Aspen Mountain’s ‘Beach Club’ Returns for a Picture-Perfect Ski Season
Aesthetically Pleasing AspenX Comes to Life With Help from The Little Nell and Dallas-Native Gray Malin
BY Kimber Westphall // 01.25.23"Snow Beach" from AspenX Gray Malin and Gray Malin returns in 2023 in partnership with The Little Nell. (courtesy)
When it comes to this particular Aspen pop-up, the experience transcends beyond a fleeting moment. Although, can you really consider an entire mountaintop takeover a pop-up? On January 27, the mountainside experience, AspenX, returns in partnership with fine art photographer, Dallas’s own Gray Malin, as AspenX Beach Club.
“Last year when we launched the beach club it was thrilling because no one had ever done anything like it before on top of a mountain in the winter,” Malin says. “We knew it could be an amazing immersive experience and I was blown away by the response. The team at AspenX helped bring the vision to life where guests can revel in vintage-esque glamour, listen to a live DJ, play games, dance, take pictures, and experience five-star service from The Little Nell.”
Dallas always looks forward to the next big thing coming from Malin. Apparently so does Aspen. Malin forged a partnership with The Little Nell in 2019 for the hotel’s 20th-anniversary celebration. Upon the initial visit to Aspen, Malin curated a vintage ski photo shoot, which is on gallery display atop Aspen Mountain at the Sundeck restaurant.
The partnership continued over the years. The 5-star hotel served as the first stop on Malin’s 2021 book tour. The photographer’s most recent series “The Dogs of Aspen,” is set on the snowy slopes of Aspen Mountain and at The Little Nell. One of the prints, “Pups on a Chair Lift,” was his single biggest-selling print in 2022, and also generated $60,000 for the Aspen Animal Shelter.
So how can Texans traveling to Aspen submerge themselves in all things Gray Malin this season? Perhaps you’d call it the hottest ticket in town. AspenX tickets just went on sale and takes place Fridays through Sundays until the end of ski season (April 16). Only 100 people per day are allowed admittance into the three-hour pop-up (noon to 3 p.m.), so if you’re booking a trip to Aspen, quantities are limited and a lift ticket is required. It’s on top of the mountain after all.
We had to ask for a sneak peek of what happens once “on the beach.” The Gold Package ($300) offers Champagne or Rosé and a chef-curated menu from the grill. And the Platinum Package ($700) includes premier seating with table service, a bottle of Dom Perignon or Domaine Ott Chateau de Selle Magnum, a chef-curated menu from the grill, and a “surprise gift.”
PaperCity did receive a little scoop — Malin will be in Aspen for the weekend of February 10 to help celebrate the pop-up he brought to life. So to see an artist immersed in his vision, this is the weekend to hit up Snow Beach, AspenX Beach Club.
AspenX will be open from January 27 to April 16 (weekends only) from noon to 3 pm.