Estes Park, Home of the “Shining!”

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When you see the Stanley Hotel you automatically think of the “Shining.” The science fiction novel by Stephen King. The first time my husband and I saw the Stanley Hotel, the Shining had not been written yet.

We stumbled on Estes Park by accident. We had taken a 3-day weekend without our kids for the first time since all three of them had been born. My mother stayed with our children and we went and did a few things in Colorado that we had never done.

We just happened to decide to go to Estes Park. We fell in love with this mountain town. It is beautiful and full of life in the summer. We saw the Stanley Hotel, and it was very majestic.

The beautiful mountain scenery of Colorado is the backdrop for the Stanley Hotel. The Stanley hotel was built in 1909 as a grand summer resort that catered to wealthy travelers from the East Coast. The Stanley Hotel was built by Freelan Oscar Stanley of the Stanley Steamer fame. It opened July 4, 1909 as a resort for upper class easterners and a health retreat for the sufferers of tuberculosis.

The Stanley has a storied history that begins well before Stephen King stepped foot on the property, and the hotel once hosted guests like Molly Brown, John Philip Sousa, and Theodore Roosevelt.

Stephen King stayed at the Stanley Hotel on a visit to Colorado, and it served as inspriation for the movie, but the Jack Nicholson version of the film was not filmed at the Stanley Hotel.. The 1997 mini-series however was. You can take the ghost tour at the Stanley, you will learn some great history, maybe see, hear or feel a spirit or two. We took the tour a few years ago and it was great! You get to feeling a little spooky.

Estes Park is the gateway to the Rocky Mountain National Park. It’s a great place for family vacations, weddings, family reunions or just a quick weekend getaway. We have enjoyed several trips to Estes Park and still do.