10+ Best Things To Do In Denver, Colorado

Denver, Colorado is a laid-back city that sits right at the edge of where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains. Known for its outdoorsy culture, abundant sunshine, great views, and more.

Denver is a big city, so it’s kind of silly to narrow it down to just 10 things. So we like we put an emphasis on those special, can’t find anywhere else attractions, and maybe a few personal favorites too.

So let’s get into our Top 10 Things To Do In Denver, Colorado.

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River North Art District

Also referred to as RiNo for short, is our favorite neighborhood to explore in Denver. This once gritty and overlooked industrial neighborhood is now exploding with artistic creativity.

Most of the action is centered around Larimer St, where you can’t miss the abundance of murals, graffiti, and other street art adorning the buildings. But diving deeper you will find that it’s home to all kinds of creative pursuits like photographers, sculptors, media artists, and more.

And besides the arts scene, there’s restaurants, bars, and shops to explore. Some notable places to check out are

The Denver Central Market: a giant food hall that’s a great place to get a meal.
The Graffiti Alley: which runs parallel between Larimer St and Walnut Street
Larimer Lounge: one of the best small music venues in Denver. But speaking of music venues you gotta visit….

Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater

Denver is home to one of the most iconic music venues in the entire world. In the foothills outside of Denver, a pair of twin sandstone formations frame the incredible Red Rocks Amphitheater. While seeing a concert is our favorite thing to do here, the amphitheater hosts other types of events too, like movies and yoga. Or you can simply visit the park for free during non-event times. There are trails for hiking and biking, that offer incredible views of the rock formations, meadows, and the Denver area.

Since the 1940’s, Red Rocks has been hosting regular concerts from about April to November. Check out the Red Rocks Hall Of Fame to learn about the many legendary musicians who have graced the stage. It’s just down the stairs from the top deck.

Performers and concert goers alike are always captivated by the magical energy at Red Rocks. And steep angle of the seating means that there isn’t a bad seat in the house. While you can catch concerts from all types of genres, Denver’s music scene definitely leans towards, electronic music, bluegrass, and jam bands. And here’s just a few pro-tips if you do come for a concert.

Getting to and from the venue can be a challenge. There is plenty of parking, but obviously that only works if you have a designated driver. And ride-shares Apps are notoriously annoying to use after a show. So I would look into the various shuttle companies, like Bus-to-Show, that can handle your round-trip transportation.

Most shows at Red Rocks are almost all General Admission. So you’re free to choose your own seats or move around as space allows. The rows are labeled 1-70, and it’s good to remember what row you’re in if you go to the restroom or to get drinks. If you’re below row 35, the music is louder, the lights more immersive, and the crowd packed tighter. Above row 35, there’s more room to move and you get views of lights of the city. But the sound quality can be affected by wind.

Check out the events at Red Rocks

Meow Wolf – Convergence Station

This might be the most out-of-this-world museum you’ll ever visit. Get ready to be transported to another dimension, immersed in psychedelic creations where nothing is ordinary. It’s best to come with no set schedule and an open mind, just allow yourself to be free and curious.

As you make your way through the museum, you’ll discover a symphony for the senses. With new experiences around every corner, through every tunnel, or behind hidden doorways. You can spend 5 hours in here and still not discover everything there is to see and interact with.

From the grand sculptures to the tiniest portal windows, there is so much attention to detail.

Tickets are $50 per person for a scheduled visit, or $60 for anytime admission. The museum is great for all ages, but several times a month they hosts 21+ nights, where alcoholic beverages are welcome in the exhibits. Otherwise, beverages need to be enjoyed in the Sips Lounge only.

And Meow Wolf also hosts special events too, like concerts and other performances.

If you are into Art, Denver has many more traditional art museums as well, like the Denver Art Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art.

Denver Botanic Gardens

This 24-acre property hosts a huge variety of plants from around the world. Tickets are $15 per adult, it’s a great place to escape the bustle of the city and explore their living collections.

The park has everything from exotic flowers to humble grasses. Even if you’re not a plant nerd, you’re sure to be dazzled by something.

The gardens are generally organized into different biomes, showcasing a collections of harmonious plant for various ecosystems. Some of our favorite locations are the bonsai tree collection, the tropical conservatory, and the water gardens.

Most visitors just explore freely on their own, but you can book various guided tours for a much more informational experience.

Brewery Hopping

Denver’s craft beer scene is booming with so many awesome breweries to visit. Or maybe too many, since even we still have a bunch that we haven’t been too yet.

If you want to try a few, two of the best clusters of breweries are in River North and Sloan’s Lake. But no matter what part of the city you’e in, there’s sure to be a good brewery or two nearby.

Some of our favorite ones are

Odell, Joyride
Hogshead
Station 26

But others we have heard good things about are Cerebral, Our Mutual Friend, and Fiction.

Another place we like is the First Draft Taproom in River North. They have 40 taps with rotating offerings of all types of beer, cider, and more. But the coolest part is that it’s self-service, and charged by the ounce. So you can try as much or a little as you like of each beer with no pressure.

When we lived in Denver, we got a thing called a Pub Pass for $25, which gives you a free beer at 25 different breweries and bars in Denver. You basically just show up and they serve you a free beer and stamp your Pub Pass booklet. But you do need to plan ahead since they mail you a physical passport-like booklet.

Denver Biscuit Company

This restaurant is just a personal favorite of ours. Their dynamite breakfast items all coalesce around their delicious biscuits, whether that’s a fried chicken biscuit sandwich, smothered biscuits and gravy, or some other decadent creation.

Denver Biscuit Company is part of the Atomic Cowboy chain that also serves Fat Sully’s, known for their pizza, burgers, and chicken sandwiches. And the interior has kind of a funky retro futuristic vibe. When that hankering for a not-so-healthy breakfast calls, this is the place.

Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge

Let’s be honest, most people come to Colorado for the mountains. But pretty much the entire eastern half of the State is plains.

And the plains are typically overshadowed by the mountains, literally and figuratively. But one great free place to experience this aspect of Colorado is the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge.

This former chemical weapons manufacturing site went through extensive clean up in the 90’s, to finally become a wildlife refuge where native species can thrive again.

This 15,000 acre refuge is home to bison, birds of prey, deer, coyotes, prairie dogs, song birds, and more. It’s free to visit the park and the most popular thing to do is drive the 11 mile Wildlife Drive.

We highly recommend listening to the free Audio Tour podcast that provides insights relevant to each mile of the journey. You can find it anywhere you get your podcasts (in English and en Espanol).

And honestly, in all our years living in Colorado, we’ve never seen so much wildlife in such a short amount of time. The park also has hiking trails, seasonal fishing lakes, guided tours, and a visitor center.

Casa Bonita

This is an iconic Mexican restaurant west of Denver, but it’s really so much more than that. Built in the 1970’s, Casa Bonita attempts to mimic many facets of Mexican culture and architecture. With live mariachi bands, cliff divers, puppet shows, secret caves, roaming characters, and more.

The reputation of the original restaurant is sub-par Mexican food, with entertainment and decor that is tacky, and yet somehow endearing.

For many, Casa Bonita was brought into the public consciousness by a famous 2003 South Park episode, where Cartmen visits the restaurant. The creators of South Park are Colorado natives themselves, who have fond memories of visiting Casa Bonita as kids.

So when it filed for bankruptcy during COVID, they couldn’t bear the thought of seeing this Denver icon closed down for good.

But their passion project was quickly met with the reality of decades of deferred maintenance that made the renovation cost balloon into the tens of millions. Against all advice and council, they basically refused to let Casa Bonita die, and continued with the financially unjustifiable renovation.

It finally re-opened in 2023, promising to retain all character of the original restaurant, but brought up to code, and with Mexican food that is more than just edible.

With all the re-newed excitement, it can be a little tricky to get reservations if your schedule isn’t flexible. But Emily and I managed to get some standard dining reservations this past October by checking the website frequently. The reservation is a flat rate that includes one entree, chips & salsa, soft drink, their famous sopappilas, and the freedom to explore the property as long as you like. Alcoholic drinks or additional other menu items cost extra.

I’m happy to report that the food is very good. Emily got the enchiladas and I got Betty’s Burrito. We both agreed that my green chili brisket burrito was the best. After the meal, you can explore all the entertainment. And there are several bars throughout, if you want to keep buying drinks.

I would plan for about 2-3 hours for the entire experience. And overall, I think Casa Bonita is really geared more towards kids. But adults who come with a playful attitude can still have a great time at this one-of-a-kind restaurant.

Side note- Denver is known for really good Mexican restaurants. So even if you don’t want to do the whole Casa Bonita experience. We highly recommend getting some Mexican food in the Denver area. You’re probably never far from a Mexican restaurant or food truck that will blow your mind.

Sloan’s Lake

This is another one of our favorite neighborhoods to visit around Denver. And before you get your hopes up, swimming is not allowed in Sloan’s Lake, but trust me, you wouldn’t to swim in this water anyway.

However, fishing and non-motorized watercraft are allowed. And the park around the lake is a really scenic place for all kinds of recreation. With mountain views on one side and the city skyline on the other.

The 2.6-mile paved loop around the lake is a popular place for walking, jogging, or cycling.

And there’s also tennis courts, basketball courts, playgrounds, and picnic areas. And when you are done, the neighborhood surrounding the lake has some great restaurants and breweries to visit.

We kind of already talked about the breweries before, but Odell, Joyride, and Hogshead are our favorites in the area. And US Thai is probably the best Thai restaurant in Denver.

This hole-in-the-wall place is our favorite for super affordable and absolutely delicious Thai food. Oh, and even their mild is spicy, you’ve been warned.

Go For A Hike

We wanted to keep this video mostly focused on things close to Denver. But for many people, ourselves included, exploring the mountains is a huge motivation for coming to the area.

While Denver itself isn’t really great for hiking. There are so many great hiking opportunities within an hour’s drive from Denver. With a variety of easier trails around the foothills that are only like 30 minutes from Downtown.

Or you can drive a little further into the Front Range mountains for some more challenging hikes.

A few popular places to hike within 30 minutes of Denver are:

North or South Table Mountain – which hike along the rim of twin plateaus, offering great views of Golden, Denver, and the foothills.
Clear Creek Canyon – in Golden
Or there’s the aforementioned Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge and Red Rocks Park

You can hike practically year-round at these locations. But spring and fall are probably the most comfortable hiking weather.

Or if you are looking to Hike a little deeper into the mountains, check out:

Mount Falcon Park – West Trailhead
St Mary’s Glacier – is really popular hike to some beautiful lakes and a year-round snowfield.
Chief Mountain – is a great moderate hike to the top a peak that gives you that surrounded by mountains feeling.

But hiking in the mountains is usually only from June to October, since snow is usually present for the rest of the months.

Or another popular thing to do is hike a 14er. That’s the nickname for mountains that are taller than 14,000ft tall. But this should only be attempted by fit and experienced hikers. And even then I don’t really recommend it, because basically all the 14ers near Denver are soooo crowded that it’s more headache than it’s worth. Sorry for the negativity, but really, there’s plenty of other beautiful hikes that offer a similar experience.

Or a cheat code is driving the Blue Sky Scenic Byway, the highest road in North America that takes you to the top of Mt Blue Sky. You do need to book permits to drive this road.

And getting a little far from Denver at this point. But Rocky Mountain National Park is 2 hours away and is another popular thing to add into a bigger Colorado trip itinerary.

Watch Our Youtube Video Exploring Denver Colorado

Where To Stay In Denver, Colorado

Denver has no shortage of places to stay, but we recommend choosing a hotel in or near downtown if you want to be close to many of the city’s top attractions, restaurants, and nightlife. Here are a few options for different budgets and travel styles:

The Crawford Hotel – Best for Location
Located inside Denver’s historic Union Station, The Crawford is perfect if you want to be in the heart of downtown with restaurants, shops, and public transportation right outside your door.

The Maven Hotel – Best Boutique Hotel
Located in the Dairy Block, The Maven is a stylish boutique hotel surrounded by restaurants, bars, shops, and plenty of things to do. It’s a great choice for a fun, lively downtown stay.

Hyatt Centric Downtown Denver – Best Mid-Range Option
A great balance of comfort, location, and price, the Hyatt Centric puts you within walking distance of many downtown attractions and even has a rooftop terrace with city views.

Four Seasons Hotel Denver – Best Luxury Stay
If you’re looking to splurge, the Four Seasons offers a luxurious downtown stay with a spa, heated outdoor pool, and a prime location in Denver’s Theatre District.

11th Avenue Hostel – Best Budget Option
For travelers watching their budget, 11th Avenue Hostel offers both dorms and private rooms in a central location. It’s a solid choice if you want to save money without sacrificing location or cleanliness. You can also check out Ember Hostel or Hostel Fish.

Or use the map below to search different hotel and vacation rentals in the area.

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