4 Colorado Design Lover’s Getaways

This summer, take a vacation that satiates your adventurous spirit and your inner design geek. From a renovated Victorian rental to glamorous riverside tents, here are four high-style destinations worth a visit. You’ll come home with fresh ideas for your own home—the perfect souvenir.

1. Kessler Canyon

Why We Love It: If your design philosophy is “more is more,” this estate—comprising five cabins and two guest suites—is for you. Originally purchased by hotel mogul and Western history buff Richard Kessler in 2001 as a family hunting ranch, the 15,000-acre resort is filled with Kessler’s robust personal treasures: An antique gun collection includes historic notables such as the .44 Colt used to kill Billy the Kid, and taxidermy mounts line the walls of Kessler Canyon’s main lodge. It might seem over-the-top Western (hello, antler chandeliers), but authentic details, like the pool tables’ bronze inlaid poker chips, keep it from feeling kitschy.

Don’t Miss: The handmade rocking chairs on the expansive wrap-around front porch.

Pack Your Bags: $395 to $895 per night (call for seasonal opening and closing dates); 4410 CR 20, De Beque, 970-283-1145, kesslercanyon.com

2. Dunton River Camp

Why We Love It: Christoph and Katrin Henkel, owners of this eight-tent luxury campsite, are avid art collectors—and their devotion to stylish living is evident in every detail of the resort, which is tucked in the San Juan Mountains along the Dolores River. Custom beds, dreamed up by designer Christina Rossi (also the head of PR for Dunton River Camp) and built by a local furniture maker in Montrose, don’t sit flush with the wall—a trick to make the space feel airier. (Try it at home!) The tents, which boast en-suite bathrooms, sit on pressure-treated deck panels layered with canvas liner, carpet tiles, and (what else?) cowhide rugs, while the beds are topped with Bolivian frazadas and custom bedding, all from L’aviva Home.

Don’t Miss: The quirky accessories in the communal 19th-century farmhouse, which was impeccably renovated in 2013. Look for the old rocking chair the team found in the attic, still stuffed with its original horsehair; the fish lights strung in the corner of the living room (made out of, yes, real fish); and the old metal milk bottles and fruit crates discovered during local antique hunts.

Pack Your Bags: Starting at $1,500 per night (call for seasonal opening and closing dates); 50014 Road 38, Dolores, 970-882-4800, duntonrivercamp.com

3. Gateway Canyons Resort & Spa

Why We Love It: Talk about locally inspired style: This 6,000-acre resort’s whole design pays homage to its spectacular geography, marked by red-rock canyons and petroglyph-covered slickrock. With help from owners Maureen and John Hendricks (founder of Discovery Communications, the Discovery Channel’s parent company), designer Suzanne Geibel McCammon chose a color palette that mimics the getaway’s Unaweep Canyon backdrop: An accent wall in each suite was painted with real copper and then iodized to create a unique patina, and upholstered pieces and accessories embrace Southwestern hues of turquoise, deep red, and soft yellow. Detailed wood case goods are perfect counterpoints to the saturated color scheme.

Don’t Miss: The handcrafted Peruvian-wood barn doors that make appearances throughout the resort’s Kayenta and Casitas rooms.

Pack Your Bags: $400 to $1,700 per night; 43200 CO 141, Gateway, 970-931-2458, gatewaycanyons.com

4. Scarp Ridge Lodge

Why We Love It: History and refined modern style meet in this 12,000-square-foot Victorian gem, which began its long life in 1885 as a saloon and dance hall for Crested Butte’s Croatian miners. Today the vacation lodge, owned by travel and adventure company Eleven Experience, showcases a restored 19th-century facade with original wooden double doors. The fully overhauled six-bedroom interior is marked by an extraordinary level of craftsmanship: Local blacksmith Jeff Brethauer forged the handsome stair railing and metal chairs beside the indoor saltwater lap pool, and the design team highlighted the architecture with beams reclaimed from a tobacco farm in Tennessee. And unlike the style of so many mountain retreats, the lodge’s decor is light and chic, anchored by a neutral palette and layers of textural linens.

Don’t Miss: The flown-in-from-Belgium bluestone, which accentuates the cool hues in the bathrooms and lobby.

Pack Your Bags: Starting at $860 per night, per guest, in summer; 512 Second St., Crested Butte, 970-349-7761, elevenexperience.com/scarp-ridge-lodge