Trip to Colorado: Suggestions & Recommendations

[kehlis]

Jr. is going to be the Denver expert. While I've been there often, it's often been with family and not necessarily been to go have fun.

I would third Coors field as a must.

My only other suggestion if your staying in the Denver area would take a day trip down to Colorado Springs to see Pike's Peak. There is a lot of fun things to do in Manitou Springs, and you can stop by Garden of the Gods which is absolutely stunningly beautiful.

Not anything to do there that you can't do in Denver as far as food, drinking so I would plan it as just a day trip. It's only about a 45 minute drive (depending on what part of Denver you are staying in).

[ImTellinTim]

If you are staying in Denver -

Last time I went I stayed on what they call the 16th St. Mall and that's pretty cool. It's near Coors Field and the central transportation hub.

A good quick day trip is taking the train out to Golden. Cool little city in a valley with the Coors brewery (note that there are no tours on Tuesdays), a little microbrewery called Golden City Brewery: The 2nd largest brewery in Golden. Plus a cool hiking trail right along the river that flows through downtown, which has a lot of restaurants and bars to choose from.

You can also take the bus or rent a car and head to Boulder. There's a really cool outdoor mall in the city center there. Also, take a walk around the University of Colorado campus and University Hill neighborhood - eat at The Sink. If you rent the car, make sure to take a side trip to Avery Brewery.

Next time I go, I'll definitely hit up the mountains. That's the one thing I haven't done on my trips out there yet.

Oh, and if you're planning on visiting the....shops....make sure you have a current, non-temp form of ID. If you just renewed your license and only have your clipped old one with the paperwork, that doesn't fly. I learned that one out the hard way on one of my trips.

[kt-od]

Estes Park. Rocky Mountain National Park. Estes also has the Stanley Hotel. Which is the haunted hotel that inspired Stephen King's book, The Shining. It's a must see, imo. I'm actually going to be in Estes the 1st week of June. My brother in law is proposing to his girlfriend. He wants the whole family there to celebrate. We're staying in the Stanley that night.

Red Rocks is cool too. The ampitheater is great. A lot of great bands have played there.

My suggestion is go in the summer. It's beautiful. I hate the cold, so I'm biased. But there is just something about Colorado in the summer that's surreal.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys.

Haven't been able to pin down any dates yet. I was leaning towards August because I don't really want to play in the snow the whole time. Unfortunately, August vacations are pretty much out since my wife will be working for UVA soon.

What time of the year do you guys suggest? Our friends want to do "later in the year" (November/December), but I'm afraid it will be nothing but snow and not much to do see/do. I'd rather get some hiking in, maybe some kayaking, etc. I've never skiied or snowboarded so those things don't really interest me as much as the other things.

[jeremym480]

Anybody ever been to Pagosa Springs?

[Jr.]

Snow isn't bad until January. The last few years have stayed pretty mild into November. The mountains will have snow but Denver likely wouldn't have much. October is a really nice time of year

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[Blzer]

Cinzetti's (all you can eat buffet) lives in Colorado.

Just avoid the sushi.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Quote: Originally Posted by Jr.

Snow isn't bad until January. The last few years have stayed pretty mild into November. The mountains will have snow but Denver likely wouldn't have much. October is a really nice time of year Sent from my SM-G970U using Operation Sports mobile app

That is great to know. Thanks!