Alpine Visitor Center

"Elevation: 11,796 ft The Alpine Visitor Center is the highest-elevation visitor center in the entire National Park System. In addition to a small exhibit, ranger information desk, and gift shop, the visitor center is also home to the Trail Ridge Store, a larger, more commercialized gift shop and cafe. We recommend stopping in for coffee or hot chocolate. It gets chilly up here, even in peak summer! From the visitor center parking lot, the short (less than 1-mile round trip) hike on the paved Alpine Ridge Trail is well worth it for mountain and tundra views from above the visitor center. If you have more time or energy (we did not), you can also hike the Ute Trail to Milner Pass from the same lot. If you’re up for a hike, the Ute Trail (described in the table above), starts here and ends at the Alpine Visitor Center."

"The Alpine Visitor Center is full of souvenirs so don't forget to pick something up for this memorable occasion. They have snacks there also. They used to have a food bar pre-covid but we haven't gone inside since so I'm not sure if it's still there or not (I wouldn't count on it). The primary restrooms are located on the east side of the parking lot where a dedicated building houses many vault toilets. Also from the east side of the parking lot, near the visitor center, you will find the Alpine Ridge Trail. It is not a difficult or long trail, but we did have to take a few breaks on the way up. There are over 200 stairs!...so, as you can imagine, it is not stroller friendly."