The City of Steamboat Springs, often shortened to just Steamboat, is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Routt County, Colorado, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 12,088.The city is an internationally known winter ski resort destination. The Steamboat Springs tourism industry is highlighted by Steamboat Ski Resort, which is on Mount Werner in the Park Range just east of the town. It also contains the much smaller Howelsen Ski Area.It is located in the upper valley of the Yampa River, along U.S. Highway 40 just west of the Continental Divide and Rabbit Ears Pass.