It’s a rough time right now for those in the hotel industry, and an even tougher time to open up a brand new one, but just last week, Boulder’s Adventure Lodge hostel announced on social media its expansion to a second location in nearby Lyons at 338 Main Street, the former location of Aspen Leaf Motel.
For the last five years the company has bootstrapped its way up, adding a sprinter van rental program last summer and now opening up the new location while maintaining its current Boulder operation.
A-Lodge CEO and co-owner Asa Firestone tells BLDRfly that the company also purchased the property adjacent to the hotel, closing on it just last Friday, which he and his fiance just moved into so that he can more easily help get the new operation up and running.
It’s goal includes making an outdoor biergarten in the side yard and to take down the fence between the two properties for a better venue to host outdoor movies and events.
Asa and his partner Kris Klauber will manage the six-bedroom motel under their A-Lodge brand. Asa and investor Kurt Klebe own 338 Main St and 328 Main St under their real estate company A2 Properties.
They renovated all the rooms, created a new hotel lobby that will also serve as a Meridian Line clothing store, and are working on the beer garden and outdoor movie & event venue. For the past two months, they have been doing weekly rentals before announcing its launch as a normal hotel yesterday. Bookings can be made now.
“It’s a bit intense and stressful, but feels like the right thing to do,” says Asa, who in addition to moving and expanding also had to buy out one of his partners who recently decided to leave the company.
While he plans on living in the next door house for now, eventually A-Lodge Lyons will use it as an Airbnb-type suite in the hotel.
The US may not boast as many hostels as other regions, such as Europe or Central America, but Asa combines a rugged sense of exploration with a dose of Western American capitalist philosophy, such as getting an investor, to grow and expand the adventure business.
“It’s a weird time to be doubling down on your investment, but sometimes you have to be bold and just do it,” says Asa, an avid rock climber who lived in Brazil for years and has an MBA in business.
Header image: The Boulder A-Lodge’s summer Under The Stars Film Nights represent the apotheosis of the lodge’s founding vision. Photo: A-Lodge.
