In May of 2023, my boyfriend Jordon and I traveled from Baltimore, Maryland to Denver, Colorado. It was my first time visiting there, and we already have another tripped planned for this October-November. The weather at that time was overall nice and perfect for hiking! Here’s what our itinerary looked like:
Day 1
Our first stop after landing in Denver was Castlewood Canyon State Park. We walked a little bit over 2 miles, starting near the Lake Gulch Trail. The next stop was Colorado Springs, where we went tandem kayaking on Prospect Lake at Memorial Park. Though the lake there was a bit small to kayak in, the view of the mountain was beautiful. While down in that area, we stopped at Garden of the Gods (pictured above).
Day 2
This day, we took a scenic hour drive to Idaho Springs then Central City. While in that area, we took a walk at the Golden Gate Canyon State Park. After another 20 minute drive back, we walked along the streets of Golden, where we purchased a few souvenirs at the shops on Washington Avenue. Only 15 minutes from there is Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre (pictured above). Although we didn’t see a concert there that trip, we could still explore the trails and venue. For drinks, we headed downtown to Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row.
Day 3
Our third day had to be mostly indoor activities since it was raining. Because of that, we booked tickets for Meow Wolf Convergence Station, which was the best interactive museum that I have ever visited. It is so unique and definitely worth the money! Later, we went to a few stores on Antique Row and at Cherry Creek Shopping Center. Back in downtown, we went to Great Divide Brewing Company then Bierstadt Lagerhaus which has giant indoor yard games such as cornhole. To end the night, we danced at the Beacon RiNo nightclub, which was a bit small but still pretty fun!
Day 4
To start our fourth day off, we went to Estes Park, which was a very cute town of shops and cafes. Though we didn’t participate in them, it offers whitewater rafting, a mountain coaster, adventure park, and much more there! From there, we drove to Rocky Mountain National Park (pictured above). There are timed reservations required from May 23-mid-October, and the entry fee year-round is $15-35. It was a long drive up the mountain but also scenic! At the top are some trails. Up there, we visited Dream Lake, though partially frozen, and further down was a gorgeous view of Emerald Lake. Once done at the park, we headed back to the Ogden Theatre for a Habstrakt concert.
Day 5
Since it was the last day of the trip, we didn’t have time for much besides gushing over the adorable prairie dogs right outside our hotel. However, we did go to the Denver Pavilions (pictured above) for some last-minute shopping and lunch at Maggiano’s before our flight.
I hope that if you’re heading to Denver soon, our itinerary gave you some good ideas too!
Thanks for the read 🙂
-xo, Nicole
A Sweet Paradise 