Mother’s Day celebrations have become pretty cliché: Take mom out to a Mother’s Day brunch, buy her flowers and maybe some jewelry and call it a day. Tsk, tsk. Moms want to have fun, too. Actually, moms need to have fun, and waiting in a crowded restaurant for a rushed brunch doesn’t always deliver. Don’t get us wrong: Mimosas and breakfast foods eaten at lunchtime are awesome, but sometimes moms want something a little more inventive. Here are a few ideas for the best things to do in Durango for Mother’s Day.

Mother’s Day Train

Let Mom sit back, relax and enjoy the scenery this Mother’s Day during the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad’s Mother’s Day Train. The special Durango train will leave at 8:45 a.m. Sunday, May 14, and chug through the Animas River Valley and the Animas Canyon to Silverton, where passengers — mums and non-mums alike — can enjoy the Victorian-era mining town for a couple hours before heading back to Durango. But, during the trip, all mothers will receive the following:

• A wine tasting between Rockwood and Silverton sponsored by Four Leaves Winery
• A fresh flower.
• Rocky Mountain Chocolate
• And all passengers will enjoy live musical performances to and from Silverton by Caprice Fox and Tim Sullivan.

Call 1-888-872-4607 to book your seat on the special Mother’s Day Durango Train!

Hot Springs

Trust us: Mom could use a long soak in a hot spring. Just a quick 10-minute drive north of the Quality Inn Durango on Main Avenue, aka U.S. Highway 550, visitors will find Trimble Spa and Natural Hot Springs. Guests can soak in therapy pools filled with mineral-rich waters that range from 100 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit: The Community Pool is kept at 104 degrees and the Half-Moon Pool can reach up to 110 degrees. Guest can swim laps in the 250,000-gallon Olympic Pool that’s filled with municipal water and heated to about 82 degrees using hot springs water. Visitors can also relax in the sauna or get a massage, wrap, facial or scrub at the spa.

Spa Day

If Mom is more of a manicure girl, consider saving your clams on that brunch and instead treat her to a spa day. Woodhouse Day Spa sits on the banks of the Animas River in downtown Durango and offers more than 70 different spa treatments, from manicures to massages, wraps to waxes. Pure Skin Organic Day Spa is a certified Dr. Hauschka Treatment Center in downtown Durango that’s owned and operated by a mother-daughter team — how fitting for Mother’s Day. Spa Evo offers a range of services, from hot-stone and exotic oil massages to body polishes and aromatherapy wraps. We feel relaxed just talking about these places.

Sweet Treats

Few gifts are as surefire as chocolate. Not only does Animas Chocolate Co. make and sell its own handmade confections that use the highest-quality chocolate, they also sell locally made gifts and foods. Bonus: Animas Chocolate Co. is only one block south of the Quality Inn Durango! You can also check out Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory,  which was founded and still maintains its headquarter in downtown Durango although it now has stores around the world. Or, just down the block, Fuzziwig’s Candy Factory is packed with a dizzying array of colorful candy and also offers homemade chocolate and fudge.

Weekend Away

One of the best things you could ever do to celebrate mom this Mother’s Day? Let her get away! Treat Mom to a weekend away in our mountain resort town and let us treat her like, well, like someone who doesn’t have kids for a night or two. The Durango Quality Inn is one of the top-rated Durango hotels. Book your room now for a Mother’s Day weekend getaway at the Quality Inn Durango!