72 Hours in Denver, Colorado
Back in October 2020, my boyfriend, Alex, and I took a ~72 hour trip to beautiful Colorado. While we were there, we were able to explore Denver, Boulder, Breckenridge, Golden, and Rocky Mountain National Park! It was a busy few days but we felt like we were able to take in all that the Denver area had to offer. Keep reading to learn how we planned out our 72 hours in Colorado!
Just a side note–I won’t be talking much about the food we ate in Colorado in this post. You can read more about the best places to eat in my Colorado food blog, which will be posted soon!
Day 1 (1/2 Day)
Our flights landed in Denver around 2pm and our first stop was to Dutch Bros. for a drink (if you’ve never heard of Dutch Bros., it’s a primarily western coffee chain that is by far Alex and mine’s favorite drink chain). Once we had our iced teas in hand, our first stop was to Union Station in downtown Denver.
Stop #1: Union Station
Union Station is a converted train station that has a vibe very similar to Grand Central Station in New York City. Located in the heart of Denver, it was once a major hub for train travel but has since been renovated and now boasts several local shops, restaurants, and a hotel. We stopped here first to grab a drink at one of the bars and admire the architecture and fall decorations. This was definitely a cool spot to see, but shouldn’t take up more than an hour of your trip. For more info on Union Station, check out their website here.
Stop #2: Larimer Square
After Union Station, we had about a 10 minute walk across the city to Larimer Square. Denver’s first historic district, Larimer Square is a block of old Victorian-style buildings that are now home to local shops and restaurants. The square paints an artsy, welcoming scene with colorful walkways and string lights adorning the entire area. We spent a little under an hour browsing the shops and then stopped at Russell’s Smokehouse for a barbecue dinner before driving up to the Capitol Hill district for a ghost tour.
Stop #3: Ghost Tour
After finishing our dinner at Larimer Square, we drove about 10 minutes to the Capitol Hill district of Denver for a ghost tour. I’m grateful I scheduled this ghost tour because it brought us to a completely different area of Denver we would have not seen otherwise. The Capitol Hill neighborhood makes you feel like you’ve been transported back in time to the early 1900s, as it is filled with century-old mansions and is rich with history. I’m sure this would be a great area to walk around during the day, but we really enjoyed this nighttime ghost tour as our tour guide gave us snippets of the area’s history in addition to learning about the supernatural. We highly recommend this hour-long ghost tour for anyone interested in exploring the Capitol Hill area.
Day 2 (Full Day)
Stop #1: Rocky Mountain National Park
Our first full day in Colorado was spent in the Rocky Mountains! Since Alex and I have never been to Colorado before, and are also not familiar with the mountains and not very comfortable with mountainous driving, we splurged and purchased a guided bus tour of the Rocky Mountains. This bus tour picked us up near where we stayed in Boulder for a full day of exploring Rocky Mountain National Park. Our first stop on the bus tour was a small town at the base of the mountain called Lyons, where we were able to try famous Colorado green chili in a breakfast burrito (definitely recommend trying green chili!). After we stopped for breakfast, we made our way into the park. Our tour guides were very open to hearing what we wanted to do that day, so we asked them to take us on one of their favorite hikes in the mountains. The beautiful four-mile hike they brought us was truly in the heart of the mountains and we stopped to eat our packed lunch at the pinnacle of the hike, which was a gorgeous waterfall surrounded by pine trees. Once we made it back to the bus, we drove along Trail Ridge Road for lots of mountain views and to take some pictures before driving back into Estes Park to see wild elk and have some close-up views of the base of the Rocky Mountains. This concluded our day in the Rockies and we drove back to Boulder.
One crazy experience we had while visiting the Rockies and Boulder was an up-close view of the mountains’ wildfires. We were visiting when Colorado was experiencing its worst wildfire outbreak in years, and these fires were visible from the base of the Rockies as well as during our drive back to Boulder. It was definitely a bit gut-wrenching to see and made us have a greater appreciation for the beauty of Colorado.
Stop #2: Downtown Boulder
After we got back to Boulder following our day in the Rocky Mountains, we explored the shops and restaurants of Pearl Street and Walnut Street in Boulder for the rest of the evening. These streets had a variety of local shops as well as big-name brands like The North Face and Free People. Because most restaurants I had researched ahead of time had long waits and big crowds, we stopped somewhere new with no wait time and then headed home for the night.
Day 3 (Full Day)
We woke up early on our second full day in Colorado to start our two-hour drive from Boulder to perhaps our favorite stop of the trip, Breckenridge. In the winter months Breckenridge is known for its skiing and snowboarding scene, but given we were there when the temperatures were still well above freezing in the afternoons we opted for hiking and exploring downtown instead. Breckenridge has some of the best hiking trails and best views I’ve seen anywhere and the downtown shops and restaurants were a perfect place to stroll after a couple hikes.
Stop #1: Sapphire Point Overlook Trail, Breckenridge
Our favorite hike of the trip was the gorgeous Sapphire Point Overlook Trail, on the outskirts of Breckenridge. As if the drive to Breckenridge wasn’t beautiful enough, this trail gives clear views of all the mountains surrounding this ski town. We heard the trail gets crowded later in the day, so we arrived a little after 8am and it was so worth it to have almost the entire trail to ourselves. It’s not very strenuous (maybe more of a harder walk than a hike), but the views are unbeatable and it only took us a little under an hour to complete.
Stop #2: Minnie Mine Loop Trail, Breckenridge
Our second hike of the day was about a ten minute drive from Sapphire Point Overlook’s trailhead. The Minnie Mine Loop Trail was a bit more strenuous (took us around 2 hours to complete) without constant views like our previous hikes, but we enjoyed the views at the top and the historical signage explaining the history of gold mines in Breckenridge. At the peak of this hike, you could see all the mountains surrounding Breckenridge at the top of the trail along with an abandoned gold mine you could explore. We stopped at the top of the trail to eat a packed lunch and enjoyed the views and fresh mountain air!
Stop #3: Downtown Breckenridge
After our two hikes, we ventured into downtown Breckenridge to check out the local shops and restaurants. To say we loved the town is an understatement! The mountain views are still in sight when you walk downtown but the wood-framed storefronts make the whole atmosphere feel very homey. Alex and I both got great souvenirs at some of the local shops then stopped for some comfort food at The Motherloaded Tavern along main street. We loved the town so much that we stayed longer than anticipated and had to cut one of our planned itinerary events out for the day (worth it in our opinion!). After our meal, we packed up the car and headed to the Red Rocks.
Stop #4: Trading Post Trail, Red Rocks Park
The famous Red Rocks Park was our next stop of the day, a little over an hour from Breckenridge. The first of two trails we hiked in the Red Rocks was the Trading Post Trail, which was a good introduction to the beauty and size of the Red Rocks Park. Although listed as “easy” on All Trails, this was definitely a bit more challenging than expected with some steep, rocky inclines. Make sure to wear good hiking shoes and don’t hike this trail in the rain!
Stop #5: Geological Overlook Trail, Red Rocks Park
Our next hike in the Red Rocks brought us to the famous Red Rocks Amphitheater, a concert venue built into the Red Rocks itself. Although there was no concert when we were there, this was still cool to see and offered amazing views from the top of the amphitheater! Both hikes combined probably took us a little less than two hours to complete and gave us a nice peek into the Red Rocks Park.
Stop #6: Golden
On our way back to Boulder from the Red Rocks, we stopped in the town of Golden. Golden was not as big as Breckenridge but had a similar downtown feel, with small shops and some local taverns. We spent a little over an hour walking downtown and enjoying the sunset before heading back to Boulder for the night. I think Golden was a worthwhile stop as we had some time to meander around the town, but if you’re pressed for time I think this is a little town you can skip over!
Just a side note– Golden is home to Coors Brewery, the largest single-site brewery in the world. We didn’t have time to enjoy a tour of the factory, but this is definitely something that can make a stop in Golden more worthwhile if you’re interested!
Day 4 (1/2 Day)
We were hoping to get up early to do a sunrise hike in Boulder, but the cold and rainy weather on our final morning decided otherwise. Instead we dedicated our last few hours in Colorado to exploring downtown Denver. We were able to see most of the city in a couple of hours, so this was a perfect last stop before we had to catch our flights home!
Stop #1: Colorado State Capitol
We drove from Boulder into Denver and conveniently found parking near our first stop, the Colorado Capitol Building. We learned some fun facts about the Capitol Building on our ghost tour, one of which explained that when the capitol was first built, heavy rains caused the gold dome to chip and drop gold pieces on the capitol lawn for citizens to collect. Another interesting fact is that there are three markers on the steps leading up to the Capitol building that indicate where the elevation is exactly one mile above sea level. The reason for three markers is because when the Capitol was first built, an indication of where a mile elevation would be was carved into the stairs. Years later in 1969, a group of students at Colorado State concluded that this marker was not right and placed it on a different step. However, in 2003, another group of engineers used modern technology to establish exactly one mile above sea level, and marked a third step with this elevation.
The Capitol Building was not offering tours while we were visiting, but are now offering guided tours every weekday! More information can be found here.
Stop #2: 16th Street Mall
Our last stop on our Colorado trip was to the 16th Street Mall, a mile-long pedestrian walkway with different shops and restaurants. This was a cool place to see, but I don’t think it is a must-do if you are short on time (would recommend fitting in another hike if the weather permits!), as most of the shops and restaurants were chains. Nevertheless, we walked the entire strip in a little under two hours and stopped for lunch before heading to the airport.
Closing Thoughts
We really enjoyed our short trip to the Denver area and felt like we were able to get a great feel of all Colorado has to offer in a short period of time. I think if we were to go back, we would stay an extra day to fit in some hiking in Estes Park at the base of the Rockies, as this little town had a vibrant downtown area and stunning views. I would have also liked to fit in a couple more hikes in the Boulder area, but time and weather stopped us from exploring these hikes on this trip.
In terms of what I would recommend, our first day in Denver checking out Union Station, Larimer Square, and going on a ghost tour of Capitol Hill was a great way to introduce us to different parts of the city and learn about its history. We also loved exploring the Rocky Mountains (though we might go a bit longer than just a day tour next time) and also had a great time in Breckenridge and the Red Rocks.
Overall, Colorado is a beautiful state with activities for everyone and we can’t wait to be back!
I hope you enjoyed this blog post and found it helpful in planning your trip to Denver! If you loved this blog, feel free to leave me a comment below and share with your friends!
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I love wine and this looks like a great place to visit! Thank you for sharing!
Sounds like great recommendations and perfect spots to top off your trip.
Oof so much wine and not enough time! Thanks for sharing this wonderful guide – your shot of the rose…