An Anniversary Trip to Denver
Happy Hump Day, ya’ll!
Sooooo this blog isn’t necessarily intended for travel blogging, but after our fun weekend getaway, I thought it might be fun to highlight a few fun aspects of our recent trip! My husband and I decided to go to Denver as our pre-anniversary present to each other. Since the first anniversary is supposed to be paper, we thought concert tickets would be the perfect item! We looked and looked for a concert to go to, and Mumford & Sons were playing in Denver! We have both seen them before, but it was an excellent opportunity to see them with one of our other favorite bands, Lord Huron. I bought the tickets months and months ago, so we slowly cultivated a trip around that date.
Our concert was at the Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater. I’ve been to a concert at Red Rocks before, and while I was sad that we didn’t see Mumford there, Fiddler’s Green was also an excellent experience. Great acoustics, lovely outdoor park space, and a huge stage make it a great venue to see a concert. To kill time before our show, we checked out the Prost brewery in the Highland district and grabbed lunch at the Highland Tavern (which was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives!). We checked in to our AirBNB and then headed down to the concert. Overall, it was an amazing concert and we couldn’t have asked for better weather!
The next day, we woke up early to take a guided hike of Red Rocks. Since my husband had never been there, I thought it would be fun for him to check out the park and amphitheater, and some excellent photo opportunities along the way! We set up this tour also through AirBNB, and it was great! If you’ve never been to Red Rocks, I highly encourage you to check it out! Even better, catch a concert there at one of the best acoustically-sound venues in the country! It is a great place for hiking, and has trails for easy to hard difficulties.
After our 2 hour hike of the park, we headed to one of my favorite and widely-known brunch spots, Snooze. I’m still drooling over my brunch from Friday, and anyone who has eaten there definitely feels the same way! I enjoyed an eggs Benedict combo which included lox, pickled onion, fried capers and a latke with a cream cheese hollandaise. My husband ordered a breakfast burrito that was literally the size of his forearm. Each paired with a spicy Bloody Mary makes for an epic brunch, but make sure you have on comfy pants!
Later that day we walked around close to where our AirBNB was. We stayed in the historic Baker district, which was right off south Broadway Street. There were plenty of small shops for coffee, vintage clothing, boutiques, and another brewery! We stopped in at the TRVE Brewery, and I had a delicious cherry farmhouse pale ale. There are plenty of different beers here for trying! We picked up some different vintage finds, and enjoyed the beautiful weather while we strolled back to our little AirBNB.
That evening we decided to head up to Larimer Street and have a fancy Italian dinner. This is another decision I have no regrets about, because it was the best cheese I’ve ever had in my life. We ate at Osteria Marco, and this neat basement restaurant has an extensive wine list, friendly staff, and best yet…..homemade, made-in-house cheeses. I’m talking handmade and stretched mozzarella, burrata, ricotta, and many Italian aged meats. We had the burrata, which was a delicious, soft, mozzarella that was drizzled with olive oil and freshly cracked pepper. Paired with pesto and ciabatta it was DIVINE. Following that we shared a pizza (because let’s have more cheese!), which was the broccoli and potato. While those are two ingredients I don’t often find on my pizza, they were exceptional. If you’re looking for an Italian bite to eat in Denver, or a fun place to meet for a glass of wine and some charcuterie, this is the place!
Larimer Street has many places to go and eat, drink, and shop. The views are great, and it was such a quaint little oasis in the middle of a bustling downtown area.
The next morning, we walked to a nearby must-have for breakfast…Voodoo Doughnuts. While there are many locations popping up for Voodoo, we still live in the dark times here in Oklahoma so I have to get my fix when the opportunity presents itself. These donuts are so much fun, a little raunchy, and most importantly – delicious. They have donuts that are loaded with Oreos, or you can keep it simple with any kind of yeast or cake donut, fritter, or filled donut. Get a dozen to enjoy any time of day, because trust me – “The magic is in the hole!” (not my tagline, but you have to admit it’s catchy.)
Following this we went and spent time with my husband’s extended family. It was a great trip and we squeezed almost too much into barely three days, but we did it! If you’ve never been to Denver, it’s a really great city to explore. Not to mention, you’re surrounded by all kinds of exciting things to do! Drive up to Rocky Mountain National Park and explore Estes Park, or go whitewater rafting in Idaho Springs. Head south to Castle Rock and shop, or go down to Colorado Springs. There’s really so many special things you can do, inside or outside!
If you or a friend are headed to Denver in the near future, feel free to reference or share this post! It’s certainly one of my favorite places that’s easy to visit, and I definitely look forward to going back soon!
xoxo, Chelsea