From a fellow Julian....

I have never been to Fort Collins, or anywhere in Colorado apart from Denver and Golden BUT.....I did look into a trip around Colorado for last year which narrowly lost out to New Mexico. All I would say on the matter is that you are an hours drive away from Denver, Boulder and the Rocky Mountain National Park. Now I'm not an expert on this area by any means but Denver is a lovely city with a picture postcard background against the Rockies. Tons to do (it's the State Capital, so some amazing buildings to be seen), we had 5 nights there and did everything Downtown and even did the Coors Brewery tour at Golden (obviously your boys won't be able to have the free samples). Also worth checking out whether the Baseball will be on, which should be a highlight for your children (you can tour the park as well)!!

I would certainly google the Rocky Mountain National Park and see what it brings up. Show your kids and see if they would be interested. There are going to be some amazing sights and views to be had, hiking etc so I doubt they will be bored but everybody is different. Personally, I am not a beach lover and would much rather explore than lay in the sun all day. I'm guessing if you go to Cyrpus most years that you are probably the opposite, so it might not be as much of a no brainer as it for me.

Obviously you have to factor in flight costs which won't be cheap in July. Denver is served directly by BA I think, so you wouldn't have to mess around with connections although you may well find it might be cheaper if you do go indirect.

If it were me, I'd snap their hands off but unfortunately most of my relatives live in East Anglia (where I do) so no long distance freebies for me to have!!!!

Keep us updated.

Like J.Whiting I would snap up the offer pretty quickly if I was offered a place to stay in Colorado. I have never been to Northern Colorado but did have a friend who lived in Greeley which is only a short distance away and she would return to the state every summer. She talked about a very active outdoor life during her holidays, would your children enjoy hiking and other outdoor activities or are they basically beach people? Like most small American towns Fort Collins will have summer activities for kids set up and your children may be able to take part and meet some local teens.

http://www.ci.fort-collins.co.us/visitor

I worked in Denver for three months a very long time ago. I would definitely take up the offer. There is so much to do in and around the area that I still didn't get to do all I wanted. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. If you think of the Lake District on steroids, you're about half way to imagining it.

Just do it, I'm sure your boys (and you) will love it.

Thanks, something to think about.
We are not just beach bums we are quite into walking and have done nearly all the south-west coast path (over the course of several years!!)
I have checked out the flights in July, direct with BA would be about £2K, is that about right to pay??

Thanks again for all responses.

Regards, Julian

£500 each in July is going to be about right. I paid just over £600 each for tickets to the USA in August last year. Not that impressed having to pay that amount, but that's peak season for you and it's been the only time my Wife has been able to take off in 2008 and again this year.

Not having to find accommodation costs makes it a far better deal of course.

Those flight prices seem to be in the right ball park.

Here are some links to whet your appetite.

Colorado Holiday Guide This a PDF format guide.
Interactive planning map.May take a little while to load.