Colorado Vacation Planner

2024 Colorado Visitors Guide

Colorado is one of the best travel and vacation spots in the United States. As a vacation destination, Colorado it can’t be beaten. Travelers to Colorado will enjoy a vacation paradise in whatever season they visit.

Colorado presents vacationers with a multitude of outdoor adventures and activities to participate in. Both winter sports like skiing and summer activities like camping and fishing will bring the vacationer to the Colorado travel experience. Centrally located in the United States, Colorado is a land of diverse environments and travel experiences. From the rolling eastern plains of Colorado to the grand Colorado Rocky Mountains and on to the canyons and mesas of the western slope of Colorado, visitors to the state can find a wide array of sights, adventures, and travel experiences to partake in.

Yes, Colorado is truly a wonderful travel adventure and vacation destination. The traveler vacationing to Colorado will find cities to visit, events in every season, and scenic beauty in every view.

Here is a brief overview of Colorado’s travel areas and travel information for the State of Colorado:

Colorado Northern Rocky Mountain Travel Guide

The state’s Northern Rocky Mountains offer the most famous vacation destinations in Colorado. These include Aspen, Breckenridge, Steamboat Springs, and Vail. These are the homes to world-class ski resorts and some of the most spectacular sights in Colorado.

The Northern Rockies is a paradise for the outdoor enthusiast! Colorado’s Northern Rockies attract a host of outdoor adventure-seeking vacationers. Noted mostly for its downhill skiing and snowboarding, it’s not only winter sports that give the traveler experiences in this area of Colorado. Spectacular scenery and wildlife attract visitors year-round.

Aspen, CO

Aspen hosts a number of festivals, including the famous Aspen Music Festival Summer Season, which takes place from mid-June to mid-August every year. A canvas of wildflowers greets summer hikers that are eager to take in the region’s rugged beauty on miles of mountainous trails. This area’s eastern boundary extends into Rocky Mountain National Park, a popular spot for camping, hiking and cross-country skiing. Another popular travel destination is the Independence Ghost Town, a historic mining town just southeast of Aspen.

Vail, CO

When you think of Vail, you think of skiing, the rich and famous, and golf. Noted for its four public championship courses and a Par 3 course that guarantees the Vail visitor a golf experience that will exceed all expectations and offer the traveler an unforgettable vacation experience. In winter, Vail hosts skiers from around the world and close by, Beaver Creek adds to the skiing pleasures. Full of world-class restaurants, night clubs, and shops, everyone will find something to do in this area.

To the west of Pueblo, CO is Lake Pueblo State Park is a popular fishing, boating and camping spot.

Colorado Central Rocky Mountain Travel Guide

Found in the middle of Colorado, the Central Rockies region boasts a number of year-round attractions and activities. This region of Colorado is famous the world over for unparalleled scenic beauty, the Rocky Mountains afford numerous opportunities for camping, hiking, biking, fishing and a host of other outdoor activities.

Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs is the area’s largest city Colorado Springs is famous for its proximity to Pike’s Peak. Named by Zebulon Pike, it’s one of the most visited mountains in the state. The Manitou and Pike’s Peak Railway (the world’s highest cog railroad, the highest Colorado railroad AND highest train in the United States), takes visitors to the 14,110-foot summit of Pikes Peak. The oldest attraction in the Pikes Peak region is the Cave of the Winds. It first opened in 1881 and is still quite a tourist destination to this day.

Travelers to the Central Colorado Rockies are invited to soak in the hot springs found in Salida and Buena Vista, visit the North Pole in Cascade, and ski at Loveland Resort and Monarch Ski Area. Alternatively, visitors may enjoy golf on one of the many local courses during the summer months or an aerial view of the area from a hot air balloon.

Colorado Renaissance Festival

For a family-friendly event, the annual Colorado Renaissance Festival in Larkspur offers eight weekends of entertainment every summer. This festival features medieval entertainment with costumed participants, food concessions, live entertainment and more.

Colorado Western Slope Travel Guide

An overwhelming array of wildlife, countless recreational opportunities, and rich Western history attract tourists to Northwest Colorado from all over the world. Spacious parks and green spaces, including Rifle Gap State Park and nearby Harvey Gap State Park, supply a variety of scenic settings and facilitate outdoor activities for the traveler that range from hiking and mountain biking to fishing and boating.

White River National Forest

The White River National Forest is a popular destination for hiking, camping and picnicking. This region also attracts outdoor enthusiasts, as does Sunlight Mountain Resort. A fascinating area of Northwest Colorado is the stretch of Interstate-70 that travels through Glenwood Canyon. This has been proclaimed as one of the most scenic drives in America, presenting travelers with awe-inspiring views and a series of impressive bridges and tunnels.

Glenwood Hot springs

The historic Glenwood Hot springs have always delighted weary travelers. Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, a family attraction just outside of Glenwood Springs, is open year-round for cave tours that reveal displays of stalactites and stalagmites.

Colorado Western Slope

In this Colorado Western Slope vacationer’s refuge, hiking trails wind around stone canyons that plummet down to a maze of rivers creating white-water rapids all to the backdrop of the white-peaked Rocky Mountains. Rafting trips give visitors a rare glimpse of the area.

Telluride & Silverton

In the southwest portion of Colorado’s Western slope, is home to much of the scenery, lifestyle, and attractions that have made Colorado famous. The resort towns of Telluride and Silverton are well-known destinations in the San Juan mountains thanks to their selection of hotels, a wide variety of restaurants, and close proximity to activities like skiing, mountain biking, rafting, rock climbing, and hunting. The Durango to Silverton Railway passes through some of the most scenic areas in all of Colorado.

From abandoned mining towns scattered throughout the Western Slope Rockies to the ruins of ancient civilizations on the flats of plateaus, there are plenty of historic sites to visit. Local attractions include the Mesa Verde National Park, the Canyons of the Ancient National Monument and the Black Canyon of Gunnison National Park.

West Elks Viticultural Area

Recently the Western Slope of Colorado has become a world-class vineyard and winery region. This area of Colorado has always been known for its fruit production. The area now boasts a number of fine wineries and that number are growing. Two designated viticultural areas are in the region. The West Elks Viticultural Area in Delta County and the Grand Valley Area around Grand Junction. The valleys and mesas of this region are perfect for making some of the finest wines in North America and are a great attraction to visitors to the Western Slope.

Colorado Front Range Travel Guide

The landscape of Colorado’s Front Range is where the Eastern Plains meets the Rocky Mountains. This topography allows for a wealth of outdoor activities and year-round attractions. For visitors wanting to spend some time in the outdoors, a trip Estes Park offers access to Rocky Mountain National Park. Here you will find hiking, biking and camping are popular summer excursions and opportunities for skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing abound in the winter.

Boulder is famous for its 33,000 acres (13,354 ha) of parks and trails, many of which are included in the Open Space and Mountain Parks, offering a variety of areas for all levels of biking, hiking and exploring. Boulder is also the home of the University of Colorado with its famous CU Buffalo football team.

Front Range of Colorado

You’ll be close to the sky when you visit the Front Range of Colorado. Several planetariums can be found along the Front Range, allowing the nighttime to be examined at the Sommer Bausch Observatory and the Discovery Science Center.

Higher education is well represented in the region as well, with Colorado State University in Fort Collins and the University of Northern Colorado in nearby Greeley.

The Metropolitan Denver area is the hub of the Colorado Front Range. Denver is full of outdoor activities, arts, cultural venues, sports, shopping and more. These make Denver a haven for travelers to the state of Colorado.

Buffalo Bill Grave and Museum

One of the most famous attractions in the area is the Buffalo Bill Grave and Museum, located near Golden, just to the east of Denver. The world-famous Buffalo Bill introduced the world to the Wild West with his traveling variety show in the early 1900s. Golden is also home to the Colorado Railroad Museum, chronicling the importance of the railroad in the area’s growth and development. And don’t forget the Coors Brewery while you’re in Golden.

A number of golf courses in the Metro Denver area ensure that golfers of all skill levels can enjoy a round on the local links. Armchair sports fans can take in major league baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. Denver and the surrounding metropolitan area has become famous as a sports paradise. Denver sports fans are some of the most supportive of their teams in the country.

Colorado Southern Rocky Mountain Travel Guide

Travelers to the San Luis Valley truly find themselves amidst the mountains. Covering two million acres (809,356 ha), with several peaks between 9,000 and 10,000 Ft (2,700 and 3,000 m), this immense alpine valley extends south from the Continental Divide in central Colorado to New Mexico’s state line.

Sangre de Cristo Mountains

Visitors will find much to do in this region. From hiking trails in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the numerous events at the astonishingly beautiful Great Sand Dunes National Park and the natural hot springs at Alamosa’s Splashland, the San Luis Valley is complete with a myriad of possibilities for outdoor adventure.

San Luis Valley

Sportsmen are attracted to the San Luis Valley by the area’s abundant and diverse array of wildlife, including elk, mule deer, bighorn sheep, and several varieties of trout and salmon.

Wolf Creek Ski Resort

Close by, the traveler will find miles of groomed cross-country and snowmobile trails. Winter brings exceptional white powder skiing to the Wolf Creek Ski Resort in the nearby Western Slope region of Colorado. And, for an offbeat attraction, the UFO Watch Tower in Hooper stands as a testament to the numerous saucer sightings in the area.

Colorado Eastern Plains Travel Guide

Eastern Colorado stands in stark contrast to the rest of the state. Instead of mountains, the area is graced with open grasslands and seas of golden wheat and barley dotted with historic buildings that recall the days of Indians, cowboys, wagon trains, and pioneer homesteads.

Eastern Colorado offers an array of summer festivities. They range from gunfight re-enactments and antique carriage parades to heritage festivals and old-time celebrations that proudly celebrate the region’s historical, pioneer cowboy, and farming past.

Brush Rodeo

Visitors gather in Brush each July for The Brush Rodeo. This is the largest professional rodeo in Colorado and features events for the whole family, including a parade, a pancake breakfast, an art show, and a fireworks display.

World’s Wonder View Tower

The World’s Wonder View Tower in Genoa is another of northeast Colorado’s most popular attractions. The View Tower rewards visitors that climb the narrow, winding staircase with a view of six states.

Burlington is home to one of the country’s oldest and most beautiful carousels, the 1905 Kit Carson County Carousel, which is still fully operational, and offering daily rides. Not far away is the sacred ground of the Sand Creek Massacre, a black spot in Colorado history.

On the plains of Eastern Colorado, one takes on the sense of what it must have been like to be a pioneer traveling west. You can envision traveling in your covered wagon for days upon days as you head toward the Colorado Rockies. You get the sense of what the pioneer homesteaders and cowboys must have felt. It’s an experience that you will never forget.

Campers will find that camping on the plains of Eastern Colorado is a much-overlooked Colorado camping experience.

The next time you think of traveling, think of Colorado as your vacation destination. Colorado is a vacation paradise with the scenery, adventures, and activities you are looking for. Come see what the Colorado travel experience is on your next vacation.