Things To Do

Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre

Red Rocks Amphitheatre is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, ten miles west of Denver. Red rocks has a lot to offer rather that be a hike, seeing a concert, yoga, or just for a visit. It is very beautiful and worth a visit.

Lookout Mountain Park

This is one local hike in Golden that offers a challenge and great views. There are numerous nearby hikes, too many to add. We use Alltrails app to lookup hikes. Pay close attention to difficulty rating and elevations.

Adventure West River Tube and Ebike Rental

Cool off in a mountain stream on a hot July day. This business offers tube, lifejacket rentals, and a lift up the stream and then enjoy a fun, relaxing ride down into the city.

The Golden Mill

Enjoy a unique experience at the Golden Mill that offers food truck like dining and a self-serve beer/cocktail wall. In addition, walking distance from tubing business.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park's 415 square miles (265,807 acres) encompasses a spectacular range of mountain environments. From meadows found in the montane life zone to glistening alpine lakes and up to the towering mountain peaks, there is something for everyone to discover. Along the way explore over 300 miles of hiking trails and incredible wildlife viewing.

Coors Field

Home of the Rockies. Coors Field is a great place to watch baseball. Unfortunately there are no home games the weekend of our wedding, however you can still tour the stadium. Check out this link for more info > https://www.mlb.com/rockies/tickets/tours .

Boulder

Boulder is a perfect balance of urban and outdoors. Known for its stellar food scene, breweries, an always-exciting downtown and more outdoor activities than you can count, the city is just 30 minutes northwest of Denver, where the Rocky Mountains meet the plains. Must see: Flatirons park in Boulder. Boulder is beautiful and one of our favorites.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is about sharing the wonders of the natural world with kids of all ages and providing memories for a lifetime at America’s mountain Zoo. Named #3 Best Zoo in North America by USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards, you’re in for way more than just watching.

Denver Zoo

Denver Zoo is an 80-acre nonprofit zoological garden located in City Park of Denver, Colorado, United States.

River North Art District

The River North Art District "where art is made" goes by the nickname of "RiNo" and has even adopted a rhino design for its official logo, so look for creative rhinos in art and signage all around the neighborhood! The district's interesting blend of urban charm and unique industrial revival makes it a great destination for visitors. Historic warehouses and factories now house jazz bars, restaurants, brewpubs, art galleries and working studios. RiNo boasts a diverse mix of creative businesses ranging from visual artists, designers and furniture makers, to craft distillers and brewers, winemakers, creators of unique outdoor gear and small-batch coffee roasters. The art definitely extends beyond gallery walls in this neighborhood, with its colorful and innovative street art murals in alleys and on buildings around almost every corner!

Larimer Square

An iconic and lively gathering place, Larimer Square is the beating heart and creative soul of Downtown Denver Great restaurants

South Broadway

Scott and I lived near this neighborhood for a year and enjoyed visiting many restaurants including our favorite sushi place, Go Fish. There are plenty of restaurants, bars, and shopping.

New Terrain Brewing Company

New Terrain is a brewery that is located in Golden, CO. This is where Scott and I had our first date. They offer live music in the summer, rotating food trucks, hiking trails nearby, and you will see lots of doggies.

Children's Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus

Downtown Aquarium

Sprawling complex with a state-of-the-art aquarium housing 500+ species, plus a restaurant & lounge.

Highlands

The Highlands neighborhood in Denver is a trendy and vibrant neighborhood that has plenty to do, and is where one of our preferred hotels is located. There are a lot of bars, restaurants, and shops, as well as great views of the downtown skyline.

Dillon Reservoir

Dillon Reservoir is approximately 1-1.5 hours drive from Denver, and has plenty to offer. Recreational activities include hiking, fishing, boating, and hiking. Dillon is located near numerous popular mountain towns such as Keystone, Silverthorne, Breckenridge, and Vail. We recommend this as a day trip out of Denver, but it would be a great location for an overnight stay as well.

Clear Creek Trail

Clear Creek is a tributary of the South Platte River, approximately 66 miles long, in north central Colorado in the United States. The creek flows through Clear Creek Canyon in the Rocky Mountains directly west of Denver, descending through a long gorge to emerge on the Colorado Eastern Plains where it joins the South Platte. Clear Creek is unusual in that it is a stream named "creek" fed by a stream named "river"; typically "rivers" are fed by "creeks", and are larger bodies of water, although the nomenclature is ambiguous and there is no clear system. Fall River empties into Clear Creek along I-70 west of Idaho Springs, Colorado.

Denver Botanic Gardens Chatfield Farms

The Denver Botanic Gardens is a public botanical garden located in the Cheesman Park neighborhood of Denver, Colorado. The 23-acre park contains a conservatory, a variety of theme gardens and a sunken amphitheater, which hosts various concerts in the summer.

Butterfly Pavilion

The Butterfly Pavilion is located in Westminster, Colorado. It opened on July 1, 1995, and was the first stand-alone non-profit insect zoo in the United States.

16th Street Mall

The mall offers Denver's best people watching. There are 42 outdoor cafés along the mall, making it the perfect place to grab a bite to eat or have a drink. Denver Pavilions, near the south end of the mall, is a shopping and dining complex with 12 movie theaters and more than two dozen shops and restaurants. At the north end of the mall, 16th Street continues as a pedestrian path over three bridges connecting downtown to Commons Park and LoHi, a hip neighborhood filled with restaurants and brewpubs. Points of interest along the mall include the D&F Tower, a two-thirds replica of the Campanile of St. Mark's in Venice that was the highest building west of the Mississippi when it was built in 1909. After dark, horse-drawn carriages and pedi-cabs carry people up and down the mall, while nearly a million lights twinkle above in the more than 200 trees that line the promenade.

Estes Park

Check out the Stanley Hotel, famously known for being in The Shining by Stephen King. This is on your way in to Estes Park! Estes Park is a town in northern Colorado. It’s known as a base for the Rocky Mountain National Park, home to wildlife including elk and bears, plus miles of trails. The park’s Trail Ridge Road winds past craggy peaks, forests and tundra. Nearby are the wilderness areas of Roosevelt National Forest. The Estes Park Aerial Tramway connects the town to the summit of Prospect Mountain for views over the valley.

Garden of the Gods Visitor & Nature Center

Distance from Thornton/Denver area: 60-75 minutes