I would estimate it to be around 12-13 miles. During rush hour your average speed could easily be 5 MPH. After I posted recent answer, I thought of course that Lakeside wouldn't be opening anywhere near rush hour in the morning, and you already said you wanted to stay after dark, so you would miss evening RH. I would have to say your choice for hotel is great under those circumstances. The area of 104th and I-25, both sides of the Interstate is FULL of shopping and eating. Great shopping and eating area at the NW corner of I-25 and 104th, including my absolute favorite, Cinzetti's Italian buffet.

Thanks so much for the feedback, Jim. I checked out the Cinzetti's website, too. Looks yummy. Now I just have to get psyched up to bid on Priceline for the first time ever and hope it all works out.

Since it will be a holiday, you probably won't encounter the type of rush hour that you'd see on a normal Monday. Probably won't take you more than 15-20 minutes to get there.

Thanks-- got a good hotel rate from Priceline in Westminster and may even try Waterworld in the afternoon before we go to Lakeside, depending on when we arrive and the weather.

OK! I'm all set for the half day/night in Denver. We will get there fairly early and won't go to Lakeside until evening, so I thought we might have time to do a little something in the afternoon. I was thinking about the natural history museum. Would that be a good choice and do you have any other sightseeing recomendations to get a little taste of Denver?

The Museum of Natural History is very nice. The zoo is a lot of fun. The Denver Art Museum has a wonderful Native American exhibit. The Botanical Gardens are quite good.