Tag Archive for: denver

Denver’s Rich History From Native Land To Vibrant City

Denver, Colorado’s capital city, has a rich and fascinating history that dates back to the mid-19th century. The area where Denver now stands was originally inhabited by Native American tribes, including the Arapaho and Cheyenne peoples.

In 1858, gold was discovered in the South Platte River valley, sparking the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush. This led to a large influx of settlers, who established the town of Denver City in 1859. Denver quickly became a hub for mining and trade in the region, serving as a supply center for the miners seeking their fortunes in the nearby mountains.

It soon became a major transportation hub with the arrival of the Kansas Pacific Railroad in 1870. This further fueled Denver’s growth and established it as a major city in the American West.

In the 20th century, Denver continued to grow and diversify its economy, becoming a major center for oil and gas production and establishing itself as a regional financial and business hub. Today, Denver is a vibrant and cosmopolitan city known for its outdoor activities, thriving arts scene and booming tech industry. Its rich history is celebrated in the numerous museums, historic sites and architectural landmarks found throughout the city.

The town of Denver City was established in 1859 following the discovery of gold in the South Platte River valley, and today has grown into a vibrant and cosmopolitan city known for outdoor activities and a booming tech industry. Photo compilation courtesy of History Colorado Center and Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Denver Is Famous For Its Stellar Food And Beer Scene

 

Denver is one of the best cities for beer lovers, with more breweries than any other U.S. city and the second-highest number of breweries per capita!

With so much emphasis on foodie culture, it’s no surprise that Denver also hosts some of the best food and drink festivals in the West, including the annual Great American Beer Festival and the Denver Food and Wine Festival. Get a taste of our local flavors by exploring our Denver Beer Trail Denver and the many brewery tours!

Additionally, with numerous food and beverage awards to its name (including a few from the uber-prestigious James Beard Foundation), Denver has quickly become a dining destination for foodies. You’ll find plenty of fine dining options at nationally ranked and recognized eateries, along with international cuisine from around the globe and local favorites like green chile at restaurants and diners across The Mile High City.

Denver is a metropolis of ever-evolving tastes, its forward-thinking dining landscape filled with restaurants from gifted chefs whose culinary magnetism, passion and fortitude fulfill our city’s lust for great food.

Denver is one of the best cities for beer lovers, with more breweries than any other U.S. city and the second-highest number of breweries per capita. Photo courtesy of Rich Grant-Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

 

Denver Honors Its Vibrant Culture With Festivals, Celebrations

Denver residents come together annually to celebrate events contributing to the city’s vibrant culture. In 2023, Denver Restaurant Week returns from March 3-12, celebrating local flavors from top chefs and restaurant owners in The Mile High City. Denver Beer Week and the Great American Beer Festival will also return in September, contributing to the city’s thriving craft spirit industry.

Culture gives Denver its charm and is prevalent through various festivals and events. The Five Points Jazz Festival on June 3, 2023, celebrates the history of Denver’s Five Points neighborhood, once considered the Harlem of the West. The Colorado Black Arts Festival from July 7-9, 2023, recognizes Black art and culture in historic Denver City Park West. The Denver March Powwow, from March 17-19, 2023, honors the heritage of American Indians. More than 400,000 attendees celebrate the city’s vibrant Latino population at the Denver Cinco de Mayo Festival, set for May 5-7, 2023.

Also home to a flourishing music scene, Denver will welcome various household names at its renowned concert venues in 2023, including Bruce Springsteen on March 2; Taylor Swift on July 14-15; Madonna on July 25; and the Beatles “1964” The Tribute on August 24.

Celebrate Denver’s thriving craft spirit industry with Denver Beer Week and the Great American Beer Festival, scheduled for September 2023. Photo courtesy of Brewers Association and Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Ski, Stay, Eat and Play Year-Round in Denver

Denver’s proximity to the Rocky Mountains makes it your perfect winter getaway. When you stay here, taking advantage of a fresh powder day for skiing or snowboarding is a breeze with multiple world-class resorts less than two hours from The Mile High City. The Winter Park Express ski train connecting Denver Union Station and the ski resort makes getting there easy.

Looking for outdoor activities to get your heart rate up, but not an adrenaline rush? Try snowshoeing or cross-country skiing in Rocky Mountain National Park, also within a two-hour drive.

And the best part of using Denver as your basecamp is being able to head back to the city in the evening to dine at one of our James Beard Award-winning restaurants or grab a beer at one of the hundreds of local breweries that make Denver the beer capital of the U.S. Then check out a Broadway show at the Denver Performing Arts Complex, the views at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre or a blockbuster exhibition at one of our many notable museums.

If you’re planning a longer holiday in the Rockies, stay a few days in Denver to take advantage of all the city has to offer.

Using Denver as your basecamp for your shoulder-season adventure means lots of opportunities to dine at award-winning restaurants or grab a beer at one of hundreds of local breweries. Photo courtes of Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Gateway City Denver Is A Photographer’s Dream

Denver Museum of Nature & Science Sky Terrace: The Anschutz Family Sky Terrace at the museum offers unparalleled views of The Mile High City. The best time to go is a cloudless morning when the museum opens for the day.

16th Street Mall: This mile-long pedestrian promenade is always buzzing with energy. Get a shot of the historic D&F Clocktower on 16th and Arapahoe, or the Denver Pavilions’ 20-foot-high sign.

“I See What You Mean” (aka “The Blue Bear”): Head down to the Colorado Convention Center for a photo beneath this 40-foot-tall sculpture. Position your subject underneath the bear, stand back about 50 feet, point and click. Voila – a true “Only In Denver” photograph.

Confluence Park: Denver was founded at this park, which marks the confluence of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek. To get the city skyline in the background, Confluence is best photographed in the afternoon.

Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre: Red Rocks is a 9,000-seat amphitheater carved out of 300-foot-high red sandstone monoliths. Snap some shots of the venue and stage, but also get some panoramic pics of Denver and the plains from atop the Amphitheatre.

Click here for more fantastic photo opportunities in Denver.

Head down to the Colorado Convention Center for a photo beneath the 40-foot-tall “I See What You Mean” (aka “The Blue Bear”) sculpture. Photo courtesy of Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

You’ll enjoy the weather and the food in Denver

With 300 days of sunshine, it’s always patio season in Denver, Colorado! Denver sits at the base of the majestic Rocky Mountains and enjoys a year-round mild, dry climate. As a result, nearly every restaurant, bar, hotel – even the city’s museums – has dedicated outdoor patios and rooftops. That makes Denver the perfect place for an outdoor bite or a sip … or both!

Sit under the giant orange umbrellas at breakfast favorite Snooze at Denver Union Station for their signature Pork Chili Verde Eggs Benedict.

For lunch, stop by Ponti, the new restaurant by James Beard Award-Winner Jen Jasinski at the newly renovated Denver Art Museum. Order the Cheesy Grilled Cheese (fontina, goat cheese and pecorino … mmmm) on the restaurant’s sunny, arty patio.

Enjoy happy hour or an early dinner at Local Jones, the selfie-friendly restaurant at the Halcyon Hotel in Cherry Creek North. Start with an Aperol Spritz and see where the evening takes you!

Start a day off at breakfast favorite Snooze at Denver Union Station – you won’t want to miss their signature Pork Chili Verde Eggs Benedict. CREDIT Matt + Jess Photography

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Get Ready For Excitement in Denver This Summer

Denver’s calendar is once again bursting with exciting events and festivals in 2022. From annual favorites to world premieres and exclusive showings, The Mile High City is rife with reasons to visit all year long.

As the cultural epicenter of the Rocky Mountain region, Denver will host blockbuster exhibitions at facilities including the recently renovated Denver Art Museum, alongside new displays and immersive experiences that showcase the city’s diverse history. Performing arts are also making a remarkable comeback, with hit Broadway shows, new plays and the world premiere of David Byrne’s Theater of the Mind (August).

Home to countless live music venues, including the famed Red Rocks Amphitheatre (named Billboard’s most-attended and highest-grossing venue of anywhere in the world in 2021), Denver’s 2022 concert lineup includes world tours from top artists, music festivals and more.

With six professional sports teams, there are numerous opportunities to catch in-person games and sporting events, including the always celebratory Colorado Rockies Home Opener.

And several beloved annual events will return this year – including Denver March Powwow, Collaboration Fest (April), Cinco de Mayo Festival, Cherry Creek Arts Festival (July), among many others.

Red Rocks Amphitheatre was named Billboard’s most-attended and highest-grossing venue of anywhere in the world in 2021, and the 2022 concert lineup includes world tours from top artists. Photo courtesy of Colorado.Josh

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Experience history and culture in Denver through rodeo, art

Denver is a great place to experience Native American history and the real Old West through attractions, restaurants and annual events. From January 8-23, 2022, the annual National Western Stock Show and Rodeo will return in-person for its 116th year. A beloved Denver tradition, NWSS is the world’s largest stock show, featuring 15,000 animals alongside an extravaganza of 30 rodeos, 11 horse shows, the Coors Western Art Exhibit and Colorado’s largest Western trade show.

Additionally, Denver Art Museum recently reopened following a $150 million renovation that includes the return of the museum’s renowned Indigenous Arts of North America and Western Art collection inside the wholly reimagined Martin Building. The collection includes more than 18,000 art objects representing the heritage of all cultures and tribes across the U.S. and Canada and spans more than 2,000 years of artistic creativity, from prehistoric times to the present. Additionally, the collection features work by Western masters George Catlin, Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell, John Mix Stanley, Alfred Jacob Miller and others. The crown jewel in the collection is Charles Deas’s “Long Jakes, The Rocky Mountain Man,” considered the single most influential image in Rocky Mountain iconography.

The recently reopened Denver Art Museum features more than 18,000 art objects representing the heritage of all cultures and tribes across the U.S. and Canada from prehistoric times to the present. Courtesy of Visit Denver

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

Denver’s Mile High magic is on display everywhere

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Though Denver is near the mountains, it is not actually in them. However, Denver is known as “The Mile High City” because it is exactly 1 mile (5,280 feet / 1,609 meters) above sea level. To demarcate this, there are several “Mile High Markers” around the city’s unique neighborhoods. One of the best-known markers is on the 13th step of the west side of the Colorado State Capitol building, located in the heart of Denver’s Golden Triangle Creative District, where visitors can also find some of the city’s top cultural institutions.

Another is located in the historic LoDo (Lower Downtown) neighborhood at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies. The “mile high” row is Rockies purple and sits well above the diamond, offering stunning views of the city and the Rocky Mountains. The Mile High Loop at City Park in the Uptown neighborhood has several markers that point to where the trail hits exactly a mile high, including one by the Denver Zoo. At the east end of the park, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science’s skyview terrace is also a mile high and boasts one of the best views of the city skyline and the Rocky Mountains in the distance.

Denver is known as “The Mile High City” because it sits exactly 1 mile above sea level. The city boasts this proudly on various “Mile High Markers” around town, including one in the historic LoDo neighborhood at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies. Photo courtesy of the Colorado Rockies

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.

No matter the season, there’s always plenty to do in Denver

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From stages and arenas to sports and art, Denver’s upcoming events and festivals mean it’s the perfect year-round destination. World-class exhibitions are always on view at cultural attractions like the Denver Art Museum, Denver Museum of Nature & Science, Denver Botanic Gardens and the new, mind-bending Meow Wolf (opening fall 2021).

Catch professional sports games including hockey, soccer, baseball, football and basketball. The Colorado Avalanche, Colorado Rapids, Colorado Rockies, Denver Broncos and Denver Nuggets all call Denver home!

Outdoor concerts ramp up in June at Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, with more than 70 events announced already. Live out loud during Denver PrideFest, which celebrates the LGBTQ community, June 26-27. Savor samples from the best chefs and eateries in the state at A Taste of Colorado in downtown Denver September 4-6.

Make a toast to craft beer during Denver Beer Week (September 10-18), and in 2022, the largest beer competition in the world, the Great American Beer Festival, returns to The Mile High City. During the holidays, Denver sparkles and shines with lights extravaganzas throughout the city.

See how the city’s businesses are working to keep everyone healthy during these events on our Clean & Safe Resource Guide.

Outdoor concerts ramp up in June at Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, with more than 70 events announced already. Photo courtesy Colorado.Josh

For more information on the Official Gateway City of Denver, visit VisitDenver.com.