By air: Copper Mountain is 90 miles west of Denver International Airport on I-70. Several ground transportation companies run vans between the airport and your lodge with many daily departures. You can make arrangements when you reserve lodging or call Colorado Mountain Express (800-525-6363) or Lift Ticket Limo (866-488-5280; 668-4899). For personalized charter limos, vans and suburbans, make reservations with VailCoach (877 554-7433).

By car: Right off I-70 at Exit 195. You can see many of the trails from the freeway.

Getting around: If you plan to frequent trips to Vail or to the other Summit County areas, you'll probably want a car. Otherwise you don't need one. Copper Mountain's updated fleet of buses enhances an already superb (and free) shuttle service that run constantly between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. Walking is also easy between the outlying condos and the village center.

Free Summit Stage buses serve the three nearby ski areas as well as the towns of Dillon, Silverthorne and Frisco. Warning: The buses make lots of stops so it can take up to 90 minutes to make it down the road to the next resort. Good bus service links Copper Mountain and the nearest town, Frisco, including an express bus from the Frisco transfer station to Copper every half-hour. A multi-stop bus also runs so you can get a ride to Copper every half-hour during the day and early evening.

If you are not staying at Copper, a warning about parking: All parking lots charge about $10 per day, except the outlying free Alpine lot near the highway.

Here's some information about getting around Summit County.