Over the Christmas holidays, we hit the planes and trails again, flying across the ocean with our 5-year-old and landing at my folks home in a mountain town in Colorado. For those of you who don't know Colorado, it's got some of the best skiing and hiking in the United States, sun all the time, and lots of really fit people with blunts hanging from their lips (joking… curiously, despite weed being fully legal, I didn't smell any at all!).
Since we've lived in Brussels and Tbilisi for so long, I've become less of a "Denver native" and more of a European tourist to Colorado. The longer you're an expat, the less you're at home. Anywhere really. We move so much and wander so much that I'm not even sure if Georgia is even home anymore. But I digress. A toast to all those who wander and ARE lost.
Gathering from our recent trip, and from my own time living in Denver, I decided to compile this listicle-type blog and write about all the things you can do with your kid on a trip to Denver.
As with on a trip to anywhere in the United States, I highly recommend renting a car to get the most of your trip. It is possible to visit Denver, ski at Winter Park using the ski train, and get a pretty exciting vacation. But still, you'd be missing out on a ton that the state has to offer.
Normally, I advise people to visit New Orleans, San Francisco, and New York City when they ask where to go in the U.S. But whenever I meet an outdoor nut, I tell them Colorado is the must-see place. With Rocky Mountain National Park, tons of skiing, biking, hiking, rafting, endless blue skies, and what have you, it's a kind of paradise.
So, shall we begin with the top things to do in Colorado with a kid?
1. Skiing at Granby
Granby Ranch (https://granbyranch.com/) has become one of our go-to places for skiing now that our kid is of the right age. Located just north of Winter Park and a little off the highway from the town of Granby, it was an old ranch converted to a suburban-style housing project and resort. The resort is busy year-round, with downhill and Nordic skiing in winter and some tops mountain biking and golf in the summer. Since it's a smaller mountain, it tends to stay off the radar of most tourists, doesn't get the crowds of the other resorts, and tends to be a bit cheaper too (for American skiing)—but it's also an easy drive for Denver, if you're staying in the big city.
For kids, I'd recommend waiting until 4 for them to pop on some skies, as before that it's just not practical to teach them much. As one teacher told me while waiting on the lift, "Anything younger and it's just daycare with snow."
But our kid has really taken to skiing. The training course is a super gentle slope with a carpet-style lift, and they have a longer carpet lift and a very short hanging lift for the beginners. There's never a crazy crowd, and even when it's busy for Granby you don't have to worry about collisions. Believe me, we went during peak season, and it was like an off-peak day at a place like Aspen.
Kids 5 and under ski free, and if they take a class they also get their equipment free for the rest of their stay. So it's a great deal for families.
There is a hard mountain with mostly blacks, but the main mountain is green and easy blues (lower intermediates). While I was skiing with my wife, who prefers the green slopes, I was able to stay entertained with all kinds of fun forest runs alongside the greens. For those wanting to bust a move, there's also a great terrain park on the green mountain.
Since it's in American suburban-style, there are plenty of sleeping options but not many dining options. Visitors will definitely want to have a car. There's a nearby grocery store, Domino's pizza, and a bit further to Winter Park or Granby for a myriad of restaurants. For a pretty juicy elk-sausage burger, hit Maverick's Grille in Granby.
Obviously, Granby isn't the only sky resort in the mountains that is good for kids. You might also check out Keystone or Monarch, both having good children's programs (I learned to ski at Monarch!).
2. Sledding at Hidden Valley or Mueller
Hidden Valley, located in Rocky Mountain National Park, is a fantastic spot for family-friendly sledding, and I wish I had known about it before. Back in my day living in Colorado, there was almost nothing to do in RMNP, and the adjacent Estes Park was like a ghost town, but all that has changed. Once a minor ski area for locals, Hidden Valley has been transformed into a designated sledding, snowshoeing, Nordic, and snow play area, making it a perfect destination for snow-bound families. It's, I guess, an attempt for Rocky Mountain National Park to rebrand for winter fun.
The sledding hill at Hidden Valley is gentle enough for young children but still provides plenty of excitement for older kids and adults. Families can bring their own sleds or rent them from local shops in nearby Estes Park. The area is well-maintained, and park rangers are on hand to ensure everyone's safety.
In addition to sledding, Hidden Valley offers opportunities for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. The surrounding trails provide stunning views of the snow-covered landscape and are suitable for all skill levels. After a day of sledding and exploring, families can warm up with a picnic at one of the park's designated picnic areas or head into Estes Park for a meal at one of the local restaurants.
Conversely, if you're staying in Colorado Springs or that area, then Mueller Park has some great sledding options. Situated at a slightly higher elevation on the southern rises of Pike's Peak, it manages to stay covered in snow even when the surrounding villages are looking summery. The former ranch-turned-state-park has about four clear runs, and is rarely too busy to carve your own sledding trail. It's also on the way to Cripple Creek (see below).
3. Snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park
Not just for sledding, Rocky Mountain National Park is open for extensive snowshoeing treks and is a fantastic way for families to explore the winter landscape and enjoy the beauty of the park. The park offers a variety of snowshoe trails, ranging from easy walks to more challenging routes, ensuring that there is something for everyone.
One of the best trails for families is the Bear Lake Loop, a 0.6-mile loop that takes visitors around the picturesque Bear Lake. The trail is relatively flat and easy to navigate, making it suitable for young children and beginners. For those looking for a longer adventure, the Emerald Lake Trail is a 3.6-mile roundtrip that offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains and frozen lakes.
Snowshoeing is great for the older kids, though for the younger ones probably not the best activity as it can be a lot of work. Families can rent snowshoes from local shops in Estes Park or bring their own. The park also offers ranger-led snowshoe walks, providing an educational and guided experience for visitors.
Fun fact about Estes Park, Stephen King had been staying at the Stanley Hotel with his wife when he was inspired to write The Shining!
4. Tubing at Fraser Tubing Hill
Fraser Tubing Hill, located in the town of Fraser between Granby and Winter Park, is a popular destination for families looking to experience the thrill of snow tubing. The hill offers a variety of tubing lanes, ranging from gentle slopes for young children to steeper runs for those seeking more excitement. The hill is well-groomed and maintained, ensuring a safe and enjoyable experience for all visitors.
One of the standout features of Fraser Tubing Hill is its lift system, which makes it easy for families to get back to the top of the hill without having to hike up. This allows for more time spent tubing and less time spent climbing. The hill also provides tubes for rent, so families don't need to worry about bringing their own equipment.
Kids as young as 3 are allowed in a tube with an adult and can go solo from 7 (but must be accounted for by someone over 18). You can't reserve a place, and every time I've attempted to go, it's been crazy-packed, so don't be like me but go early instead. The proximity to Denver and Winter Park makes it a super-popular place for those looking for time off or an alternative to the ski slopes.
5. Electric Safari at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
I lived in Denver and went to the Denver Zoo a few times. Nothing to discredit the Denver Zoo, but it is "just a zoo". I didn't really understand the full potential of zoo-dom until living in Brussels, where I witnessed the awe-inspiring Pairi Daiza.
I'll have to say, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is probably as close as it gets in the United States, and any animal-loving visitors even to Denver should take a visit to the southern neighbor.
Cheyenne Mountain is better known as NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) and has the dual purpose of securing our skies and offering a great zoological experience. They double down in the month of December too with the "Electric Safari" event when the zoo transforms into a veritable wonderland. With over 85 light sculptures and thousands of twinkling lights, the Electric Safari is a magical experience for visitors of all ages. The event typically runs from late November through early January, making it a perfect holiday outing for families.
During the Electric Safari, you can stroll through the zoo's beautifully decorated grounds, enjoying the light displays, festive atmosphere, and insane, twinkling view across Colorado Springs. Many of the zoo's animals are still on exhibit into the night, providing a unique opportunity to see them in a different setting. Kids will love the chance to see their favorite animals while also taking in the holiday lights. It's the perfect time for the more nocturnal animals, like the lions, who came right up to the display window to hang out with the respectful visitors. Respectful, but for that little girl who insisted on blocking everyone's camera view!
In addition to the light displays, the Electric Safari offers some other activities and attractions. Families can warm up by the fire pits, enjoy hot cocoa and holiday treats, "horse-back" ride on the old-style carousel, ride up the ski-lift to a playground, and enjoy the nightly drone show.
6. Low Elevation Hikes at Red Rocks Park
Across the Front Range, there is a scattered array of mysterious and stunning red ribs sticking out of the ground and jabbing into the sky like an unfinished rack at a Texas rib house. Red Rocks Park is one of them, located just outside of Denver, and is a beautiful destination for low-elevation winter hikes that are suitable for families with young children. The park is famous for its stunning red rock formations, which provide a unique and picturesque backdrop for hiking and exploring. The other, Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, is a bit below.
During the summertime, Red Rocks is known for its massive concerts with stunning views and contact-highs from the weed-haze, which is, by personal experience, understandably much stronger during Reggae Fest than during Nine Inch Nails.
The park offers a variety of trails, ranging from easy walks to more challenging hikes. One of the most popular trails is the Trading Post Trail, a 1.4-mile loop that takes visitors through the heart of the park and offers stunning views of the rock formations. The trail is well-maintained and suitable for hikers of all ages and skill levels.
In addition to hiking, Red Rocks Park is home to the famous Red Rocks Amphitheatre during the summer, a natural outdoor concert venue that hosts a variety of events throughout the year. Families can tour the amphitheatre and learn about its history and significance. The park also offers picnic areas, making it a great spot for a family outing.
And not to be missed is the grave of Buffalo Bill and his museum (free during winter on the first Wednesday of each month!). Doing all sorts of derring-do with a variety of acts that would be considered highly sensitive for ethnic reasons, Buffalo Bill took his troupe across the world to showcase "Old West" culture. The troupe included expert riders from Georgia billed as "Russian Cossacks", despite being a troupe of shvilis riding Dzhigitovka, and their antics and flair inspired American trick riding in the coming decades.
7. Exploring Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs answer to Red Rocks, is a stunning park that offers a unique and picturesque setting for winter exploration. The park is famous for its towering red rock formations, which provide a dramatic backdrop for hiking and sightseeing.
The park offers a variety of trails, ranging from easy walks to more challenging hikes. One of the most popular trails is the Perkins Central Garden Trail, a 1.5-mile loop that takes visitors through the heart of the park and offers stunning views of the rock formations. The trail is well-maintained and suitable for hikers of all ages and skill levels. Though as they are paved, it can get a bit icy in places, so watch out.
In addition to hiking, Garden of the Gods in the summer offers opportunities for rock climbing, wildlife viewing, and photography. The park's visitor center provides educational exhibits and information about the geology and history of the area. Families can also enjoy a picnic at one of the park's designated picnic areas, making it a great spot for a winter outing.
8. Visiting the Denver Museum of Nature & Science
When it's too cold to go outside, or when I-70 is more of a cold mess than usual, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (https://www.dmns.org/) is a fantastic indoor activity. The museum offers a wide range of exhibits and interactive displays that are both educational and entertaining for visitors of all ages. Both a dinosaur museum and a geological museum, it's got tons to do inside and is still, to this day, one of my favorite science museums. It also has one of the best views in Denver, where you can view downtown's skyscrapers standing against the dramatic purple mountain majesties.
One of the highlights of the museum is the Discovery Zone, a dedicated area for young children that features hands-on exhibits and activities designed to spark curiosity and creativity. Kids can dig for dinosaur fossils, explore a water play area, and engage in a variety of science experiments.
The museum also offers a range of permanent and temporary exhibits, covering topics such as space exploration, ancient civilizations, and natural history. The IMAX theater and planetarium provide additional opportunities for learning and entertainment, with a variety of films and shows that are both educational and visually stunning.
9. Ice Castles and troll at Cripple Creek
Cripple Creek is one of the array of gambling villages that are scattered throughout the mountains of Colorado. These also include Black Hawk and Central City, both near Denver, and then there's two more on Ute Nation territory in the South (Ignacio and Towaoc). Central City, Black Hawk, and Cripple Creek all offer something of a mix between an old West vibe and a weird attempt at something modern. Personally, I'd prefer cashing in on the Old West vibes and let Vegas have all the rollercoaster mumbo jumbo, but I digress.
Cripple Creek, which is located near the mining village of Victor on the opposite side of Pike's Peak from Colorado Springs, has a kind of charm. The street is lined with half-empty casinos, and the inhabitants of such places are either retirees bussed in from the Springs or confused youthful drunks like myself 20 years ago who like to wander 24-hours a day for free drinks at the price of a slot machine pull and some fairly good dining at the array of busy restaurants.
There has been something of an attempt to revive the town, with new big investments like a renovated Heritege Center and the glass-faced Chamonix Hotel that will supposedly draw in big-time performers. There's an array of other activities, like hiking and mine tours, but not much more for the winter time. Though Mueller Park can be reached by a short drive for some pretty fun sledding.
That is until they started hosting the Ice Castles (https://icecastles.com/cripple-creek-colorado/) (there's also one in Eagle between Aspen and Breck) from late December to early March. They're different every year due to both varying imagination and weather changes, but always give a sense of wonder, especially after the sun goes down and the LED lights placed within the ice come on. Artists "grow" anywhere from 5,000 to 12,000 icicyles a day to sculpt the ice formations, towering walls, delicate scupltures, tunnels, slides, and parapets.
Last year, there were three ice slides, with one being reached by a walk along the icy battlements. This year, there was one large slide and one very small kids' slide, but they had also added some food and drink stands for hot dogs and hot chocolates. There were also a lot more tunnel areas this year, and both years featured a kids' crawlspace/tunnel dome thing.
The concept started in Utah, when the founder, Brent Christensen, had the idea of creating a backyard ice castle for his daughter, which had quickly become a local hit. The idea expanded to a national enterprise, featured in 5 cities throughout the US (Midway, UT, Maple Gove, MN, North Woodstock, NH, and Cripple Creek and Eagle, CO).
In 2025, it was 29 bucks for general admission, $23 for kids, and free for those 3 and under.
Also, if the weather isn't so bad (and it usually isn't around there), you can take a short walk to the troll, Rita, who's just outside Victor. Rita is actually the second troll of Colorado, the first being over near Breck. Rita took over 8 days to build with over 100 volunteers under the supervision of Danish recycle artist and rapper Thomas Dambo (who apparently did a whole troll village here in Belgium).
So an easy day would be to see the troll, visit the Ice Castle, and then have a meal in Cripple Creek.
10. Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center
Located in the town of Woodland Park on the way to Cripple Creek from Colorado Springs, the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center (https://www.rmdrc.com/) gets a mention because every time we'd pass, my kid would shout out "dinosaur" like he was a character from Peppa Pig. Yet, tragically, we never stopped to go inside. One of these days! This 12,000 square foot warehouse of dino-bones is strategically located to the famous digsite at Fossil, Colorado.
The Resource Center was founded in 2004 by Mike Triebold, who had a lifetime passion for collecting fossils. And not just small ones. He made his name known in the world of dinos when he discovered the world's first mostly complete Pachycephalosaurus in 1994, later topping that with a fully complete Protosphyraena pernicosa. Hot damn.
At the shop, you can buy all kinds of replica fossils, as well as a mostly complete and real Edmontosaurus and Maiasaura.
All this and more
And here I didn't mention all the indoor playgrounds, libraries, and other fun places for kids that other cities tend to have as well. But as you can see, Colorado has plenty of options, and any visit will be stuffed with things to do (as long as you have a car).
By the way, I've got a book coming out soon: A Facetious Guide on How to Travel with a Kid. Sign up for my newsletter to get alerted when it's out so you can enjoy the intro discount and also grab a free Ultimate Checklist for Traveling with a Kid!
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