Denver Series: Favorite Things To Do

I’m keeping my Denver Series going strong! I started the series off by sharing my favorite places to eat, then not long after that, I shared the best places to stay whenever you’re visiting! And now it’s time to chat all about the best things to do when you’re visiting Denver. This should actually say Colorado series because there is obviously A LOT to do outside of just Denver itself since we have the Rocky Mountains nearby, but I made sure to give you a little bit of both. And I also tried to give you an estimate of how far some of the places are from Denver!

In this post, I tried to figure out all the things I like to do the most here in Denver, while thinking of what I like to do when I travel! I’m not huge into hiking or museums, but I still tried to add in a couple of those for people who are! Hope this helps you plan your own trip when you’re traveling to this wonderful state!

Food & Drink

• Have a cocktail at Peak’s Lounge at the Hyatt Regency which overlooks Downtown
• Go to Union Station for food, drinks, and train rides in and out of town
  • Go to The Cooper Lounge for a cocktail and stunning view of Union Station
  • Grab a drink at Terminal Bar in the hustle and bustle of it all
  • Have a coffee Pigtrain Coffee
  • Grab an amazing brunch at Snooze
  • Get a fancy meal at Stoic & Genuine or Mercantile
• Go to one of the breweries around town. Beer tastes like sh*t, but to each their own
  • Blue Moon Brewery
  • Epic Brewing
  • Denver Beer Company
  • Stem Ciders
  • Colorado Cider Company
• Stop by The Source – an artisan food market that occupies a former 1880‘s brick foundry building which has a collective of food artisans and retailers
  • Try a sour beer flight at Crooked Stave
  • Get an amazing dinner at Acorn
• Go to Denver Central Market – an open 14,000 square feet space where people can grab a meal or shop for fresh groceries
  • Get a Stumptown Coffee at Crema Bodega
  • Grab a couple beautiful homemade truffles at Temper
  • Order the porchetta at SK Provisions

Don’t Miss a Workout

Stop in for a workout at one of the awesome gyms in town

• CrossFit Broadway
• FIT
• Orange Theory
• Barre Forte Lohi
• Fierce45
• Cyclebar
• Fitwall

Get Outdoors

• Rent a bike on a b-cycle and ride around town to explore all the neighborhoods
• Go hike Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs (~1 – 1 1/2 hour from Downtown Denver) and get a HUGE Sunday brunch at the Broadmoor Hotel
• Boat, float or swim Horsetooth Reservoir in Fort Collins (~1 – 1 1/2 hour from Downtown Denver)
• Go workout, hike, check out the amazing views, see a show or watch a movie at Red Rocks (30 minutes from Downtown Denver)
• Go hiking at Hanging Lake (~2 1/2 hours from Downtown Denver) in Glenwood Springs then soak in the Hot Springs
• Test your lung capacity and fitness abilities at the Incline in Manitou Springs (~1 – 1 1/2 hour from Downtown Denver)
• Walk the easy hike up St. Mary’s Glacier (~1 hour from Downtown Denver) and finish your hike with a dip in the lake (which is freezing cold) or you can always ice climb up the glacier and ski down. This hike is super dog-friendly, too! I took Jackson once and he crushed it!
• Rent paddle boards and SUP on Evergreen Lake or Bear Creek Lake Park
• Snowboard or Ski at any of the ski mountains
  • Loveland – only about an hour from Downtown Denver
  • Arapahoe Basin – pretty close and is known for having amazing bloody mary’s
  • Keystone – big resort with a beautiful village area and they offer night skiing
  • Winter Park – I know nothing about WP
  • Breckenridge – adorable downtown area with lots of shops and they have new peaks which makes it a lot bigger than it used to be
  • Copper – I used to snowboard here all.the.time growing up, but I don’t have much to say about it because I haven’t been there in years.
  • Vail – It’s far but it’s gigantic with awesome back bowls and a fun village with cool bars
  • Aspen – Aspen is pretty damn stunning. And far. I’ve never snowboarded there, but I went to the Food & Wine Classic and loved hanging out in town throughout the weekend
• You know what’s better than skiing or snowboarding? Tubing. Go tubing at many of the ski mountains.
• Get super outdoorsy and go white water rafting down the Colorado River
• Hike a 14er. I did it once and hated it with all my being, but Colorado people love doing that ish. And there are a ton of mountains to choose from. I know none of them.

Explore Denver Neighborhoods 

•  Baker District
  • Get amazing ice cream at Sweet Action
  • Go shopping at Decade
  • Find unique gifts at Hope Tank
  • Get a fancy cocktail at Adrift
  • Play random games while sipping on a drink at Punch Bowl Social
• Cherry Creek North
  • Lots of shopping from small boutiques to well known chains
  • Check out some of the amazing restaurants such as Departure, True Food, Cherry Cricket, and a ton of others. Just walk around and you’ll run into something
• Art District of Santa Fe
  • Stop by mmm…Coffee for paleo treats
  • Check out the many art galleries that line the blocks of Santa Fe
  • Spend the evenings in the summer at their First Friday events with lots of food trucks and art
• RiNo
  • Stop by The Source
  • Drop in at one of the many breweries
  • Go to Finn’s Manor to try out multiple food trucks and grab a drink from their 16 rotating taps and over 400 spirits
• LoHi
  • Get ice cream at the delicious Little Man Ice Cream
  • Eat or drink on the rooftop of Linger – get the coconut gin fizz
  • Go to Avanti for multiple restaurants, bars and one of the best views of Downtown – get an arepa at Quiero Arepas
• Uptown
  • Get a fancy gluten free dessert at DBar
  • Check out the super weird long and skinny Thin Man bar
• Golden Triangle
  • Stop in at the Denver Art Museum
  • Get an amazing meal at Cuba Cuba

Go hang out at a cool park

• Washington Park
• City Park
• Riverfront Park
• Congress Park
• Sloan’s Lake Park
• Cheesman Park

Shop ’til You Drop

My favorite women’s boutiques

• Inspyre Boutique
• Hailee Grace
• Pink’s
• Decade
• Starlet
• W Boutique

Just Do Fun Stuff

• Bike, walk or run Cherry Creek Trail – It goes for 42 miles
• Go look at flowers at the Botanic Gardens
• See a movie at the old school Mayan Theatre
• Drink while making crafts at Uptown Circus
• Go to the pool at the Four Seasons
• Go to the spa at the Brown Palace
• Go to a Rockies Game
• Laugh your ass off at Comedy Works (2 locations)
• Drag Queen Bingo at Hamburger Mary’s
• See a unique show at Clock Tower Cabaret