Top Things to do in Colorado
Top Hotels in Colorado
- 1. Best Western Plus Peak Vista Inn & Suites
- 2. Grand Hyatt Denver
- 3. Monarch Casino Resort Spa - Black Hawk
- 4. Le Meridien Denver Downtown
- 5. Best Western Plus Executive Residency Fillmore Inn
- 6. La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Trinidad
- 7. The Oxford Hotel
- 8. Origin Hotel Red Rocks
- 9. SCP Colorado Springs Hotel
- 10. Warwick Denver
Countries
Top 10 National Parks in Colorado, United States
Colorado is home to no less than twenty-six ski resorts such as those in Vail and Breckenridge; other winter activities include snowboarding, sledding, sleigh rides, snow hiking and snowmobiling. The state is blessed with national parks, grasslands and forests where in warmer weather you can enjoy hiking, mountain biking or rock climbing. Wildlife abounds, from bears to moose and raccoons to wolverines. More interested in local history? Head for either the Ute Indian Museum or the Koshare Indian Museum, and don't miss the forts such as Fort Garland and Bent's Old Fort. For a complete change, why not take a ride in a hot air balloon from South Park Valley or Boulder and admire Colorado's picturesque landscape from above?
Restaurants in Colorado
1. Kep Expeditions
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 25 reviews
Kep operates by running daily, personalized tours and custom expeditions in the heart of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Our vision includes accessibility and inclusivity by getting "Everybody Anywhere." Kep entertains, informs and safely guides visitors into the most beautiful spots RMNP has to offer.
2. Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 1,010 reviews
Canyon for which this national park was named.
Reviewed By Toyota1994 - Chicago, United States
Black Canyon of the Gunnison is a stunning National Park worth the extra effort to get there. The about 5 mile uphill drive on the Park entrance road starting at elevation 6,400 ft to the Black Canyon (elevation 8,000 ft) is beautiful. The Visitor Center is small, but about right for the annual visitation of about 300,000. I did not find it crowded during my recent visit in August. Only, I wish the restroom facilities were fully developed; currently only pit toilets are available. The museum at the visitor center has nice exhibits. No food is available at the Visitor Center or anywhere else in the park. The park staff is very helpful and the ranger programs are interesting. The Visitor Center building has a wide porch on three sides, which serves as a nice prep or rest area for hikers. Hikes of varying length start from the Visitor Center. One short trail not to miss is the Gunnison Point Trail, the end point of which opens up to a grand view of the Black Canyon. The South Rim Road has about a dozen overlooks of the Canyon. The overlooks are only a few hundred yards from each parking lot. Signs indicate how far they are, but none are farther than a half mile away. Each overlook provides different views of the canyon and or the Gunnison River. The South Rim visit could be completed in about a half day if no long hiking is included. The North Rim is about a 2-hr drive from the south rim, with the last 5 miles are so on dirt road which is pretty smooth. The views at the north rim are grander. The North rim road has six overlooks, and they are much closer to the parking lots. Visiting all the overlooks at the North Rim can be completed in 2 hours. The one short walk not to miss at the North Rim is the Charm View Trail. There are no hiking paths to the river from the rims, but there are so called ‘routes’ which require strenuous scrambling, climbing on rocky surface. These are not maintained trails. Going on these expeditions require Wilderness Permits even for day visits. In summary, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is a beautiful stunning place to visit.
3. North Rim
4. Gunnison National Forest
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 128 reviews
National preserve that encompasses part of Colorado's central mountains, around the towns of Gunnison and Crested Butte.
Reviewed By WorldTravelers34 - Chicago, United States
My wife and I spent quite a bit of time in Gunnison National Forest as we stayed in both Montrose and Gunnison on a recent Colorado trip. This whole area is just beautiful and stunning. Be sure and take a day trip to Crested Butte. About: Gunnison National Forest was named for Captain John Gunnison, a man who came through this area in 1853 in search of a feasible route across the Continental Divide for a railroad. The present forest consists of over 1.7 million acres of public land and over 100,000 acres of private land within its boundaries. There are 2 peaks over 14,000' and another 20 that are over 13,000' in elevation.
5. Pike National Forest
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 50 reviews
Forest region that contains more than one million acres of land with 14,000-foot mountains, fishing streams, campgrounds and wilderness areas.
Reviewed By Hatso - Wichita, United States
This is a great place to be this time of the year! The scenery is awesome and the Aspen trees are at their peak.
6. San Juan National Forest
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 566 reviews
Wilderness area consisting of forested mountains, 14,000-foot peaks, scenic roads, geological formations, prehistoric communities and a narrow-gauge railroad.
Reviewed By 321MarkA - Larkspur, United States
The San Juan National Forest, alone or when combined with the Rio Grand National Forest (to the northeast) and the Uncompahgre (to the northwest), cover a lot of the San Juan Mountain range: very high, very rugged, very old mountains. If you like hiking (Ice Lake, Island Lake, Columbine, Piedra Falls, and more), camping (formal and dispersed), jeeping/ATVing (Alpine Loop, Black Bear, Red Mountain Pass, Ophir Pass, Engineer Pass, Corkscrew Gulch plus many many more) , skiing (Purgatory/Durango Mountain, Telluride, Wolf Creek) , hot springs (Pagosa Springs, Ouray, Ridgeway), native American history (Mesa Verde National Park, canyon of the Ancients) , steam trains (Durango Silverton RR), ghost towns (mining ruins, Animas Forks, Read Mountain mining district, Ironton, Eureka, Mineral Point and many many more), endless vistas and views, lively towns (especially Durango and Pagosa Springs), Old and active mining towns (Silverton and Creed), tubing/ float trips (Durango) and much much more. You can spend weeks in this area and only see a small portion of it. Highly highly recommended vacation spot.
7. Rio Grande National Forest
8. High Dune Trail
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 85 reviews
Reviewed By dmurray713 - Tampa, United States
This is *the* experience of the Great Sand Dunes park. It is about 3 miles roundtrip, and took us a little under 3 hours (about 1 hr 45 minutes just to get to the top because of the resistance of stepping into sand). Amazing views and amazing experience. I recommend drinking 1/2 liter of water for every 30 minutes you're outside, and to lather up with sunscreen. Wearing hiking boots is also recommended, to give yourself ankle support and to prevent too much sand getting into your shoes. My tip: step into past footprints to reduce resistance of stepping into loose sand. We were very exhausted after the hike, so don't try to also do sandboarding on the same day like we did.
9. Grand Mesa National Forest
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 8 reviews
Reviewed By WannaTravel6831
Grand Mesa is a beautiful place to visit, especially during summer; you'll find lots of lovely lakes, trails, forest and meadows to explore! Lots of wildlife and wildflowers, with stunning sunsets to view, this is one of the best places to enjoy the outdoors in Colorado! Never miss a chance to visit the Grand Mesa and take some time to enjoy the outdoors as nature intended :)
10. Hovenweep National Monument
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 672 reviews
Located in Utah but near Cortez, this site has six ruin sites all built around 1200 AD. Hovenweep is 42 miles from Cortez, CO and approximately 48 from Blanding, UT
Reviewed By wre2018 - Tucson, United States
Hovenweep National Monument consists of some clusters of ancestral puebloan ruins close to the Utah-Colorado state line. A worthwhile stop if you are in the Four Corners area. You will notice architectural similarities with structures in nearby parks (Mesa Verde, Canyons of the Ancients, Chaco, etc.). There are towers, kivas, D-shaped buildings, some built with clearly defensive purposes in mind (to guard a spring, for example). Pets are permitted on the trails. The park headquarters is at the Square Towers Group (the best and longest trail is here, but only a limited portion of it is suitable for wheelchair-bound people). Other sections of the park worth going to are the Holly, Horseshoe, and Hackberry units--driving to these in a low-clearance vehicle will be a challenge, but can be done with care. Unfortunately, what there is to see are ruins of buildings and petroglyphs in places. To see artifacts (pottery, tools, woven items, etc.) removed from various archaeological sites in SE Utah and SW Colorado, you need to visit museums located elsewhere: Edge of the Cedars State Park in Blanding, UT and Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum in Dolores, CO. Both museums are quite interesting, and some of the items on display clearly used materials from distant places (e.g., in Mexico).
TAGS
