Where to stay in Denver

The Ballpark District / LoDo / Union Station

Distance to Coors Field: right next door, to no more than a 15-minute walk
What’s there: National Ballpark Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art, Union Station, 16th Street Mall, McGregor Square, breweries, dozens of bars and restaurants

If you’re looking to just be right at the ballpark, then this is your place. This area has everything: the stadium, the bars, the restaurants, the breweries, the shopping, the train station, and even a couple of museums.

In terms of convenience, it doesn’t get any better. Union Station is here, and that’s your direct link to the airport if you would prefer public transit. And there are some great hotels right across the street from Coors Field, including the Rally Hotel at McGregor Square.

In terms of things to do, you couldn’t possibly run out of them. There are breweries everywhere, including some well known names like Wynkoop, Jagged Mountain, Sandlot (which is also inside the ballpark), Great Divide, and others. In addition to those, there are plenty of other bars and restaurants to keep you occupied.

There’s even the National Ballpark Museum down the street, as well as the Museum of Contemporary Art if you’re looking to broaden your cultural horizons beyond baseball. So if you’re just looking for the most obvious and most convenient place for a Coors Field visit, this is it.  

Pros

• Easy access to Coors Field, Denver’s main bar and restaurant district, and to Union Station
• Safe, walkable, tourist friendly

Cons

• It can be a loud place on the weekends. The bars empty at 2am and a lot of people stick around for hours afterward. The lodging here can also be quite pricey, and the hotels in this neighborhood are older luxury hotels. Overnight hotel parking is expensive.

River North Arts District (RiNo)

Distance to Coors Field: The south end of RiNo (River North Arts District) is a 5- to 10-minute walk to Coors Field. From the north end it will be a 30-minute walk or a 5-minute drive.
What’s there: Denver Central Market, Denver Coliseum, National Western Complex, Forney Museum of Transportation, art galleries, murals, breweries, wineries, music venues, food halls, bars and restaurants

If you are into the craft beer scene, this is the neighborhood for you. Breweries are scattered all over the city, but the number and quality of the beermakers in RiNo lead the way.

This is also a very artsy district of town, with dozens of murals on the sides of the buildings, and at least 50 different art galleries and studios calling the neighborhood home.

The art extends to the music scene, with nightly live jazz at Nocturne, concerts at The Mission Ballroom, and free live music every night at Number Thirty Eight – where they also have more than 120 beers on tap from Colorado breweries.

Pros

• Fewer crowds, less noise, and a more relaxed nightlife
• Several different food halls are in the neighborhood, giving you multiple tastes under one roof. 
• You’re never more than a five-minute walk to a brewery. 
• Street parking is readily available in RiNo – just look at the signs for street sweeping days.

Cons

• Not all of RiNo is walkable to Coors Field. 
• There are fewer hotel choices, and the bars, restaurants, and entertainment are spread out over a much wider area.

Lower Highland (LoHi)

Distance to Coors Field: Five minutes by car or a 35-minute walk
What’s there: South Platte River/Cherry Creek confluence, Children’s Museum of Denver, Downtown Aquarium, Elitch Gardens, bars and restaurants, breweries, food halls

Lower Highland (LoHi) is just across the South Platte River from downtown and LoDo. There is a pedestrian bridge that makes it easy to cross the river and I-25, connecting the parks and green spaces on either side.

Beer is everywhere in Denver, and LoHi boasts the Denver Beer Co., Cerveceria Colorado, Zuni Street Brewing Company, and Prost Brewing Company. It’s also home to a Denver staple, Little Man Ice Cream. The 28-foot can of milk serves as a beacon of delight for Denverites searching for a treat on a warm summer day. 

This is also a great neighborhood for families, with the Children’s Museum of Denver offering 46,000 square feet of interactive exhibits. The Downtown Aquarium is just a seven minute walk away through the park along the river, and just across from the aquarium is the amusement park Elitch Gardens.

Outdoors enthusiasts will enjoy the proximity to REI’s flagship store, which has a full bike shop, ski and snowboard shop, and a climbing wall that is 6,400 square feet of hand-sculpted rock.

And no visit to LoHi is complete without stopping at My Brother’s Bar, the oldest continuously operating bar in Denver. Jack Kerouac found it such a cool place that he based one of the characters in On the Road on a friend that frequented the bar with him.

Pros

• You’re a short drive or moderate walk to Union Station.
• There are hiking trails along the river and creek. 
• You’ll find less expensive chain hotels in LoHi.

Cons

• Other than Platte Street along the South Platte River, there aren’t as many bars and restaurants in LoHi. 
• It’s walkable to Coors Field, but you probably don’t want to make that walk after the sun goes down.

Convention Center

Distance to Coors Field: A 25-minute walk, a five-minute drive, or 15 to 20 minutes using the 16th Street Free Mallride.
What’s there: Colorado Convention Center, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Ellie Caulkins Opera House, Bellco Theatre, Denver Selfie Museum, Museum of Illusions, Cherry Creek Trail, University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, bars and restaurants

From April through September, the Colorado Convention Center hosts an average of 50 events. So there is a better than average chance when you’re in town to watch baseball, there also might be a concert, comedy show, or expo that interests you.

The Denver Performing Arts Complex is next door, so add in even more potential shows.

Because of the convention center and on-stage theaters in the area, this neighborhood is loaded with hotel options – from the Hotel Teatro, distinguished as one of the “Top 10 Hotels in the World” by Expedia, to The Curtis, named one of the 10 Best Art Hotels by USA Today.

It’s an area of fun, with the Denver Selfie Museum and Museum of Illusions. It’s a neighborhood of high-end steakhouses and cocktail bars. Plus it has Sam’s No. 3, my personal favorite place to get breakfast in downtown Denver, featuring breakfast burritos that last for three meals.

Pros

• It’s a busy area, and except for late at night you are never on the streets by yourself. 
• Great restaurant and hotel choices. 
• There is an RTD light rail stop at the Convention Center. 
• You are close to the south end of the 16th Street Mall, and can take the Free MallRide bus to within three blocks of Coors Field.

Cons

• There isn’t much nightlife after midnight. 
• You are further away from Coors Field and Union Station, making the walk to and from less desirable. 
• This is the most expensive part of the city to park.

Downtown/Capitol Hill

Distance to Coors Field: 15 minutes using the 16th Street Free MallRide, by car it’s 5 to 10 minutes, the walk is a half-hour or longer.
What’s there: Colorado State Capitol, Denver Art Museum, Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Art, United States Mint, History Center Colorado, Center for Colorado Women’s History, Clyfford Still Museum, Denver Firefighters Museum, Civic Center Park

The Colorado State Capitol is a highly recommended visit. The dome is made with real gold leaf from a Colorado mine, and it was constructed in the 1890s with the intention of looking like the U.S. Capitol.

There are three different engravings on the steps of Capitol to mark exactly one mile above sea level – the first from 1909 (15th step), the second from 1969 (18th step), and the last from 2003 (13th step). There are free guided tours of the building Monday through Friday at 10am, 11am, 12pm, and 1pm.

Across from the capitol building is Civic Center Park, which hosts food trucks and live music every Wednesday and Thursday from May to October.

This is also the home of the Golden Triangle Museum District, which includes the Denver Art Museum, the Denver branch of the United States Mint, the History Colorado Center, the Center for Colorado Women’s History, and the Clyfford Still Museum.

The marquee hotel in the area is The Brown Palace, which is almost another museum. Designed in the Italian Renaissance style, the Brown Palace has been open since 1892, and Ship Tavern, one of the four restaurants inside, first opened in 1935. The National Western Stock Show’s Grand Champion steer has been the guest of honor at afternoon tea at The Brown Palace every year since 1945.

Pros

• You have easy access to the restaurants, bars, and music venues along Colfax Ave. 
• The 16th Street Free MallRide connects Capitol Hill to LoDo and Coors Field to the north, giving you free and easy access to the ballpark.

Cons

• It’s not the most walkable neighborhood in Denver and you don’t want to be on the streets late at night. 
• Your bar and dining choices are limited in the immediate area, and it’s not a place we consider safe to use e-scooters and bikes.
• RTD light rail access is also several blocks away.

Cherry Creek

Distance to Coors Field: 20 to 30 minute drive to Coors Field depending on traffic.
What’s there: High-end shopping, bars and restaurants, Cherry Creek Shopping Center, spas and salons, Cherry Creek Bike Path (22 miles)

Cherry Creek is one of the nicer shopping and restaurant neighborhoods in Denver. There is the large Cherry Creek Shopping Center to the south of 1st Ave, anchored by a Macy’s and Nordstrom, and twenty square blocks of high-end shopping, eating, and drinking on the northside of 1st Ave.

Pros

• If you like shopping, this is the place to be. 
• If you or someone in your party likes a spa day, this is also the place to be. 
• There are also a number of top restaurants in the area with the wine lists to match.

Cons

• You can catch buses in the neighborhood, but the nearest RTD light rail station is miles away. 
• There are bars in the neighborhood, but they serve as more of a complement to the stores and restaurants. 
• This is not the place to find late entertainment after a night ballgame.

Golden

Distance to Coors Field: A 25-minute drive when it’s off rush hour. Public transportation will take more than an hour.
What’s there: Coors Brewery, Colorado Railroad Museum, Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave, Colorado School of Mines Museum of Earth Science, American Mountaineering Museum, Lookout Mountain Preserve & Nature Center, Dinosaur Ridge, hiking, kayaking, rock-climbing, boutique shopping, bars and restaurants

For being a small old gold rush town on the outskirts of Denver, there is a lot to do in Golden. The biggest and most notable resident of Golden is the Coors Brewery, the largest single-site brewery in the world. Tours and tasting are available with tickets, reservations need to be made in advance, and you do not have to be 21 to take the tour.

This is also a great place for the outdoors, with multiple hiking trails, popular rock climbing sites, and kayaking and rafting on Clear Creek, which runs through the middle of town. The hiking also includes a trip up to Dinosaur Ridge, where you can see dinosaur tracks and bones that have been in the rock for millions of years.

The historic downtown area of Golden is compact and walkable, and is filled with restaurants, bars, and boutique shopping.

Pros

• Golden is at the base of the mountains, and you feel like you’re in Colorado while still being close to the city of Denver and its amenities. 
• You are a half hour from Coors Field and downtown, and a half hour from the casinos in Black Hawk.

Cons

• To get to Denver, driving or using rideshare is your only real good option. 
• The hotels in Golden are on the expensive side in the summer months.

Boulder

Distance to Coors Field: In regular traffic, the drive from Boulder takes less than 45 minutes. You can also take the express Flatiron Flyer from the Downtown Boulder Bus Station to Union Station in 30 minutes for just $2.75.
What’s there: The University of Colorado, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Fiske Planetarium, Pearl Street Mall, art galleries, breweries, bars and restaurants, Rocky Mountain National Park, hiking, mountain biking

The University of Colorado is in Boulder, so if you want to catch the CU Buffaloes in early-season action along with your baseball, this is where to do it. The presence of the university has also led to a number of top museums, from art, history, and science, to the Shelby American Collection Museum, celebrating all things Shelby racing cars, and the hands-on exhibits at the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

Boulder is also known for its funky art scene, which bleeds into its restaurants and bars. One of the funkiest is called The Sink, which features quirky artwork and even quirkier cocktails, like the Lucky Charm Martini, complete with a Lucky Charms float. This is also where Robert Redford worked when he was a CU student.

Boulder has the pedestrian-only Pearl Street Mall, filled with coffee shops, microbreweries, restaurants, and historic storefronts. Just off the mall is the historic Hotel Boulderado, which was mentioned in Stephen King’s novels The Shining and Misery.

Pros

• In one word, Boulder is cool. 
• It’s got the energy of a college town, combined with a thriving art scene, food and beverage artisans of all kinds, and outdoor sports galore. 
• Boulder connects easily to downtown Denver by driving US-36 or taking the Flatiron Flyer express coach ($2.75 from Union Station).

Cons

• You aren’t in Denver, and if being there is your focus, Boulder is a good place to visit but not stay. 
• When the university is off for the summer parts of Boulder can feel dead. 
• If you’re there in September, available hotel space is limited on the weekends