly at (970) 471-9792.

There is a reason the Ritz-Carlton Club is a walk to the lifts and not steps from them, and it is one of those things you only know if you have watched it play out from here.

The land just west of the Ritz was slated to become Ever Vail, a billion-dollar base village Vail Resorts planned through the 2000s. The centerpiece was a third gondola onto Vail Mountain, a brand-new portal that would have put a lift practically at this end of Lionshead. When the Ritz-Carlton Club went up on the west end, that gondola was part of the picture.

It never got built. Ever Vail was finally approved by the town in 2012, after more than eighty public meetings, but by then Vail Resorts had shifted out of the development business and bet the company on the Epic Pass. The approvals carried a deadline to relocate the South Frontage Road, that deadline passed at the end of 2020, and the whole thing expired. The parcel is still a maintenance yard and tired office space today.

So the lift that was supposed to anchor this end of the village never came, and the Ritz is the beautiful walk-to-the-gondola hotel it is rather than the ski-out it was nearly planned around. The story is not quite over, the town and Vail Resorts revived it in 2024 as West Lionshead, with gondola language back in the new master plan, but nothing is built yet.

In the meantime, the short walk is the short walk, and a private car at the door is how you close the gap. That part we have handled for years.