Boulder, CO vs Denver, CO
 

My husband has mentioned really wanting to go to Colorado for our September vacation. We would love to see some of the beauty of the state, but I'm not interested in an all camping, hiking, outdoorsy type of vacation. I would love to visit some musuems, wineries, have some amazing places to eat...you know, take in some culture. So, which city would be better to visit? If there is a less obvious, more quaint location I would be open to those suggestions as well, but would prefer not to have to drive more than an hour from the airport to get there.

I live 2 miles from Boulder, and if you are looking for a diversity of cultural attractions, Denver is the place to base yourselves. You can make day trips from there.

I should explain: Boulder is chock full of construction right now, driving is a nightmare, and you've chosen when the students are all coming back to the university.

Thanks for your input. That helps greatly.

I lived in Golden for 5 years, Boulder in one direction and Denver another. I went to Boulder once or twice. I went to Denver often. I don't think there's any comparison.

Thanks for your input. That helps greatly.

Are those the only two locations on your list? Have you considered a mountain resort town like Aspen or Vail?

As Nelson says, stay in Denver either at the start of finish and make a loop up through the mountains. More shopping and sights and NON-woodsy things to do than you'll be able to do.
Denver is a great town for museums (art museum, botanical gardens, natural history). Great food. Fun shopping on Pearl Street. Boulder is a nice day trip but as pointed out, students are back and it is crowded.

Given the restrictions in your op, Denver would be the best choice. With a little effort you could get by without a car although a car would be very useful. You can do Boulder and Golden via public transit. With a car you could do a couple of driving loops into the central mountains.

CU at Boulder has a home football game on every weekend in Sep except the 30th. So I would avoid Boulder on those weekends. It can be a real zoo traffic wise on those weekends.

If you are interested in experiencing the beauty of the state of Colorado, then I would give a strong endorsement for heading up into the mountains. If you want fancy, luxury, and/or expensive restaurants, then Vail should be your destination. You can easily enjoy the beauty without doing any camping or hiking; the amount of outdoors time would of course be up to you. And there are many, many other mountain towns where you can also experience the beauty of Colorado without roughing it.

In terms of museums and culture, I would agree that Denver has more of that than Boulder, though Boulder is a fun and funky town (though the people there tend to be very outdoorsy).

To be honest (I feel like I can be, as I have lived in Denver for a long time, but formerly lived in larger cities), the quality of the museums and culture and amazing food in Denver or Boulder or Colorado depends on the comparison to your home location.

<<To be honest (I feel like I can be, as I have lived in Denver for a long time, but formerly lived in larger cities), the quality of the museums and culture and amazing food in Denver or Boulder or Colorado depends on the comparison to your home location.>>

I've only lived in Denver but I completely agree.

If you don't want to drive more than an hour from the airport you're missing out on the beauty of the state. Drive the extra couple of hours and go to the mountains.

From another posting it looks like the OP has decided against Colorado for this trip.

You're right Nelson! My vote is for Tahoe.

Yes, between between those two it might be Tahoe over Reno, but given their stated desires of water, museums, culture, wineries, and good dining I'd probably choose "none of the above".

Maybe Portland, Oregon instead, often perfect in September?

September in Colorado for the Aspens?