Good times with kids in Colorado
A friend recently sent me an e-mail asking the following question:
May be coming to Colorado in early August for a good break. Can you share ideas on having good times with kids?
His kids are 3 and 5 years old, the same as Abbie and Jack. Here's my response:
Rocky Mountain National Park is always good. They'd probably like Elitches too.
Train rides are always fun - there's one in Georgetown.
http://www.georgetownlooprr.com
If you make it to Winter Park, there's a fishing hole on the south end of town that's awesome. The fish are kinda pricey, but you basically catch one every 5 minutes. Good for kid's attention spans.
If you stay in Denver, Pirates Cove is a good water park and has a nearby petting zoo and train ride.
Of course, there's always Dave and Buster's. The one on Colorado and I-25 has a Movie Theater next door, as does the one up north on 36.
Other fun spots in or near Denver:
Butterfly Pavilion
Denver Zoo
Denver Museum of Nature and Science
Denver Children's Museum
Denver Aquarium
The Wildlife Experience
Colorado Rockies
They might be a bit young for the Rockies, but it's always fun for Dad. The Children's Museum and Aquarium are near each other and there's other cool stuff around there like Confluence Park, REI (they'll love the climbing rock outside and the trolley ride) and My Brother's Bar (best burgers in town).
If you're looking for hikes, I'd suggest Red Rocks and Garden of the Gods (in Colorado Springs). Boulder has a nice Pearl Street Mall with street performers and ice cream for the kids.
Any other good places (especially outside Denver) that you can think of?
If you're looking to get up into the mountains without having to drive too far El Dorado Canyon State Park is a good place to go with kids.
http://parks.state.co.us/parks/eldoradocanyon
There's a really easy trail called Streamside Trail (http://parks.state.co.us/Parks/EldoradoCanyon/Trails/Trails+at+Eldorado+State+Park.htm) that a 5 year should be able to do. A 3 year old could do most of it, and it's easy enough that the 3 year old could be carried for the rest of it. There's a good area for having a picnic here as well.
Posted by Country on June 11, 2008 at 02:35 PM MDT #
good idea matt! made a list of things we do here at home:
http://erickreid.blogspot.com/2008/06/fun-with-kids-in-naperville.html
Posted by erick reid on June 11, 2008 at 09:43 PM MDT #
Posted by Tony on June 12, 2008 at 07:28 AM MDT #
Let's see...other than that...and the stuff mentioned above...
Casa Bonita has horrible food, but the kids *love* it (what's not to love about cliff divers and cheap gorilla suits?)
The railroad museum in Golden is cool.
Tiny Town is in Morrison and fun.
Posted by topher on June 12, 2008 at 10:54 AM MDT #
Westlands Park in Greenwood Village has an amazing playground, and has a some water fountains that kids love play in.
The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is a bit of a hike, but pretty neat.
Posted by topher on June 12, 2008 at 11:04 AM MDT #
Monkey Bizness is fun for bad weather days (and they have really cheap rates on Wed nights).
Lakeside Park is in town - a little old but fun and cheap.
Posted by topher on June 12, 2008 at 11:05 AM MDT #
Posted by topher on June 12, 2008 at 11:23 AM MDT #
I just got back from a week in Colorado Springs with my 2 boys, ages 2 and 4. Here are some of the places we went:
Garden of the Gods - a beautiful place to hike and sightsee (as well as where I got engaged 9 years ago ;) )
Northpole - lots of rides for kids and adults (in Cascade and very reasonably priced)
Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center - a cool little place to see and learn about dinosaurs (in Woodland Park)
Historic Manitou Springs - a fun town that has lots of shops and a pretty substantial arcade...we spent almost 4 hours there ;)
@Matt - I thought about contacting you while I was out your way, but between visiting family and all of our activities, it just didn't work out...maybe next time =)
Posted by Eric Martin on June 12, 2008 at 04:56 PM MDT #