South Central Colorado
We’ve compiled the best of the best in South Central Colorado - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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18 Recommendations
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1. Cave of the Winds
Discovered by two boys in 1880, the cave has been exploited as a tourist sensation ever since. The only way to enter the site is by purchasing a tour, but once inside the cave you'll forget the hype and commercialism of the gimmicky entrance. The cave contains examples of every major sort of limestone formation, from icicle-shaped stalactites and stump-like stalagmites to delicate anthodite crystals (or cave flowers), flowstone (or frozen waterfalls), and cave popcorn. Enthusiastic guides host easy 45-minute walking tours, adventurous cave expeditions, and lantern tours that last 1½ hours. An outdoor ropes course and rides like the Terror-dactyl, which swings riders off a 200-foot cliff, offer more fun outside of the cave.
100 Cave of the Winds Rd., Colorado, 80829, USA719-685–5444Sight Details
Rate Includes: Tours start at $26 -
2. Pikes Peak
If you want to see the view from the top of Pikes Peak, head up this 14,115-foot-high mountain by car, train, or in a pair of hiking boots if you've got the stamina. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, visitors can drive to the summit ($15 per passenger or $50 per car) but reservations are required. The newly renovated cog train offers an alternative for those looking to avoid hairpin turns and sharp drop-offs on the highway. It's also convenient when the weather closes the road. Gaining nearly 7,400 feet in elevation, the 27-mile round trip hike is grueling. The steep, rocky terrain causes unstable footing, and unpredictable weather can be treacherous year-round, which is why many hikers camp at Barr Camp after mile 6 before the final uphill slog. Shuttles are available to take hikers either up or down the mountain, cutting the hike in half. Once at the top, stop for a doughnut at the Pikes Peak Summit House café and trading post. Whichever route you choose to take up the prominent peak, you'll understand why the pioneers heading West via wagon train used to say: "Pikes Peak or Bust."
View Tours and ActivitiesU.S. 24, Colorado, 80901, USA719-385–7325Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15 per person, $50 per vehicle -
3. Royal Gorge
Body Of Water/WaterfallCañon City is the gateway to the Royal Gorge, whose canyon walls tower up to 1,200 feet high and were carved by the Arkansas River more than 3 million years ago. The famed Royal Gorge War between the Denver & Rio Grande and Santa Fe railroads occurred here in 1877. The battle was over the right-of-way through the canyon, which could only accommodate one rail line. Rival crews would lay tracks during the day and dynamite each other's work at night. The dispute was finally settled in court—the Denver & Rio Grande won. Today there's a commercially run site, the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park, along one part of the gorge. A wildfire swept through this region in 2013, but quick-acting locals revived the touristic hub, which launched a new children's area in 2015. Rafting remains a strong and prosperous draw to the region.
U.S. 50 , Cañon City, Colorado, USA -
4. U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum
Unlike what its silver exterior suggests, this 60-000-square-foot museum is a gold-medal experience for visitors of all ages and one of the most inclusive and accessible museums in the world. Race a virtual Olympian on the rubber track or try to keep a skeleton bobsled on course at the interactive athlete training exhibit, which also features hands-on archery, skiing, and goalball (a soccer-like game played by the visually impaired) games. After checking in, visitors work their way through three floors of displays that seamlessly combine Olympic and Paralympic history, uniforms, ice skates, running shoes, a dented rugby wheelchair, helmets, and other gear. Highlights include the Hall of Fame; a display case filled with Olympic torches, including those used in the more recent Atlanta, Sydney, Sochi, and PyeongChang games; and a gift shop where you can "virtually" try on apparel. Electronic visitor passes allow you to quickly find your favorite sports and learn about your favorite athletes as you make your way through the museum; you can also save the information to an online locker for future reading. Don't miss one of the last and most popular exhibits—one of the most complete collections of Olympic medals in the world. If you're lucky, you might even hear staff cheering as current and former Olympians visit the museum, which is located next to America the Beautiful Park connecting to miles of walking and biking trails. Hour-long guided tours are available.
200 S. Sierra Madre St., Colorado, 80903, USA719-497–1234Sight Details
Rate Includes: $19.95, Closed Tues. and Wed. -
5. Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun
This five-story tower was dedicated in 1937, after a tragic plane crash claimed the life of Will Rogers, America's favorite—and funniest—cowboy. The shrine's viewing deck provides an impressive panoramic view of Colorado Springs and the surrounding area. The tower interior is painted with all manner of Western murals in which Colorado Springs benefactor Spencer Penrose figures prominently, and is plastered with photos and homespun sayings of Rogers. In the chapel are 15th- and 16th-century European artworks.
4250 Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Rd., Colorado, 80906, USA719-578-5367Sight Details
Rate Includes: $34.75, includes same-day admission to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge
Less than an hour's drive southwest of Great Sand Dunes is a sanctuary for songbirds, waterbirds, and raptors (it's also home to many other types of birds, along with mule deer, beavers, and coyotes). The Rio Grande runs through the park comprising more than 12,000 acres of natural and man-made wetlands. You can take a 4-mile hike round-trip along the river or a 3½-mile wildlife drive on the park's western side or a drive along Bluff Road to an overlook on the park's eastern side. The refuge office is staffed by volunteers sporadically from March through November and closed in winter, but a self-service kiosk provides visitor information year-round.
9383 El Rancho La., Alamosa, Colorado, 81101, USA719-589–4021Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
7. Buell Children's Museum
Ranked among the best in the country, the Buell Children's Museum provides fun, interactive experiences for kids of all ages. The 12,000-square-foot facility has innovative exhibits on art, science, and history. It's in the same complex as the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center.
210 N. Santa Fe Ave., Pueblo, Colorado, 81003, USA719-295–7200Sight Details
Rate Includes: $10, Closed Sun. and Mon. -
8. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
America's only mountain zoo, at 6,700 feet, has nearly 1,000 animals housed amid mossy boulders and ponderosa pines. You can hand-feed the giraffe herd in the zoo's African Rift Valley, ride the chairlift-style, open-air Sky Ride, and check out the animals living in Primate World, Rocky Mountain Wild, or the Asian Highlands.
View Tours and Activities4250 Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Rd., Colorado, 80906, USA719-633–9925Sight Details
Rate Includes: $34.75, includes same-day admission to Will Rogers Shrine -
9. City Park
The fine City Park has fishing lakes, playgrounds, a carousel, a mini train ride, tennis courts, and a swimming pool.
Pueblo Blvd. and Goodnight Ave., Pueblo, Colorado, 81004, USA -
10. Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad
Take a day trip on the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad, an 1880s steam locomotive that chugs through portions of Colorado's and northern New Mexico's rugged mountains that you can't reach via roads. It's the country's longest and highest steam-operated railroad. The company offers round-trip train routes, several bus-and-train combinations, one-way trips, and themed rides.
5234 U.S. 285, Antonito, Colorado, 81120, USA888-286–2737Sight Details
Rate Includes: $90–$270 -
11. El Pueblo History Museum
A nicely designed repository for the city's history, El Pueblo History Museum extends its scope to chronicle life on the plains dating back before Colorado statehood. It tells of Pueblo's role as a cultural and geographic crossroads, beginning when it was a trading post in the 1840s. Hands-on features—a giant teepee where guests can go inside and play historic drum replicas; a dress-up chest full of pioneer clothing and hats; and a covered wagon that is just the right height for small hands to discover the trinkets on board—make this museum fun for the whole family. Remnants of the original trading post are now an archaeological dig enclosed in a pavilion next to the museum.
301 N. Union Ave., Pueblo, Colorado, 81003, USA719-583–0453Sight Details
Rate Includes: $7, Closed Sun. -
12. Ghost Town Museum
You can see and hear a real player piano and a nickelodeon at this indoor "town," a permanent example of Colorado’s Wild West towns complete with a stable, general store, saloon, and smithy. There's also gold panning in the summer.
400 S. 21st St., Colorado, 80904, USA719-634–0696Sight Details
Rate Includes: $7.50 -
13. Manitou Cliff Dwellings
Some Ancestral Pueblo cliff dwellings that date back nearly 1,000 years have been moved from other sites in southern Colorado and faithfully reassembled beneath a red rock cliff at this museum. While the reconstructions resemble the original dwellings, the workers used cement instead of the original adobe mud method. For that reason, the museum is much less precious and visitors can roam and climb and touch, which makes it much more kid friendly than most archaeological sites. Two rooms of artifacts in the museum offer information on the history of the dwellings. Smartphone codes provide a free audio tour through the space.
10 Cliff Rd., Colorado, 80829, USA719-685–5242Sight Details
Rate Includes: $12 -
14. Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge
Just west of the Alamosa wildlife refuge is its sister sanctuary, the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge, a 15,000-acre park that's a stopping point for more than 20,000 migrating cranes in the spring and fall. It hosts an annual Crane Festival, held one weekend in mid-March in the nearby town of Monte Vista, and a children's Crane Festival in mid-October at the park with kid-friendly activities. You can see the sanctuary by foot, bike, or car via the 4-mile Wildlife Drive.
6120 Rte. 15, Monte Vista, Colorado, 81101, USA719-589–4021Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
15. North Cheyenne Cañon Park
The 1,600 acres of this city park, which is open year-round, manifest nature and natural history without a hint of commercialism—or charge. The canyon's moderate hikes include the Lower Columbine and Mt. Cutler trails, each less than a 3-mile round-trip. Both afford a view of the city and a sense of accomplishment.
2120 S. Cheyenne Canyon Rd., Colorado, 80906, USA719-385–5940Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
16. Pikes Peak Cog Railway
The world's highest cog train departs from Manitou Springs and follows a frolicking stream up a steep canyon, through stands of quaking aspen and towering lodgepole pines, before reaching the timberline, where you can see far into the plains until arriving at the summit. Advance reservations are recommended in summer and on weekends, as this three-hour trip sells out regularly. Reserve a spot next to the engineer, the Engineer's Seat ($78.50), for front-row views for the uphill direction of the journey.
515 Ruxton Ave., Colorado, 80829, USA719-685–5401Sight Details
Rate Includes: $58.50, plus parking, Reservations essential -
17. Pueblo Zoo
In City Park, this biopark is home to African penguins, ringtail lemurs, and boa constrictors—housed separately of course. Favorites here include African painted dogs, lions, river otters, and the annual holiday feature ElectriCritters, an evening light display that involves more than 250,000 lights, which runs from late November through the end of the year.
3455 Nuckolls Ave., Pueblo, Colorado, 81005, USA719-561–1452Sight Details
Rate Includes: $14 -
18. Royal Gorge Route Railroad
A ride on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad takes you under the bridge and through one of the most dramatic parts of the canyon. From the Santa Fe depot in Cañon City, the train departs up to four times a day for 1½-to-3-hour rides. The breakfast, lunch, and dinner rides are pleasant, and the food is good, although not exactly "gourmet" as advertised. Ticket options include Coach, Deluxe, and Vista Dome. Coach class does not have tables, and ticket fares do not include the cost of food and beverages available for purchase during the ride. Seasonal rides like the Oktoberfest train and Santa Express offer additional entertainment. Railfans may want to pay an extra fee to ride in the cab with the engineer.
401 Water St., Cañon City, Colorado, 81212, USA719-274–4000Sight Details
Rate Includes: From $79
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