What's the Thing to do (or eat) in Denver

[miztressuz]

In a couple weeks we're going to be in Colorado for a wedding. Been looking around at things to do in Denver and haven't really stumbled on the one Thing to do that makes the city... or that one Thing to eat. Like Philly (for better or worse) has the Cheesesteak, Louisville the Hot Brown, New Orleans/Louisiana any that came out the Mississippi.

Was looking at the Taste of Colorado festival as that seemed like something all ages could find something to do or eat and while most of the food vendors seem local, most of the cuisine is ethnic from other parts of the world/country. It also seems like the amusements are like carnival rides from anywhere, there may be some local crafts/art vendors though.

I recall there's some folks on this board from the area, and others that have visited, and just wondering if there was anything to do, see, eat that says 'I experienced Denver' (or Aspen, Grand Junction, or just Colorado) Is it just Red Rocks and the Coors plant?

 

[wendow]

Bison burgers are pretty big here There is a restaurant called 'The Fort' which is in the foothills of Morrison and they serve CO 'style' food, including bison, steaks and rattlesnake.

As far as touristy things to do, it really depends on your taste in activities. If you like amusement parks, there is an older type one called Lakeside or a newer type (think small Six Flags) called Elitches. Our family loves Rockies or Broncos games. We also enjoy going to the mountains, even for the day, to go rafting, hiking or just walk around some of the resort areas. My boys love train rides so we have done a few of those here. Most recent was the Georgetown Loop where we also did the mining tour and panned for gold.

Not sure how much time you will have but CO Springs has a lot to do such as the Garden of the Gods, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Pikes Peak railway, Manitou Springs, etc. That is about an hour'ish south of Denver.

Yes, Red Rocks is an amazing place to take in a concert. Definitely go if you get the chance! Never been to Coors.

 

[Scootypuffjr]

The Buckhorn Exchange downtown serves wild game. Never been there, but it gets featured on travel shows a lot.

 

[miztressuz]

Bison burgers are pretty big here There is a restaurant called 'The Fort' which is in the foothills of Morrison and they serve CO 'style' food, including bison, steaks and rattlesnake.

As far as touristy things to do, it really depends on your taste in activities. If you like amusement parks, there is an older type one called Lakeside or a newer type (think small Six Flags) called Elitches. Our family loves Rockies or Broncos games. We also enjoy going to the mountains, even for the day, to go rafting, hiking or just walk around some of the resort areas. My boys love train rides so we have done a few of those here. Most recent was the Georgetown Loop where we also did the mining tour and panned for gold.

Not sure how much time you will have but CO Springs has a lot to do such as the Garden of the Gods, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Pikes Peak railway, Manitou Springs, etc. That is about an hour'ish south of Denver.

Yes, Red Rocks is an amazing place to take in a concert. Definitely go if you get the chance! Never been to Coors.

The bison makes total sense, I will definitely look into The Fort. I hadn't come across the Georgetown Loop, that seems right up the alley for a couple families. We'll be driving past on our way to a Rockies game so I might toss that out to the group to see if that could be fit into their schedule. If not it at least gives me something else to look for. It's a family member's wedding so I'll be traveling with several family groups of all different ages and interests, who are all arriving and leaving at different times Everybody's going to the Rockies game but otherwise it's kind of up for grabs still.

We're going to be in the Denver area an extra day from everyone else and was wondering about a trip to Boulder or Colorado Springs. You're making Colorado Springs seem more interesting, thanks!

The Buckhorn Exchange downtown serves wild game. Never been there, but it gets featured on travel shows a lot.

That seems interesting, I'll do some research there, thanks!

 

[holden]

We did Denver/CO Springs last August. The Fort is a fun place to eat and the food is good. Red Rocks is a must do.

I looked on a travel website for restaurant recommendations in Denver and Twin Peaks got wonderful reviews. We went there for lunch...me, DH, DD10 and DD14. Little did I know it was a Hooters-type restaurant! After we had a good laugh, we did enjoy our meal. They even had kid's menus.

Hidee Gold Mine is a lot of fun! I think it's closer to CO Springs though.

If you do CO Springs, visit The Broadmoor. It's a beautiful resort with lots of good food options. There's a restaurant at Seven Falls too that is good.

If you have time to do whitewater rafting, I'd recommend Echo Canyon River Expeditions. Pikes Peak Cog Railway is fun too!

 

[jedijill]

Casa Bonita is famous and made even more infamous by South Park. The food stinks but its a local legend. White Fence Farm in Littleton is a favorite...great chicken and lots for kids to do. Denver is known for green chili! Beau Jo's pizza is great...there are a few locations around with the original in Idaho Springs. I personally recommend Tocabe for Native American fry bread tacos. There is a location in the Highlands and another in South Denver. Its like Chipotle only with Native American ingredients.

Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park are very close to Denver. I highly recommend them!

Jill in CO

 

[crazycatstacy]

We went to the Buckhorn Exchange last time we visited. My husband had some wild meat and I just had beef filet. We also had rattlesnake queso. The queso was good. My husband liked his but mine was seasoned with so much pepper and was overcooked. The dinner salads were delicious

We LOVE going to D Bar Restaurant. We went the first time for lunch and loved it so much we went back the next day for brunch

 

[jedijill]

We LOVE going to D Bar Restaurant. We went the first time for lunch and loved it so much we went back the next day for brunch

D Bar is amazing! For those who don't know, its Keeghan Gerhard from Food Network's restaurant that specializes in desserts. The food is outstanding and I've seen Chef Keeghan there several times.

Jill in CO

 

[kathy884]

You've gotten some great advice on things to do in Denver. For me, though, what Denver is, is the closest major airport to the Rocky Mountains. It's a perfectly nice city, but what is really special to me are the mountains. If it were me, if I could manage it time wise, I'd head up to Estes Park, stay there and two nights / two days, and visit Rocky Mountain National Park. I'd do the wonderful Trial Ridge Road drive, stopping at all the outlooks on one of the days. I'd hike Emerald Lake from the Bear Lake trailhead on the other and after that head back to Denver.

It takes about two hours to get to Estes Park/RMNP from Denver. Those alpine lakes with the mountains and all the wildlife are just so cool.

 

[miztressuz]

We did Denver/CO Springs last August. The Fort is a fun place to eat and the food is good. Red Rocks is a must do.

I looked on a travel website for restaurant recommendations in Denver and Twin Peaks got wonderful reviews. We went there for lunch...me, DH, DD10 and DD14. Little did I know it was a Hooters-type restaurant! After we had a good laugh, we did enjoy our meal. They even had kid's menus.

Hidee Gold Mine is a lot of fun! I think it's closer to CO Springs though.

If you do CO Springs, visit The Broadmoor. It's a beautiful resort with lots of good food options. There's a restaurant at Seven Falls too that is good.

If you have time to do whitewater rafting, I'd recommend Echo Canyon River Expeditions. Pikes Peak Cog Railway is fun too!

Good to know about Twin Peaks Although I could tease one of my nephews with it, when he was 5/6/7 (somewhere in there) he had a thing for Hooters... I forget what he liked on the menu but he always wanted to go to hooters for dinner. We were out in Vegas during this phase and on the way back from the Hoover Dam he spotted the Hooters Hotel/Casino and you could just tell he was floored. He said 'mommy, when we come back we have to stay there!' We all got a good laugh on that one, even mom.
Now that he's getting to be a teenager one day soon it will all come back to tease him with it.

Now the Broadmoor, what can I say? That's just spectacular, if we ever get back I'm pretty sure that's where hubby is staying If I show him this trip he's going to be vastly disappointed in our current accommodations

And I would totally love to try the whitewater rafting, I'm going to keep the Echo Canyon River Expeditions in my cap for a future trip. We have decided we don't need to be in anyone's wedding album in casts so I'm supposed to be good (read, tame) about our outdoor adventures. But one day it will happen, that's how I want to see the Grand Canyon... I think I'm alone on that one, hubby said he'd wave from the top...

Casa Bonita is famous and made even more infamous by South Park. The food stinks but its a local legend. White Fence Farm in Littleton is a favorite...great chicken and lots for kids to do. Denver is known for green chili! Beau Jo's pizza is great...there are a few locations around with the original in Idaho Springs. I personally recommend Tocabe for Native American fry bread tacos. There is a location in the Highlands and another in South Denver. Its like Chipotle only with Native American ingredients.

Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park are very close to Denver. I highly recommend them!

Jill in CO

Green chili, check! Will be sure to check that out. I think I saw Tocabe in the list for Taste of Colorado festival and that seemed like one of the few things local that I'd want to try. So may as well just stop by the restaurant, it's very intriguing.

We went to the Buckhorn Exchange last time we visited. My husband had some wild meat and I just had beef filet. We also had rattlesnake queso. The queso was good. My husband liked his but mine was seasoned with so much pepper and was overcooked. The dinner salads were delicious

We LOVE going to D Bar Restaurant. We went the first time for lunch and loved it so much we went back the next day for brunch

D Bar is amazing! For those who don't know, its Keeghan Gerhard from Food Network's restaurant that specializes in desserts. The food is outstanding and I've seen Chef Keeghan there several times.

Jill in CO

Sold, D Bar it is. I went to the website and everything in the video looked amazing.

You've gotten some great advice on things to do in Denver. For me, though, what Denver is, is the closest major airport to the Rocky Mountains. It's a perfectly nice city, but what is really special to me are the mountains. If it were me, if I could manage it time wise, I'd head up to Estes Park, stay there and two nights / two days, and visit Rocky Mountain National Park. I'd do the wonderful Trial Ridge Road drive, stopping at all the outlooks on one of the days. I'd hike Emerald Lake from the Bear Lake trailhead on the other and after that head back to Denver.

It takes about two hours to get to Estes Park/RMNP from Denver. Those alpine lakes with the mountains and all the wildlife are just so cool.

OK that's multiple votes for the RMNP and I think that was on our list to research anyway. So, my dumb question for the night, is the Trail Ridge Road drive all by car with pull offs for the outlooks? Hubby saw a video for Mt Etna (the highest paved road in the America... whoo) and thought that'd be a neat drive up for the view, but that kinda seems like all that's there is - the scary drive up, park, view, scary drive back down. And since it's out of the way it's still 1.5 hours one way from Denver. If we can do a drive through RMNP and get similar or better views then that seems to be the better use of time, yeah?

 

[wendow]

OP, depending on when you are here in Denver, Trail Ridge road may or may not be open. That is one reason I didn't mention it in my post. I was thinking you might be here after it closes. It's a beautiful drive if you are here when it's open. Definitely check it out if you can!

 

[Earstou]

If you have any dinosaur buffs in the group, you might check out Dinosaur Ridge. It's in the same area as Red Rocks, so easy to combine. We've stopped here a few times on vacation. There's both bones and footprints there!

 

[FINFAN]

I second Estes Park, for sure and drive Trail Ridge Road. If not, Garden Of The Gods in CO Springs .

 

[Narnia_girl]

We love Colorado Springs and Estes Park, but if I had to choose one, Estes and RMNP would win easily. Plus, being a national park it's cheap--just pay one fee for the car and it's good for a week. Drive Trail Ridge Road, hike Bear Lake and Sprague Lake and/or Alberta Falls for easy trails. Let kids play at Alluvial Fan. Drive up Old Fall River Road if you are adventurous.

If you are near Boulder, take the tour of Celestial Seasonings Tea Factory Tour. It's fun and free! I like it better than the Coors Tour.

 

[DellyHoliday]

Weed WEED WEED!!!! Just kidding

Red Rocks is a must, even better if you have time to go to a concert there. They also do events like Film on the Rocks or Yoga on the Rocks!

Garden of the Gods is GORGEOUS! We always stop by there when we are in Colorado Springs. Also, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs is much better than Denver Zoo, very interactive.

If you're into hiking and here during the warmer season, do hike to Hanging Lake. Very Instagram worthy place xD.

Glenwood Hot Springs is fun with kids. Strawberry Park Hot Springs is my absolute favorite, it's all natural and beautiful up there. They allow all nude after dark so beware lol.

Foodwise, like mentioned above, Casa Bonita is popular especially because of South Park but there food's bad. I know a few people who got sick from eating there. So yup, Margaritas all the way. Brunch places like Snooze and Syrup are good. I LOVE restaraunts in Cherry Creek North like Machete mexican restaraunt and the Cherry Cricket (a burger joint and I guess they've been on the food channel or something?).

 

[MrsPete]

We stayed in the downtown area -- 16th street mall? I might not remember that correctly.

We toured the Mint and the Capitol building, we loved the bookstore The Tattered Cover (my youngest daughter actually still has a paper bag from that bookstore -- she made it into a liner for her nightstand drawer), we saw the Colorado Rockies play, and we went to a concert in a bar near the stadium -- can't remember the group, but it was more to my teenagers' liking.

That's just Denver. Outside Denver we visited parks, which were wonderful. We really enjoyed Colorado.

 

[miztressuz]

OP, depending on when you are here in Denver, Trail Ridge road may or may not be open. That is one reason I didn't mention it in my post. I was thinking you might be here after it closes. It's a beautiful drive if you are here when it's open. Definitely check it out if you can!

I checked into that and it seems it gets closed down for the season usually Oct/Nov (depending on snow/ice). We'll be there right after labor day, so unless there's a freak snow storm or something else crazy I think we're going to be ok. But definitely good to mention, thanks!

Red Rocks is a must, even better if you have time to go to a concert there. They also do events like Film on the Rocks or Yoga on the Rocks!

Garden of the Gods is GORGEOUS! We always stop by there when we are in Colorado Springs. Also, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs is much better than Denver Zoo, very interactive.!

If you have any dinosaur buffs in the group, you might check out Dinosaur Ridge. It's in the same area as Red Rocks, so easy to combine. We've stopped here a few times on vacation. There's both bones and footprints there!

Duly noted. A co worker gets out to Colorado every so often and he said to check out Red Rocks even if we can't get a concert (but try for a concert ) and I think a couple other folks had that on their list so we'll be squeezing that in somewhere. So bummed no Film on the Rocks while we're there and all the concert tickets we could attend are only on StubHub for crazy prices for not having a die-hard interest in the performance. I am definitely passing on the Dinosaur Ridge suggestion to the group, a couple kids had the dinosaur bug for a while so if any are still interested that'll make a nice side trip, thanks!

I second Estes Park, for sure and drive Trail Ridge Road. If not, Garden Of The Gods in CO Springs .

So finally looked at the website for the Garden of the Gods, that seems neat. If we decide to head down CO Springs we're definitely stopping there.

We love Colorado Springs and Estes Park, but if I had to choose one, Estes and RMNP would win easily. Plus, being a national park it's cheap--just pay one fee for the car and it's good for a week. Drive Trail Ridge Road, hike Bear Lake and Sprague Lake and/or Alberta Falls for easy trails. Let kids play at Alluvial Fan. Drive up Old Fall River Road if you are adventurous.

If you are near Boulder, take the tour of Celestial Seasonings Tea Factory Tour. It's fun and free! I like it better than the Coors Tour.

Yes total score on the National Park angle. My FIL just got the lifetime senior pass so whoever he rides with will get in free. But I think it's only 20 bucks a car for a day anyway so that still a great price for the rest of us.

Weed WEED WEED!!!! Just kidding

Ding Ding we have a winner! Been wondering when someone would post that. Took two days, I think we're all slipping here

We stayed in the downtown area -- 16th street mall? I might not remember that correctly.

We toured the Mint and the Capitol building, we loved the bookstore The Tattered Cover (my youngest daughter actually still has a paper bag from that bookstore -- she made it into a liner for her nightstand drawer), we saw the Colorado Rockies play, and we went to a concert in a bar near the stadium -- can't remember the group, but it was more to my teenagers' liking.

That's just Denver. Outside Denver we visited parks, which were wonderful. We really enjoyed Colorado.

So I was wondering about touring the Mint, I wasn't sure if they still did that. Hubby does a little coin collecting and I thought that would be neat if you could check out the building. Was this recent? Anything in advance to sign up for or they just have publics space open for anyone?

 

[FINFAN]

OK that's multiple votes for the RMNP and I think that was on our list to research anyway. So, my dumb question for the night, is the Trail Ridge Road drive all by car with pull offs for the outlooks? Hubby saw a video for Mt Etna (the highest paved road in the America... whoo) and thought that'd be a neat drive up for the view, but that kinda seems like all that's there is - the scary drive up, park, view, scary drive back down. And since it's out of the way it's still 1.5 hours one way from Denver. If we can do a drive through RMNP and get similar or better views then that seems to be the better use of time, yeah?[/QUOTE]


there are lots pull offs and the visitors center at the top has tons of parking. Drive is beautiful , not scary. If you do hit Garden of the Gods, allow a few hours to hit Manitou Springs

 

[BethID]

I just got back from there. I was not super impressed with the things to do in the city. However, I do enjoy history and we went on a tour of Margaret Brown's (unsinkable Molly Brown) home. It is run by historicdenver.org. They also do several walking tours. We did the one of Capital Hill. I enjoyed learning about the different houses and who lived in them. I would have loved to make it to RMNP, but just came to town for a concert, so we didn't have time.