Blending the best of old and new, Telluride and Mountain Village comprise one of North America's most desirable—and most in-demand—locales for year-round living. Tucked into a glacier-hewn canyon, surrounded by peaks towering 14,000 feet, historic Telluride preserves the grace of its Victorian origins. The entire town is protected as a National Historic landmark District.
Just across the ridge, joined to the Town of Telluride by a free year-round gondola, Mountain Village, founded in 1987, blends European-alpine architecture with the rustic traditions of the Rockies. Telluride and Mountain Village share direct lift and trail access to the vast Telluride Ski Resort, perenially voted one of the world's most beautiful ski areas. At Telluride Golf Resort, located in Mountain Village, summer's golfers and tennis players are replaced by (or, more likely, transform themselves into) Nordic skiers during the winter months.
Telluride and Mountain Village have become a mecca for culture lovers as well as for sports and nature enthusiasts. The area hosts a myriad of summer festivals—classical, jazz, blues and bluegrass music; visual arts; food and wine; two film festivals; a balloon festival; a science and technology festival; and more.