Suggestions for Denver
 

I will be joining a friend for a week in Denver, leaving in a week. She'll be at a conference for a few days and then we'll have the weekend to do whatever. Our hotel is at Curtis and 14th, but we may switch to another in the same area after her conference is over to save some money. We've talked about renting a car, but probably just for the weekend rather than the whole week. I'd really appreciate suggestions for fun things to do by myself while she's conferencing and possible daytrips over the weekend. Thanks!

Tour the U.S. Mint.

I like historical homes, so we've visited the Molly Brown House and the Byers-Evans House. Both interesting, but if I had to pick one it would be Molly Brown.

First of all, watch the weather forecast closely for the time you'll be here to figure out what to pack; we're getting a few inches of snow in the city overnight and into tomorrow! However, it could be warm and sunny next week. Spring here is always an adventure weather-wise!

www.denver.org is a good starting point for your exploration of the city, particularly the link to "Ten Great Attractions in Denver." We have a world-class art museum, particularly the new modern wing designed by Daniel Liebskind. The state Capitol is interesting too. The downtown area is quite small in comparison to other U.S. cities, so you can easily stroll around, especially the LoDo (lower downtown) redeveloped area. Renting a bike and exploring the miles of paved trails the eminate from the center of town, especially the Cherry Creek bike path, would be an excellent way to spend some time on a sunny day. You could also take an express bus from Market Street Station to Boulder one day to explore there, a great city to walk around and explore.

If you have a car over the weekend, consider a daytrip to Rocky Mountain National Park, less than 90 minutes away. It will be very quiet there, still a little wintery, but definitely worth seeing. You could also drive west on I-70 to Georgetown or Summit County where Breckenridge is. It's still "mud season" up there, in between winter and summer, but the mountains are always pretty to see and the towns nice.

Hope you have a great time!

Celestial Tea Co tour
http://www.celestialseasonings.com/visit-us/


Coors Beer Co Tour
www.coors.com

Denver Zoo, The Denver Botanic Gardens, but I don't know if much if anything will be in bloom yet.

FYI--we visited the Botanic Gardens on Sunday--the early spring flowers are already pretty much gone--the lilacs were blooming, the peonies were about to bloom, the perennial walk was gorgeous, the Japanese garden was lovely. There are also many Henry Moore sculptures displayed in the gardens this year--and they are fantastic. http://www.botanicgardens.org/ Though the gardens aren't far from downtown, you would need to take a bus or taxi.

If the weather is nice, a closer day trip would be to Evergreen. You could stop at Red Rocks on the way there. http://www.redrocksonline.com/pages/visiting/tour.html Drive through Morrison and up highway 74 to Evergreen. http://evergreenchamber.org/visitor_guide.htm There a shops and galleries in the downtown, you can hike around Evergreen Lake.