Brooke & Jed
Things To Do
Downtown Golden
Golden is one of our favorite places in Colorado, largely due to the sheer variety of things you can do there! Despite being a small town of not even 20,000, Golden boasts the most-visited pizza joint in the world (Woody's), the best and most creative sandwiches you'll ever have the pleasure of enjoying (D'deli), a stylish speakeasy (Golden Moon), an art museum (Foothills Art Center), and many more exciting stores! Additionally, Golden boasts 8 craft breweries, 2 craft distilleries, and the largest single-site brewery in the world (Coors). For the more outdoor-oriented types, we also highly recommend taking a walk down Clear Creek, or renting tubes and going tubing down the creek! There are also a large number of public parks. All that aside though, we really just recommend walking around to see what you find :)
South Table Mountain
The South Table hike is one of the most classic Golden hikes! It's a short, relatively easy hike with outstanding 360 degree views at the top! If you're looking for a midday hike that you can do on the day of the wedding, this is the hike for you. Located just a few blocks from the heart of downtown Golden, it's an ideal distance from the hotel and from some of the best food you'll ever have!
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
The Denver Science museum is outstanding! It is very large and very well taken care of. There is tons to do and see here, making it a great family-friendly event!
Denver Zoo
While neither of us have actually been to the Denver zoo yet, we've heard amazing things, and have had it on our list of things to do for quite some time! The weather should be pretty nice by the time of the wedding, so this could be a fun way to burn off some energy if you brought some little ones with you!
Deer Creek Canyon Hike
This is one of the more challenging hikes you'll find, as it is quite the steep climb. It's also one of our favorite hikes of all time though, since it has several different paths you can take, all of which have amazing views! In fact, we love this hike so much that it's where we got engaged! It can be a rather long hike, however, so make sure you bring water and a snack!
Apex Hiking Trail
The Apex hiking trail in Golden is the perfect trail for mid-level hikers. With several paths that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours, it's highly customizable to fit in your schedule! We have done several hikes here, and it's near the top of our list of our favorite hikes!
Garden of the Gods
The Garden of the Gods is a gorgeous park with lots of walking/hiking trails, as well as outstanding picnic opportunities and photoshoots! If you're hoping to see the, ahem, *peak* beauty of Colorado during your visit, this is the place to go! It's a bit of a travel from the hotel, but it's absolutely worth it!
Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre
The Red Rocks Amphitheater is a world-renowned concert venue located on the side of a mountain face overlooking Denver! When there's not a concert or event going on here, it also doubles as a public park with some solid hiking paths.
The 1UP Arcade Bar
The 1UP is a "barcade" with three locations in and around Denver. If you're a nerd missing the days where arcades used to be all the rage, you may want to try to find time to visit the 1UP! Here you can order any number of video-game-themed alcoholic beverages, spend hours getting lost in fun arcade games, or both!
Meow Wolf: Convergence Station
It's hard to describe what Meow Wolf is... The best we've been able to come up with is an "immersive experience." It's sort of like an art museum, but mildly trippy and more interactive! This is a particularly good event for the creative types, or anyone who wants to take advantage of Colorado's legalized substances (although we can speak from experience saying that you'll have a great time even if you don't)!
Glenwood Springs Hot Springs
These natural hot springs in Glenwood Springs are outstanding! Located a few hours into the mountains from Golden, they're a bit of a drive, but the extra distance means it's even more beautiful. At this hot spring resort, there are several smaller pools of varying temperatures, with both children's sections for families and non-children sections for a quieter atmosphere. There are many fun things to do in town as well!