Discover the Magic of Simply Christmas in Estes Park

Walk down Elkhorn Avenue in downtown Estes Park and you will pass a window display that stops people mid stride. Snow, lights, ornaments, and a little bit of mountain magic. That window belongs to Simply Christmas, and for locals it has become one of those landmarks you use to give directions without thinking twice about it.

We stopped in to talk with owner Carissa McGill about the shop her parents started in 1989, the free personalization that keeps families coming back year after year, and the way she has spent the past year working to bring Estes Park business owners together. What we found was less a story about a store and more a story about what makes a small mountain town actually feel like one.

If you are new to Estes Park, thinking about relocating here, or you have lived here for decades and simply have not walked in yet, here is what makes this shop worth your time.

Three Things to Know About Simply Christmas

1. It is a family business with a real family story. Carissa's parents opened Simply Christmas in 1989. When her father passed away in 2014, her mother gave her a choice: take it over or sell it. Carissa bought the shop from her mom, who now enjoys a well earned retirement while the store carries on.

2. Personalization is free, and it is the whole point. Family names, pet names, team names, the year, the memory. Simply Christmas will personalize your ornament at no additional charge, which is why so many families make a stop here part of their annual Estes Park trip.

3. It is not only a Christmas store. Between the sports section, the local Estes Park keepsakes, and the year round hours, Simply Christmas functions as a gift shop with a holiday soul. Plenty of people walk in during July and walk out with something for someone they love.

Free Personalization and the Ornaments People Come Back For

Ask Carissa what the most requested item in the shop is and she does not hesitate: Estes Park ornaments. An elk. A mountain scene. Something locally made that says you were here. For visitors, it is the tangible piece of a trip that goes back home and reappears on the tree every December, year after year, long after the photos have been buried in a phone.

Right behind those are the family ornaments. Simply Christmas personalizes for free, which means the whole family gets written into the piece. And in one of the more charming services in retail anywhere, they will also take a name off an ornament for you if a boyfriend or girlfriend has since departed the family narrative. Life changes. The tree can keep up.

For anyone who has ever stood in a big box store trying to decide whether a personalized ornament is worth the upcharge, the free personalization is not a small thing. It is the difference between a decoration and a family record.

The Sports Section: Something for the Fan in Your Life

The sports collection at Simply Christmas has become one of the most popular corners of the store, and it solves a problem that a lot of gift shops never bothered to think about. Whatever team someone in your family lives and dies with, you can probably find it here.

Carissa noticed something once the sports section grew. Couples started staying longer. The women who were already shopping now had someone browsing happily alongside them instead of waiting by the door, and they were finding gifts for their husbands while they were at it. That is not an accident. That is a shop owner paying attention to how people actually shop.

Beyond the Shop: Community Leadership and the Estes Chamber

Carissa just wrapped up her year as chair of the Estes Chamber of Commerce, and it was not a ceremonial title. This year the Town of Estes Park trustees allocated funds to help local businesses weather a difficult stretch, and the Chamber was the organization that got that money into the hands of the businesses that needed it most, including those hit hardest by the summer construction downtown.

She also helped push forward something Estes Park business owners have needed for a while: education and collaboration. At a recent meeting, thirty to forty business owners sat in a room together and worked through the same question. How do we get through the slow season, and what can we do that benefits everyone rather than just ourselves?

The answer they landed on was community. Hotels putting together packages with the wine shop. The ornament shop sending families to the bowling alley. The bowling alley sending them back downtown. Business owners agreeing that a stronger social media presence for the town lifts every storefront on the street, not just the one posting.

That mindset is exactly why we started the Signature Spotlight series. Estes Park works because people like Carissa treat the town as something they are building together rather than a market they are competing in.

Santa on Vacation and Other Reasons to Walk In

Ask Carissa for a favorite memory from the shop and she does not reach for a sales figure. She talks about Santa.

Every so often, a man who looks unmistakably like Santa Claus walks into Simply Christmas. Sometimes it is the middle of July and he is wearing a Hawaiian shirt. And almost without fail, he crouches down to the kids in the store and asks whether they have been good this year, what they are hoping for, whether they are behaving themselves. The kids stop. The whole store stops. Parents get their phones out.

Watching families make memories inside her parents' shop is the part Carissa keeps coming back to. Ours included. Our kids came in every year, covered themselves in glitter, and walked out with the ornament for that year. Those ornaments are still on the tree.

Holiday Season Happenings in Downtown Estes Park

Simply Christmas sits at the center of a downtown that leans into the season hard. A few of the things Carissa is excited about:

•       Thanksgiving weekend and the Black Friday Christmas parade, with carolers and characters throughout downtown

•       Snowman Fest, where roughly forty participating businesses each hide a snowman in their store. Find at least twenty and bring your stamps back to Simply Christmas for a free snowman ornament, made specially for the event, for the first two hundred people to finish

•       A downtown evening in early December from five to eight, with Inkwell and Brew, Macdonald Book Shop, the Taffy Shop, the Grey House, Simply Christmas, and others staying open with specials. The first twenty five people at Simply Christmas get a free paint your own nutcracker, plus cookies

•       The Sweet Stroll, a walking tour of the town's candy shops that was a runaway hit last year

•       A holiday 5K through town under the lights

If you have been looking for a reason to spend a weekend in Estes Park during the holidays rather than just driving through, this is a fairly compelling lineup.

Cannot Make It to Town? They Will Answer the Phone

Simply Christmas is, in Carissa's own words, delightfully old school. There is no full e-commerce operation. There are about five employees, three of whom are over sixty, and there is a phone that gets answered by an actual person.

Here is how it works. You call or message them on Instagram or Facebook and tell them what you are looking for. Your daughter got her license. Your kid played soccer this season. You are a family of six. They will text you photos and prices of what they have, you pick what you want, they personalize it for free, and they ship it to you.

It requires a little patience and a little trust. In exchange you get a human being who knows the inventory and cares whether you end up with the right thing. That trade seems increasingly worth making.

How to Reach Simply Christmas

•       Location: 129 W. Elkhorn Avenue, downtown Estes Park

•       Phone: (970) 586-8990

•       Instagram and Facebook messages are both monitored and answered

Why a Shop Like This Matters to Mountain Living

People move to Estes Park for the mountains. Rocky Mountain National Park, the elk, the light on the Continental Divide in October. Those are the reasons that show up in the brochure, and they are real reasons.

But the thing that determines whether a place becomes home is usually smaller and quieter than that. It is whether the person behind the counter recognizes you. It is whether there is a shop where your family's ornaments have been getting made for fifteen years. It is whether business owners in town are working together or against each other when things get hard.

Simply Christmas is a good indicator on all three counts. That is worth knowing if you are weighing a move to a mountain community and trying to figure out what daily life here actually feels like. The scenery you can evaluate from a photograph. The community you have to walk into.

Frequently Asked Questions About Simply Christmas

Q: Where is Simply Christmas located in Estes Park?

A: Simply Christmas is at 129 W. Elkhorn Avenue in downtown Estes Park, Colorado, on the main shopping corridor. The shop is known for its seasonal window displays.

Q: Does Simply Christmas personalize ornaments?

A: Yes, and personalization is free. Simply Christmas will add family names, pet names, team names, dates, and other custom details to ornaments at no additional charge.

Q: Can I order from Simply Christmas if I do not live in Estes Park?

A: Yes. Simply Christmas does not run a full online store, but you can call the shop at (970) 586-8990 or message them on Instagram or Facebook. They will send photos and prices by text, personalize your selection for free, and ship it to you.

Q: Who owns Simply Christmas in Estes Park?

A: Carissa McGill owns Simply Christmas. Her parents opened the shop in 1989 and she purchased it from her mother in 2014. Carissa also recently completed a term as chair of the Estes Chamber of Commerce.

Q: What is the most popular item at Simply Christmas?

A: Estes Park keepsake ornaments, including elk and local scenes, are the most requested items, followed closely by personalized family ornaments and the shop's sports team collection.

Q: Is Simply Christmas open year round?

A: Yes. Despite the holiday focus, Simply Christmas operates year round as a downtown Estes Park gift shop, with extended hours in the summer season.

Q: What is Snowman Fest in Estes Park?

A: Snowman Fest is a downtown holiday event in which roughly forty participating businesses each hide a snowman in their store. Visitors collect stamps as they find them, and those who reach at least twenty businesses can bring their card to Simply Christmas for a free commemorative snowman ornament, available to the first two hundred finishers.

Relevant Links

Simply Christmas

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/epsimplychristmas/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simplychristmas/

Phone: (970) 586-8990 | 129 W. Elkhorn Avenue, Estes Park, CO 80517

Estes Park Community

Estes Chamber of Commerce: https://esteschamber.org/

Everything Estes Park Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/EverythingEstesPark

Signature Home Team

Estes Park Living on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EstesParkLiving

Signature Spotlight Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz2cUNBVf47gz0Qpk5WOZHtJ7S79GjRuc

Instagram: http://instagram.com/signaturehometeam/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SignatureHomeTeam

About the Author: Julie Abel is a licensed real estate agent with Signature Home Team, brokered by Keller Williams Top of the Rockies, specializing in Estes Park and Northern Colorado mountain communities. She shares insights about real estate and mountain living through the Estes Park Living channel.