One day in Denver

Hi Ingrid! 

Oh, it's so hard to pick, but I guess I think the "essential" things for Denver in a day are:

• Union Station
• Colorado Capitol
• RiNo Arts District
• Denver Art Museum
• Larimer Square

If you really wanted to pack in a lot in just one day in Denver, I'd suggest something like this: 

Morning (Downtown) 
-Breakfast at Snooze, an A.M. Eatery in Union Station
-Walk through Union Station, snap the iconic Denver photo out front 
-Then walk a short stretch of the 16th Street Mall towards Larimer Square. Browse some shops there, then cut north to quickly visit Dairy Block, where you can grab a drink, snack, or ice cream and browse some more boutiques. 
-Walk north along Blake Street, passing Coors Field on your left, towards the RiNo Arts District. Alternatively, grab an Uber if your feet are tired. 

Afternoon 
-Admire the art in the alley behind Denver Central Market , then grab lunch from one of the food vendors inside. 
-Uber down to the Colorado Capitol, planning in advance to be there for one the free tours
-Walk to the nearby Denver Art Museum. It closes at 5 pm, so you may not have enough time to justify a ticket inside depending on your pacing, but it's still worth seeing the iconic angular structure from the outside. 

Evening 
-For dinner, my top suggestion is to book in advance at Linger. It's an fun place to eat inside an old mortuary. You can also try going for the rooftop happy hour, which is more casual and offers nice views over the city. If Linger isn't your vibe, check out one of our other favorite Denver restaurants.
-After dinner, grab ice cream at Little Man, a famous creamery in the shape of an ice cream tin 
-You could also check in advance what's on at the Denver Performing Arts Complex, and consider spending your evening at a show

***

That's a pretty busy day, but it's doable and covers all the main sites. You can of course cut or add as you please. 

Note that I left Meow Wolf, Red Rocks, the Denver Botanic Gardens, and the Rocky Mountains off. All are A-list Denver activities, but they each require a bit more time to fully enjoy in my opinion. You could justifiably swap out either Meow Wolf or the Botanic Gardens for the afternoon part of this if either of those is really calling you. 

Anyway, that's a lot, I know! If you tell me a bit more about your preferences, I'm happy to offer other suggestions - or answer questions. 

You can also check out Laura's Denver itinerary and just follow Day 1, which takes in most of the sites above as well.

Hope you love Denver! 
Nate