Denver help please

[sdjen]

I am planning a trip to Denver in June (just got Taylor Swift concert tickets for June 2nd ). It will be just me and my 7 year old dd.

I am trying to decide it it would be better to stay downtown or maybe further out in the suburbs? There is an Embassy Suites downtown that looks nice that I can get for free with my Hilton Points. Is it a safe area?

Also, is it an okay walk if we would go from that hotel to the Pepsi Center? In looking at the map it isnt far but it looks like it crosses a major highway.

Also, an ideas of kid friendly things to do would be appreciated. We will be in town from Friday afternoon to Monday morning and will have our own car.

Thanks in advance.

 

[gator75]

We just went to denver in april ds won an award and everything was down town. We stayed at the hyatt reagency. Hotel was nice but wasn't for families was for bussinesss. The embassy was across the street it looked nice but didn't stay there. As far as being safe it was , but and this is a huge but i had my dh with me when walking about downtown at night. We walked into a pretty shady mcdonalds downtown and the thing that made it scary was that we where the only white people in there. We didn't stay long. As far as being downtown during the day there are shops and resturants to go to be warned though the homeless hang out down there and beg off the tourists. you can get a carrige ride downtown. All in all it's not bad but i had my say iwould the next time stay elsewhere.

We also had our own transportation but there isn't alot of parking and it does or did cost dearly at the hyatt to park i beleive it was around 30.00. I f you have anymore questions pm me and i will answer them.

 

[ColoradoDisneyFreaks]

If you're looking at the Embassy Suites that's just by the 16th Street Mall, you should be fine. The Pepsi Center isn't across a major highway, although I'd suggest taking the 16th street shuttle down to Union Station (go north) and then catch a southbound light rail 1 stop, much easier than trying to walk it. The shuttle is free, and the light rail would be local, so maybe a couple of dollars.

In the downtown area, you can certainly walk the 16th St. Mall, I like the northern end better than the southern end, it does have a homeless population, but most of the time they're pretty harmless. The McDonalds that Gator75 is referring to is down at that end.

There's plenty to do, there's the zoo, which is pretty nice, the Museum of Nature and Science, which is right by the zoo, as well as the aquarium which is downtown, although the aquarium is nice, to me it's a bit pricey.

Of course, since you've got a car, there's also the mountains that are just a hop-skip and a jump away! In early June, I'd recommend going up to Winter Park, take I-70 to Hwy 40 over Berthoud pass. They've got an Alpine slide, climbing walls, mountain biking, all sorts of great activities, and the views are absolutely lovely!

Just make sure you drink lots of water, we are in a desert here, even though people don't think of it that way, and use lots of sunscreen, the air is a bit thinner, so you'll probably notice it.

Have fun!

 

[sdjen]

Thanks to both of you for the info!

I think we probably want to do the butterfly pavilion - is that worth it?

I can get free hotels in several different areas. I have been looking at Cherry Creek, Westminster and Thornton. is there one area you would or would not recommend?

I think it would be fun to stay downtown but with paying $30 a day to park, that will add up fast.

Thanks for the tip about water and sunscreen. My dd is a very fair redhead so we buy it in bulk I am coming from SD so should be okay on the altitude. The only other time I visited Denver about 20 years ago I came from Kansas City and got altitude sickness - not fun!!

I am not doing a Disney cruise this year so am replacing my trip planning obsession with Denver instead! Wish I was on CC like the picture in thread above.

 

[Allison]

We just went to denver in april ds won an award and everything was down town. We stayed at the hyatt reagency. Hotel was nice but wasn't for families was for bussinesss. The embassy was across the street it looked nice but didn't stay there. As far as being safe it was , but and this is a huge but i had my dh with me when walking about downtown at night. We walked into a pretty shady mcdonalds downtown and the thing that made it scary was that we where the only white people in there. We didn't stay long. As far as being downtown during the day there are shops and resturants to go to be warned though the homeless hang out down there and beg off the tourists. you can get a carrige ride downtown. All in all it's not bad but i had my say iwould the next time stay elsewhere.

We also had our own transportation but there isn't alot of parking and it does or did cost dearly at the hyatt to park i beleive it was around 30.00. I f you have anymore questions pm me and i will answer them.

You were scared because you were the only white people?

I wonder if non-white people are scared when they go into a restaurant and everybody else is white? You never know what might happen.

 

[clh2]

The one thing I wish I had known about when I was in Denver a few years ago was the Denver Mint. It is just walkable from the downtown hotels.

I REALLY wish I would have had tour tickets.

 

[clarkshel]

You were scared because you were the only white people?

I wonder if non-white people are scared when they go into a restaurant and everybody else is white? You never know what might happen.

LOL, that's funny.

Gator's post did sound a tad bit racist. Maybe gator was looking for the white only place and got lost. :rooleyes

 

[Raspberry Beret]

I guess gator75 didn't get the memo... the whites only McDs, water fountain and restroom were on the other end. Next time get the white only version of google maps and you should be good.

 

[gator75]

Not scared because we where the only white people, uneasy because there where people in there that had visible knives among other things and let me say one more thing we obviously weren't the only ones getting that vibe because there was another couple that walked in there and walked out just as fast.

And as to answer the op question as to a nice suburb to stay in cherry creek is very nice they have a very nice mall and it isn't to terribly far from the zoo. Make sure you visit the zoo it is very nice and something to see.

 

[Iforgetmypassword]

and the thing that made it scary was that we where the only white people in there.

Not scared because we where the only white people,

Which was it?

 

[Allison]

Not scared because we where the only white people, uneasy because there where people in there that had visible knives among other things and let me say one more thing we obviously weren't the only ones getting that vibe because there was another couple that walked in there and walked out just as fast.

And as to answer the op question as to a nice suburb to stay in cherry creek is very nice they have a very nice mall and it isn't to terribly far from the zoo. Make sure you visit the zoo it is very nice and something to see.

You said in your first post you were scared because you were the only white people.

 

[clarkshel]

Which was it?

I think Gator is backpedaling to try and steer the comment away from how it sounded. To me it sounded racist, but maybe that is not how it was intended.

 

[gator75]

I'm not a racist just stating what we where, and to add another thing if i was racist i would have turned around and left mcdonalds not stayed and ate, but i didn't do that i stayed , placed my order and paid and dare i even say ate it there. So i'm sorry if you have nothing better to do but pick apart simple observations, but it is what it is nothing less nothing more.

 

[Hrhpd]

Thanks to both of you for the info!

I think we probably want to do the butterfly pavilion - is that worth it?

I can get free hotels in several different areas. I have been looking at Cherry Creek, Westminster and Thornton. is there one area you would or would not recommend?

I think it would be fun to stay downtown but with paying $30 a day to park, that will add up fast.

Thanks for the tip about water and sunscreen. My dd is a very fair redhead so we buy it in bulk I am coming from SD so should be okay on the altitude. The only other time I visited Denver about 20 years ago I came from Kansas City and got altitude sickness - not fun!!

I am not doing a Disney cruise this year so am replacing my trip planning obsession with Denver instead! Wish I was on CC like the picture in thread above.

If you are planning on doing the Butterfly Pavilion, I would stay at the Westin next door. Beautiful hotel with a ton to do around it. Very, very safe area. Within walking distance, there is Fat Cats bowling, an ice rink (the Avs often practice there), an AMC theater and a small outdoor mall with a ton of restaurants. My kids go to the theater and bowling there all the time and I don't blink dropping them off. Two exits west is Broomfield and Flat Irons Crossings mall if you want to do some shopping.

You can drive down to the Pepsi Center for the concert and the Zoo, both an easy drive. You are also 10 minutes from Boulder and the Flatirons (foothill mountains), where the Pearl Street Mall is tons of fun. Chautauqua Park has some wonderful guided hiking trails.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Thanks to both of you for the info!

I think we probably want to do the butterfly pavilion - is that worth it?

I can get free hotels in several different areas. I have been looking at Cherry Creek, Westminster and Thornton. is there one area you would or would not recommend?

I think it would be fun to stay downtown but with paying $30 a day to park, that will add up fast.

Thanks for the tip about water and sunscreen. My dd is a very fair redhead so we buy it in bulk I am coming from SD so should be okay on the altitude. The only other time I visited Denver about 20 years ago I came from Kansas City and got altitude sickness - not fun!!

I am not doing a Disney cruise this year so am replacing my trip planning obsession with Denver instead! Wish I was on CC like the picture in thread above.

We visit family in Colorado every couple of years and my son always asks to go back to the butterfly pavilion when we do. It is very well done. I think you might be happier staying in that area as well. You could probably get a park n ride bus to the concert and not have to drive downtown that evening. the bus system in the area, RTD, is very efficient.

 

[Allison]

I'm not a racist just stating what we where, and to add another thing if i was racist i would have turned around and left mcdonalds not stayed and ate, but i didn't do that i stayed , placed my order and paid and dare i even say ate it there. So i'm sorry if you have nothing better to do but pick apart simple observations, but it is what it is nothing less nothing more.

Here is the thing-what you call a simple observation says a a lot about what you think.

 

[MM27]

We just went to denver in april ds won an award and everything was down town. We stayed at the hyatt reagency. Hotel was nice but wasn't for families was for bussinesss. The embassy was across the street it looked nice but didn't stay there. As far as being safe it was , but and this is a huge but i had my dh with me when walking about downtown at night. We walked into a pretty shady mcdonalds downtown and the thing that made it scary was that we where the only white people in there. We didn't stay long. As far as being downtown during the day there are shops and resturants to go to be warned though the homeless hang out down there and beg off the tourists. you can get a carrige ride downtown. All in all it's not bad but i had my say iwould the next time stay elsewhere.

We also had our own transportation but there isn't alot of parking and it does or did cost dearly at the hyatt to park i beleive it was around 30.00. I f you have anymore questions pm me and i will answer them.

Here is the thing-what you call a simple observation says a a lot about what you think.

Exactly!
The thing that made it scary was that you were the only white people in there? Why does that make it scary? It's that kind of mindset that keeps our country divided.

 

[monsterkitty]

Not scared because we where the only white people, uneasy because there where people in there that had visible knives among other things and let me say one more thing we obviously weren't the only ones getting that vibe because there was another couple that walked in there and walked out just as fast.

And as to answer the op question as to a nice suburb to stay in cherry creek is very nice they have a very nice mall and it isn't to terribly far from the zoo. Make sure you visit the zoo it is very nice and something to see.

I know exactly what McDonalds you are talking about as I have eaten there plenty of times. I have never seen people with visible knives or "other things".

 

[chloelovesdisney]

I don't remember the name of the hotel, but there is a beautiful old hotel in Denver that does a wonderful tea. It would be a very nice afternoon for you and your dd.

 

[monsterkitty]

I don't remember the name of the hotel, but there is a beautiful old hotel in Denver that does a wonderful tea. It would be a very nice afternoon for you and your dd.

This is the Brown Palace Hotel. It is now owned and operated by Marriott.