I'll be going in July and staying at the Brown Palace. I was last there as a kid and remember very little of Denver but I do have memories of that hotel - so I thought it would be fun to revisit it.

If anyone would care to offer some suggestions of must-see's and must-do's I would greatly appreciate it. I'm not planning on renting a car so I'm hoping that the Brown Palace is close to things. (I'm not the activity type, more the museum, shopping and site seeing type).

Thanks in advance for any info.

Jeez - I always thought Denver was a weak copy of LA, but with no In-N-Out Burger. Hope you're not disappointed.

There are some new-ish, nice art galleries and a bunch of kinda nice restaurants in LoDo, which is within walking distance from the Brown Palace. Actually, LoDo can be a nice half-day of shopping/eating. Denver's laid out in a clean, solid, grid, so you can just walk all of downtown without necessarily having much of a plan.

The art museum is being a little too discreet about upcoming exhibits, and the performing arts center is real quiet in the summer.

Even non-baseball fans seem to enjoy a Rockies game at Coors field, which is also a short walk from your hotel.

If you do rent a car, you can come up here and visit me in Boulder - about 25 minutes away. The summer's great here, and you can easily spend a full day shopping, eating, museuming, visiting the tea house, stuff like that.

Thanks so much JeremyZ - this is helpful. And thanks for the invite - FTer's are the best! If I do change my mind and end up with a car - I just might head your way. Thanks again.

Hey sk3:

If I see any stuff in the local papers about happenings in July, I'll add it to this thread.

It sounds like you'd really like Aspen in the summer, but I guess that's not the way you're goin'.

My favorite resturant in the city is the Vesta Dipping Grill. If you like places that are hip and funky you will like this place. Everything comes paired with a special dipping sauce...and unlike McDucks "special sauce" it doesn't taste an d look suspiciously like Thousand Island Dressing.

I forget exactly which street it is on, but somewhere in LoDo.

You might want to consider a side trip to Blackhawk and Central City. These now have gambling, but even if you don't gamble, they are interesting restored towns and the drive is beautiful.

Drive up to Rocky Mountain National Park. It is about one hour north and beautiful!

If you take the full loop you end up passing the casinos on theway back.

There is also great cheap horseback riding in Estes Park (name of city) at the entrance to the Park.

Go see the Red Rock natural theater outside of town.

If you want a nice day trip, go down to Colorado Springs. Garden of the Gds APrk is great!

I live in the Northeast and spend a week each quarter in Denver. Enjoy!

Just wanted to thank everyone for all the suggestions.

I'll be coming in late Friday afternoon and leaving on a 10 AM flight Sunday - that's why I thought I'd keep it simple and not get a car. But from your posts I'm now thinking of exploring Denver Friday night and then get a car for Saturday and do some exploring. I'm imagining there's some beautiful country to see.

Awright - this is just my *opinion*, so don't jump all over me, but . . . I really think the Blackhawk/casino area is pretty dumpy. Folks who couldn't afford the bus to Reno.

sk3 - if you do end up going to Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), it's easy to have a great drive. Stop at the ranger station at the entrance, and just ask them for a pretty drive that will take xx amount of time. They really know their stuff. The road from Denver to RMNP goes right through Boulder, so you could check the town out in the same day.

Red Rocks, referenced above, can be found here: http://www.redrocksonline.com It's gotta be the most beautiful amphitheater currently operating.

-j

The best aquarium I've ever been to is Ocean Journey.

it sure was one of the best!

Visit the US Denver Mint: http://www.denver.org/visitors/denver-mint.asp

The state capitol building is beautiful and has a marker on the steps indicating exactly a mile high.

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Visit FlyerTalk Dining http://flyertalk.com/diningfr.shtml

Thanks again for all the suggestions that you guys shared!

Well, I've decided not to rent a car. I was wondering what the best (as in cheapest) way from the airport to the Brown Palace would be? (I'm solo and just have one little carry-on).

Cheapest way is the bus. Route AF will take you downtown, and the Denver Bus Center is a few blocks from your hotel. Cost is $8 o/w, $13 r/t.

We also have SuperShuttles here, and it'll probably be about $20.

No train from the airport .

Don't miss the Tattered Cover. Actually, if you are in to books, visit both their Cherry Creek location and their location in LoDo.
http://www.tatteredcover.com/

Thanks guys! Just out of curiosity, do you know how much a cab would run from the airport to the Brown Palace?

And thanks for the Tattered Cover suggestion, I was actually just reading about that somewhere. It's on my list!