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Photo: Over a Bridge (Vail Village at night in winter) by Alec Attie, CC0 1.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped and resized)
The best après-ski in Vail is at Express Lift, Vail Mountain's own outdoor bar at the base of Gondola One, where DJs play the deck on winter weekends and no lift ticket is needed. For a sit-down après with a band, The Red Lion has held the top of Bridge Street since 1963. In Lionshead, Garfinkel's has a sunny deck facing the gondola and a weekday happy hour, and Trails End runs a daily 3 to 5 p.m. après deal. Vail's après clusters at the two gondola bases, Vail Village and Lionshead, a 10 to 15 minute walk or a free bus ride apart.
Hours, prices and happy hours come from each venue's own website or menu, as recorded on its VailVacay listing (checked September 2026). Winter 2026/27 hours start when Vail Mountain opens, planned for November 13, 2026. Confirm before you go.
The 12 best après spots in Vail at a glance
| # | Pick | Where | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Express Lift | Base of Gondola One, Vail Village | The classic base-area après, DJs on winter weekends |
| 2 | The Red Lion | Top of Bridge Street, Vail Village | Live music, burgers and a Vail institution |
| 3 | Garfinkel's | Lionshead, by the Eagle Bahn Gondola | A sunny deck facing the gondola, weekday happy hour |
| 4 | Trails End | Lion Square Lodge, Lionshead | The best-value daily après deal in Lionshead |
| 5 | Pepi's Bar | Gasthof Gramshammer, Gore Creek Drive, Vail Village | Austrian beer and Vail history near Gondola One |
| 6 | The Remedy | Four Seasons Resort Vail, Vail Road | Cocktails, mountain views and a firepit patio |
| 7 | Vail Chophouse | Base of the Eagle Bahn Gondola, Lionshead | Slopeside patio with live music, and a real meal |
| 8 | Bart & Yeti's | Lifthouse Lodge, Lionshead | Unfussy pub après in ski boots, with a kids' menu |
| 9 | Vendetta's | Bridge Street, Vail Village | Pizza by the slice at the bar, and the late option |
| 10 | Mountain Standard | Gore Creek walkway, Vail Village | Food-first après by the creek |
| 11 | Vail Brewing Company tasting room | Solaris Plaza, Vail Village | A local pint, with your dog on the patio |
| 12 | The Fitz | Manor Vail Lodge, Golden Peak | Families finishing at Golden Peak and the ski school |
The best après-ski bars in Vail, ranked
Ranked for the hour after the lifts close: how close each one is to a lift, what is going on (a deck, a DJ, a band, a deal), and whether you can walk in. Nine are within a short walk of a gondola.
1. Express Lift
Express Lift is Vail Mountain's own bar at the foot of Gondola One: an outdoor, quick-service deck with mountain views. You can walk up in ski boots off the last run or wander over from the village, and no lift ticket is needed. The menu is short and European-leaning, with bratwurst, pretzel bites, cocktails and Colorado beer. From mid-December into April, rotating DJs play the deck on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. It is winter-only, takes no reservations and closes at 5 p.m., so it is an après stop, not dinner. Vail Mountain says Epic Mountain Rewards discounts apply.
2. The Red Lion
Marge and Larry Burdick opened The Red Lion in February 1963, and a group of locals has owned it since 2000. It is still where Vail Village gathers after skiing, with half-pound Harris Ranch burgers ($24 build-your-own on the online menu), red and green chili, nachos and wings. Live entertainment runs through the season, typically an evening set from 6 or 7 p.m. and afternoon sets on weekends. Seating is first come, first served, so arrive early at peak après; during live music, two bar-area tables can be reserved for adult groups of 8 to 12 with a food and beverage minimum.
3. Garfinkel's
Garf's has been Lionshead's locally owned sports bar and grill since 1992, and its deck looks over the gondola and Vail Mountain. Happy hour runs Monday to Friday from 3 to 6 p.m., with $3 select drafts and 30% off wings, chicken fingers and plain half nachos. The menu is ski-town bar food (burgers, wings, fish and chips), it describes itself as family-friendly, and seating is first come, first served.
4. Trails End
Trails End is the tacos-and-tapas restaurant inside Lion Square Lodge, steps from the Eagle Bahn Gondola, with a deck looking up at Vail Mountain and across Gore Creek. Après runs every day from 3 to 5 p.m.: $5 chicken or beef tacos and draft beers, $6 house wines, and $7 spritzes and margaritas. It hosts live music every week. Large parties are not booked from December 18 to January 10.
5. Pepi's Bar
Pepi's is the bar and restaurant of Hotel Gasthof Gramshammer, which Austrian ski racer Pepi Gramshammer and his wife Sheika opened in December 1964; the family still owns it. The bar pours Austrian beers and house cocktails, serves its own menu from 3 p.m., and has local entertainers playing for après. The heated, covered part of the deck is open year-round. You do not need to be a hotel guest.
6. The Remedy
The Four Seasons' bar has floor-to-ceiling windows onto the mountain and a firepit patio it keeps open year-round. Local musicians play at après, so it is livelier than most hotel lounges at that hour, and the hotel's Haute Chocolate is on the menu for anyone not drinking. The hotel listed all-day dining from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., with late night Thursday to Saturday until 11:30 p.m. (September 2026).
7. Vail Chophouse
Vail Chophouse sits steps from the base of the Eagle Bahn Gondola with a large patio, and unlike most steakhouses in town it serves lunch, après and dinner straight through, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Afternoons bring an après menu and, at select times, live music from local musicians on the patio; tables during live music must be reserved by phone at (970) 477-0555.
8. Bart & Yeti's
Bart & Yeti's has been pouring in Lionshead since 1975, inside the Lifthouse Lodge an easy walk from the gondola, so arriving in ski boots is normal. Regulars order the green chili and the onion rings. The patio is one of Lionshead's better people-watching spots at après, the beer list runs well past the usual handles, and there is a kids' menu. Open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
9. Vendetta's
Family owned on Bridge Street since 1983, Vendetta's has a double-sided bar the family calls legendary for après, and a pizza bar selling slices of house pies such as the Snow Pig (most slices about $5 to $5.50). The bar and pizza hours run later than the dining room's, which makes it the stop when après turns into a late night. Hours vary by season, so call (970) 476-5070 late at night.
10. Mountain Standard
The Sweet Basil team opened Mountain Standard in December 2012, on the creekside ground floor of the same building. Most of the menu is cooked over a wood fire, and the kitchen runs straight through the afternoon with an in-between menu from 3:30 to 5 p.m., which suits skiers coming off the mountain between meals. Tables are reservable a month ahead, but the 18-seat bar is first come, first served.
11. Vail Brewing Company tasting room
The Vail Village tasting room of Vail Brewing Company, founded in 2014 and brewing down valley in Eagle-Vail, pours 12 beers on tap, from Hot Mess Blonde Ale to Night Laps robust porter, with flights of four tasters. It hosts free live music including après sets, and leashed dogs are welcome on the patio. There is no kitchen, so pair it with dinner elsewhere. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; call (970) 470-4622 for weekend hours.
12. The Fitz
The Fitz is the bar and restaurant at Manor Vail Lodge, at the Golden Peak end of Vail Village, with booths looking out on Gore Creek or the mountain and a patio with fire pits. Happy hour runs daily from 2 to 4 p.m., which lines up with an early end to a ski-school day, and there is a kids' menu and a mocktail list. Open noon to 9 p.m. daily; book on OpenTable or call 970-476-4959.
Best après in Vail by group
- Families with children: The Fitz (kids' menu, mocktails, 2 to 4 p.m. happy hour), Bart & Yeti's (kids' menu), Tavern on the Square on Lionshead's square, where the outdoor ice rink is next door, and the Four Seasons' Haute Chocolate at The Remedy.
- On a budget: Trails End ($5 tacos and drafts, 3 to 5 p.m.), Garfinkel's ($3 select drafts, weekdays 3 to 6 p.m.), Loaded Joe's (daily happy hour 3 to 7 p.m. on beer, well drinks and wine) and First Chair at Gondola One, which offers free cookies after skiing and advertises $3 beers.
- Live music: The Red Lion, The Remedy, Vail Chophouse, Trails End and Pepi's. For music after dinner, Shakedown Bar (21+, doors at 9 p.m.) and Bridge Street Bar are night venues, not après spots.
- A quieter cocktail: The Gambit Bar at The Sebastian (fireplace, live jazz, folk and blues returning in December), Revel at The Hythe (Colorado spirits, open to non-guests until 11 p.m.) and Root & Flower on Bridge Street (20+ wines by the glass, happy hour 4 to 6 p.m.).
- Without skiing: every bar above is open to non-skiers. Express Lift needs no lift ticket because it sits at the base of the gondola.
Free Vail Après events, November to January
Early in the season the town adds free events under its Vail Après banner, run by Discover Vail and the Town of Vail. For 2026/27 they include a silent disco in Lionshead on Wednesdays from November 18 to December 30, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.; free 15-minute figure skating shows at the Arrabelle rink at 4:45 and 5:30 p.m., starting November 27; the Kringle Crossing holiday village from November 14 to January 4; and Express Lift's DJ après days.
Getting around after après
Vail's town buses are free, and Vail Village and Lionshead are within walking distance of each other, so there is little reason to drive. Leave skis in a rack or with a ski valet rather than against a table, and share tables when a deck is full, since several of the busiest spots, including Garfinkel's and The Red Lion, seat first come, first served. For what après-ski means and where the word comes from, see what is après-ski; for the bars and kitchens that stay open late, see how late Vail is open.
How we picked
We started from the 44 bars and the restaurants with bars in the VailVacay nightlife directory and ranked them for the hour after the lifts close. We looked at the walk from the nearest lift, what the venue actually offers at that hour (a deck, a DJ, a live band, a published happy hour), whether you can walk in without a booking, and whether it works for a mixed group. Every hour, price and deal comes from the venue's own website or menu, recorded on its VailVacay listing in September 2026; Express Lift's hours and DJ days, Pepi's live entertainment and the Vail Après event dates were re-checked against Vail Mountain, the Gasthof Gramshammer and Discover Vail on October 11, 2026. The hotel buttons are Expedia affiliate links for the lodges these bars sit in. Nobody paid to be included, and we do not use star ratings. Après hours change with the season, so check each listing before you go.
