Discover 35 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Denver (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Colorado State Capitol, and Lakeside Amusement Park. Also, be sure to include Denver Botanic Gardens in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Denver (Colorado).
Table of Contents
Denver Museum of Nature and Science
Museum. The Denver Museum of Nature & Science is a municipal natural history and science museum in Denver, Colorado. It is a resource for informal science education in the Rocky Mountain region. A variety of exhibitions, programs, and activities help museum visitors learn about the natural history of Colorado, Earth, and the universe. The 716,000-square-foot building houses more than one million objects in its collections including natural history and anthropological materials, as well as archival and library resources.
The museum is an independent, nonprofit institution with approximately 350 full-time and part-time staff, more than 1,800 volunteers, and a 25-member board of trustees. It is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and is a Smithsonian Institution affiliate.[1]
Address: 2001 Colorado Blvd, 80205 Denver (Central Denver)
Colorado State Capitol
Tours and exhibits about Colorado history. The Colorado State Capitol Building, located at 200 East Colfax Avenue in Denver, Colorado, United States, is the home of the Colorado General Assembly and the offices of the Governor of Colorado and Lieutenant Governor of Colorado.[2]
Address: 200 E Colfax Ave, 80203-1776 Denver (Central Denver)
Lakeside Amusement Park
Amusement park in Lakeside, Colorado. Lakeside Amusement Park is a family-owned amusement park in Lakeside, Colorado, adjacent to Denver. Originally named White City, it was opened in 1908 as a popular amusement resort adjacent to Lake Rhoda by the Denver Tramway, making it a trolley park. The amusement park was soon sold to Denver brewer Adolph Zang. Eventually the name was changed to Lakeside Amusement Park, but the local populace kept referring to it by its original name for its glittering original display of over 100,000 lights. Today it is one of only thirteen trolley parks operating and one of the oldest amusement parks in the United States, and the oldest still running in Colorado. The park, comprising nearly half of the Town of Lakeside that it was responsible for creating in 1907, features the landmark Tower of Jewels.[3]
Address: 4601 Sheridan Blvd, 80212-7406 Denver
Denver Botanic Gardens
Botanical garden in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Botanic Gardens is a public botanical garden located in the Cheesman Park neighborhood of Denver, Colorado. The 23-acre park contains a conservatory, a variety of theme gardens and a sunken amphitheater, which hosts various concerts in the summer.[4]
Address: 1007 York Street, 80206-3014 Denver (Central Denver)
Denver Zoo
Zoological garden in Denver, Colorado. Denver Zoo is an 80-acre zoological garden located in City Park of Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1896, it is owned by the City and County of Denver and funded in part by the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District. It is the most popular paid attraction in the Denver metropolitan area.
Denver Zoo was started with the donation of an orphaned American black bear. With the construction of Bear Mountain, it became the first zoo in the United States to use naturalistic zoo enclosures rather than cages with bars. It expanded on this concept with Primate Panorama, featuring huge mesh tents and open areas for apes and monkeys, and with Predator Ridge, which has three separate areas through which animals are rotated so that their overlapping scents provide environmental enrichment. Toyota Elephant Passage, which opened on June 1, 2012, is divided into five areas for rotating the various species.
Denver Zoo is accredited by the (American) Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and is also a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). The zoo achieved ISO 14001 certification in 2009, was given the first AZA Green Award in 2011, and was named the "Greenest Zoo in the Country" at the World Renewable Energy Forum in 2012. In 2015, it was re-certified for ISO 14001 and achieved OHSAS 18001 certification, becoming only the fourth zoo in the world to get both certifications.[5]
Address: 2300 N Steele St, 80205-4899 Denver (Central Denver)
City Park
Urban neighborhood in Denver, Colorado. City Park is an urban park and neighborhood in Denver, Colorado. The park is 330 acres and is located in east-central Denver. The park contains the Denver Zoo, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Ferril and Duck Lakes, and a boathouse. City Park is also the name of the neighborhood that contains the park, though the park is the vast majority of the neighborhood. To the immediate north of the park is the City Park Golf Course. City Park is the largest park in Denver.[6]
Denver Art Museum
Western and regional works over 7 stories. The Denver Art Museum is an art museum located in the Civic Center of Denver, Colorado. With encyclopedic collections of more than 70,000 diverse works from across the centuries and world, the DAM is one of the largest art museums between the West Coast and Chicago. It is known for its collection of American Indian art, as well as The Petrie Institute of Western American Art, which oversees the Museum’s Western art collection. and its other collections of more than 70,000 diverse works from across the centuries and world. The Museum’s iconic Martin Building was designed by famed Italian architect Gio Ponti in 1971.
In 2018, the Museum began a transformational $150 million renovation project to unify the campus and revitalize Ponti’s original structure, including the creation of new exhibition spaces, two new dining options, and a new welcome center.[7]
Address: 13th Avenue Between Broadway and Bannock Streets, 80204 Denver (Central Denver)
Dick's Sporting Goods Park
Soccer-specific stadium in Commerce City, Colorado. Dick's Sporting Goods Park, also known as DSG Park, is a soccer-specific stadium located in Commerce City, Colorado that is home to the Colorado Rapids men's professional soccer team. The stadium seats up to 18,061 people for soccer matches, but can accommodate up to 19,734 for special soccer events and 27,000 for concerts. It became the third home venue for the Rapids upon its opening in 2007. Sitting at just over 5,200 feet above sea level, the stadium has the highest elevation of any stadium regularly used by MLS teams.[8]
Address: Denver, 6000 Victory Way
Coors Field
Colorado Rockies ballpark. Coors Field is a baseball stadium in downtown Denver, Colorado. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies. Opened in 1995, the park is located in Denver's Lower Downtown neighborhood, two blocks from Union Station. The stadium has a capacity of 50,144 people for baseball.
As an expansion team that began play in 1993, the Rockies spent their first two seasons at Mile High Stadium. During that time, Coors Field was constructed for a cost of $300 million. It includes 63 luxury suites and 4,526 club seats. Coors Field has earned a reputation as a hitter's park, due to the effect of Denver's high elevation and semi-arid climate on the distances of batted balls. To combat this, the outfield fences were positioned further away from home plate and baseballs used in the park have been pre-stored in humidors.
Coors Field has hosted the 1998 MLB All-Star Game and the 2021 MLB All-Star Game. Coors has also hosted an outdoor hockey game from the 2016 NHL Stadium Series, along with numerous concerts.
In 2017, a consultant determined that Coors Field would require $200 million in capital improvements in the 2020's. To fund those improvements, the Rockies agreed to a long-term lease to develop club-owned nearby land.[9]
Address: Denver, 2001 Blake Street
Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum is located on the former Lowry Air Force Base in Denver, Colorado, United States. The museum preserves the history of Lowry AFB's operations from 1938 to 1994 in its collections, archives, and research library. Features of the museum's collection include the USAF's B-1A Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress bombers and many other military and general aviation aircraft.[10]
Address: 7711 E Academy Blvd, 80230-6929 Denver (East Denver)
Ball Arena
Arena in Denver, Colorado. Ball Arena is a multi-purpose arena located in Denver, Colorado. It is situated at Speer Boulevard, a main thoroughfare in downtown Denver, and is served by two nearby exits off Interstate 25. A light rail station is on the western side of the complex. Opened in 1999, it is the home arena of the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association, the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League, and the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League.[11]
Children's Museum of Denver
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Children's Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus is located in downtown Denver at 2121 Children’s Museum Drive, Denver, Colorado, United States. The 46,902 square foot building is located on a 9-acre campus and has 20 exhibits and approximately 450,000 visitors annually. The Museum focuses on early childhood education, serving children newborn through age eight and their caregivers through interactive exhibits and educational programming. Its core early learning focus areas include: Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), Health and Wellness, 21st Century Skills, Literacy and the Arts. The Museum is a member of the Association of Children’s Museums. The mission of the Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus is to create extraordinary experiences that champion the wonder and joy of childhood.[12]
Address: 2121 Childrens Museum Dr, 80211-5221 Denver (Northwest Denver)
Molly Brown House Museum
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Molly Brown House Museum is a house located at 1340 Pennsylvania Street in Denver, Colorado, United States that was the home of American philanthropist, activist, and socialite Margaret Brown. Brown was known as "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" because she survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The museum, now located in her former home, presents exhibits interpreting her life and that of Victorian Denver as well as historic preservation. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. It is designated as a Denver Landmark.[13]
Address: 1340 N Pennsylvania St, 80203-2417 Denver (Central Denver)
Holy Ghost Catholic Church
Holy Ghost Catholic Church is a Catholic church at 1900 California Street in Denver, Colorado, United States. The church was consecrated in 1943. The church is managed by the Oblates of the Virgin Mary.[14]
Address: 1900 California St, 80202-3825 Denver (Central Denver)
International Church of Cannabis
The International Church of Cannabis is a religious organization in Denver that uses cannabis as a sacrament. Members claim the use of cannabis helps elevate people to a higher understanding of self.
The chapel headquarters, a converted old church painted by contemporary artists, opened its doors on April 20, 2017. No cannabis consumption is allowed during times the church is open to the public; celebrations of the "sacrament of cannabis" are held for members only.[15]
Colorado Sports Hall of Fame
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum that honors — by public acknowledgment or commemoration — individuals who merit recognition and distinction for their exploits, accomplishments, and leadership in sports and athletic endeavors in the state of Colorado. The museum is located at Gate #1 on the west side of Empower Field at Mile High, in Denver, Colorado, and each year's inductees are honored on the Sports Legend Mall and Legacy Pillars that adjoin the Museum.
The Hall of Fame was incorporated on November 4, 1964, initially as a board of directors operating out of the Denver Chamber of Commerce. It opened as a physical entity in August 2001, coincident with the opening of the sports stadium that hosts it.[16]
Address: 1701 Mile High Stadium Cir, 80204-1771 Denver (West Denver)
Bellco Theatre
Convention center in Denver, Colorado. The Colorado Convention Center is a multi-purpose convention center located in Downtown Denver, Colorado. At 2,200,000 square feet it is currently the 12th largest convention center in the United States. It opened in June 1990; the first event being the NBA Draft for the Denver Nuggets. The convention center was expanded in 2004 to include several meeting rooms, two ballrooms and an indoor amphitheater. Since opening, the center hosts an average of around 400 events per year. Centrally located in the city, it has become one of Denver's many landmarks due to its architecture and is adjacent to the Denver Performing Arts Complex and is just blocks away from the Colorado State Capitol, Auraria Campus and the 16th Street Mall. The CCC is directly served via light rail by RTD's Theatre District–Convention Center station.[17]
Address: 700 14th St, 80202-3213 Denver (Central Denver)
Fillmore Auditorium
Auditorium in Denver, Colorado. The Fillmore Auditorium is a concert venue located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Denver, Colorado. Since opening in 1907, the venue has hosted numerous functions both private and public. It holds the title of the largest indoor venue for general admission seating in Colorado. The venue also holds an exclusive dual Minors with Adults Liquor License in Colorado for a private venue; it allows minors and consumers over 21 to stand together, rather than having to be separated by their ages. In 2006, local newspaper Westword awarded the venue the "Best Place to Run into a Hippie turned Yuppie". The venue also houses an office for the Bill Graham Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides music grants.[18]
Address: Denver, 1510 N Clarkson St, Denver, CO 80218-1419
Museum of Contemporary Art Denver
Art museum in Denver, Colorado. The Museum of Contemporary Art, in Denver, Colorado, was founded in 1996 as the first dedicated home for contemporary art in the city of Denver. For seven years, MCA Denver occupied a renovated fish market in Sakura Square in lower downtown Denver.[19]
Address: 1485 Delgany St, 80202 Denver (Central Denver)
Denver Millennium Bridge
Bridge in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Millennium Bridge is the world's first cable-stayed bridge using post-tensioned structural construction. Its 200-foot white tapered steel mast rises above Denver's northwestern skyline, connected to the bridge deck and foundation anchors by steel cables. This unique footbridge crosses railroad tracks and the regional light rail system, climbing no higher than 25 feet above street level, thereby minimizing the height pedestrians must climb. Located near LoDo, in Riverfront Park, the Millennium Bridge connects the popular 16th Street Mall with the Commons Park in the Central Platte Valley District of the Union Station neighborhood. The bridge is the first of three pedestrian bridges between Downtown Denver and the Highland neighborhood.[20]
Ogden Theatre
Music venue in Denver, Colorado. The Ogden Theatre is a music venue and former movie theater in Denver, Colorado, United States. Located at 935 E. Colfax Avenue in the neighborhood of Capitol Hill, it was built in 1917 and has a maximum capacity of 1,600 for concerts. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[21]
Address: Denver, 935 E Colfax Ave, Denver, CO 80218-1914
Byers-Evans House Museum
The Byers–Evans House is a historic house museum in Denver, Colorado, United States. It is the home of History Colorado's Center for Colorado Women's History.[22]
Address: 1310 Bannock St, 80204-2719 Denver (Central Denver)
Paramount Theatre
Concert venue in Denver, Colorado. The Paramount Theatre is a concert venue in Denver, Colorado, located on Glenarm Place, near Denver's famous 16th Street Mall. The venue has a seating capacity of 1,870 but is a popular destination for large acts looking for a smaller concert setting. With spelling as Paramount Theater, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[23]
Address: 1621 Glenarm Pl, 80202-4301 Denver (Central Denver)
Cathedral of St. John in the Wilderness
Episcopal church in Denver, Colorado. Saint John's Cathedral in Denver, Colorado, United States is the seat of the bishop and the cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado and part of the Episcopal Church in the United States. Construction began in 1909, the first service held in the cathedral in 1911, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.[24]
Address: 1350 N Washington St, 80203-2008 Denver (Central Denver)
History Colorado Center
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The History Colorado Center is a museum in Denver, Colorado, USA dedicated to the history of the state of Colorado. Construction on the $111 million building started on 19 August 2009. The museum opened on 28 April 2012 at 1200 Broadway, one block south of the site of its predecessor, the Colorado History Museum, which closed in 2010. The center is administered by History Colorado, formerly the Colorado Historical Society.[25]
Address: 1200 N Broadway, 80203-2109 Denver (Central Denver)
Speer Boulevard
Speer Boulevard, in Denver, Colorado, is a historic parkway. It runs from Irving St. in the West Highland neighborhood to Downing St. in the Country Club neighborhood, was built in 1906, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
It is part of the Denver Park and Parkway System, which includes 16 parkways and 15 parks. It runs along the channel of Cherry Creek and includes the boulevard and triangles.
It was designed by landscape architect S.R. DeBoer.
It includes three contributing structures and a contributing object.
The boulevard is named for Robert W. Speer, "who, according to some, single handedly brought the City Beautiful movement to Denver during his terms as mayor (1904-1912 and 1916-1918)."[26]
Denver Performing Arts Complex
Theatre in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Performing Arts Complex is located in Denver, Colorado, in one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. The DCPA is a four-block, 12-acre site containing ten performance spaces with over 10,000 seats connected by an 80 ft tall glass roof. It is home to a theatre company, Broadway musicals, contemporary dance and ballet, chorales, symphony orchestras, opera productions, pop stars and more.
The City and County of Denver’s Arts & Venues owns and operates the three largest theatres in DPAC, the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, the Buell Theatre and Boettcher Concert Hall. The Helen Bonfils Theatre Complex within DPAC is managed and operated by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
Performing arts organizations which regularly appear in one or other of the performance spaces include the Colorado Ballet, the Colorado Symphony, Opera Colorado and the Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ theatrical divisions — Denver Center Broadway and Denver Center Theatre Company.[27]
Address: 1101 13th St, 80204-5319 Denver (Central Denver)
Daniels & Fisher Tower
The Daniels & Fisher Tower is a distinctive historic landmark located in Denver, Colorado.[28]
Address: 1601 Arapahoe St, 80202-2015 Denver (Central Denver)
Fort Logan National Cemetery
Cemetery. Fort Logan National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado. Fort Logan was named after Union General John A. Logan, commander of US Volunteer forces during the American Civil War. It contains 214 acres and has over 122,000 interments as of 2014. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.[29]
Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory
Historical landmark in Denver, Colorado. The Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory, located at Denver Botanic Gardens, is an iconic landmark in Denver, Colorado.
The tropical conservatory was designed in 1964 by Denver architects Victor Hornbein and Ed White Jr. and opened in 1966. Its structure consists of high, interlaced concrete arches inset with faceted Plexiglas panels, which suitably honor benefactor Claude Boettcher of the Ideal Cement Company. In 1973, it was awarded Denver Landmark status. The Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory incorporates more than 11,000 sq. ft. of plants from tropical and subtropical regions, as well as a fabricated two-story banyan tree that offers a multi-layered view of the tropical forest.[30]
Address: 1007 York Street, Denver (Central Denver)
Alamo Placita Park
Park in Denver, Colorado. Alamo Placita Park is a city park located in Denver, Colorado that is the namesake of the Alamo Placita, Denver neighborhood.
The park was established in 1911 by condemnation of property owned by Denver mayor Robert W. Speer's Arlington Park Realty Company. Landscape architect and city planner Saco Reink DeBoer, hired by Speer in 1910, eventually designed the park, and landscape work began in 1927.
The park is listed on the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.[31]
Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
Towering, spired 19th-century church. The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Denver of the Roman Catholic Church. It is located at the corner of Logan Street and Colfax Avenue in the North Capitol Hill neighborhood of central Denver.[32]
Address: 1530 N Logan St, 80203-1914 Denver (Central Denver)
Platte Valley Trolley
Transportation service in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Trolley, formerly known as the Platte Valley Trolley, is a heritage streetcar line in Denver, Colorado, operated by the Denver Tramway Heritage Society. It began service on July 4, 1989.[33]
Address: 1420 Platte St, 80202-1120 Denver (Northwest Denver)
Forney Museum of Transportation
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Forney Transportation Museum is a transportation museum located in Denver, Colorado.
It is named after the founder, J.D. Forney, who started Forney Industries, Inc. in Fort Collins.[34]
Address: 4303 Brighton Blvd, 80216-3702 Denver (North Denver)
Denver Firefighters Museum
Museum in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Firefighters Museum is a museum in downtown Denver, Colorado, United States. A nonprofit institution 501, it consists of an 11,000-square-foot facility housing four galleries that explore the history of firefighting in Denver. Established in 1978, it is located in the 1909-built former Fire Station No. 1, a building that is a Denver Landmark and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[35]
Address: 1326 Tremont Pl, 80204 Denver (Central Denver)