Known as the "Mile High City, " Denver, kept my family on our feet during our 4-day visit. There was so many things to do and places to must see... it was hard to pick and choose. Initially, our plan was to explore the city's outdoor activities and events--- I was prepared to walk and hike... get muddy and sweaty. You know, "boys stuff." But to our surprise, it was raining when we got there with snow forecast for the next two days. Good thing, our sister MacKid publisher in the area had great ideas on her website. It didn't take me long to switch gears and re-plan the whole trip by checking out indoor places. Here's how our trip went:
Day 1: Arrival. Dinner. Sleep.
Our plane landed around 6pm, just in time for dinner. We were all tired so we hurried to fetch our rental car, grabbed a quick dinner, and headed straight to the hotel.
Day 2: Denver Museum of Nature & Science & Forney Museum of Transportation
Denver Museum of Nature & Science is located at 2001 Colorado Blvd. Denver, CO 80205. The kids were wowed by the interactive museum displays, Planetarium, and an IMAX theater. The museum featured everything from dinosaur bones to Egyptian mummies, a very impressive wildlife exhibit, and hands-on Space Odyssey area. Don't skip the Planetarium and see an IMAX movie while you are there.
Forney Museum of Transportation houses a one-of-a-kind collection of over 600 artifacts relating to historical transportation. Trains, automobiles, bicycles, cable cars and car-planes can be found inside the massive warehouse. Once a private collection, it has since opened its doors to the public and added collectibles from many contributors. Located at 4303 Brighton Blvd Denver, CO 80216.
Day 3: Wings Over The Rockies Air & Space Museum / The Wild Animal Sanctuary
Wings Over The Rockies Air & Space Museum located on the former Lowry Air Force Base, the museum preserves the history of Lowry AFB's operations from 1938 to 1994. Today, tourists and Veterans visit the place to admire fighter jet displays and immense in an intense simulator experience. My boys had a blast experiencing how to fly a jet and claimed it as the highlight of their trip! 
The Wild Animal Sanctuary has a great mission: "to rescue animals from horrific captive situations and rehabilitate them so they can live and roam freely within large natural habitats with others of their own kind." If you want to get up close with the wild life, walk a #mileintothewild... well, actually 3 miles! Make sure to wear comfortable shoes and bring a water bottle. It's a great experience you don't want to miss when in Colorado. 2999 Co Rd 53 in Keenesburg.
Day 4: U.S. Olympic Training Center / Garden of The Gods
Our visit to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs was a must! My boys LOVE sports. They swim and wrestle competitively and are highly motivated to excel. All three are all aspiring to be great Olympians one day. We toured the flagship training center. USA Swimming and USA Shooting have their national headquarters on complex. The boys were lucky to meet Olympic Silver Medalist, current World Champion Female Wrestler, Sarah Hildebrandt and watch her practice.
Our stop at the Garden of The Gods was short, but sweet. If you enjoy hiking, biking, rock climbing, or guided nature walks, make sure to check into the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center. We did not have enough time to do all the fun nature stuff at the park because of the rain. So we are keeping The Garden of The Gods on our top list to visit next time we are in the area. We want to learn how the red rocks got there. 1805 N. 30th St. Colorado Springs
And that's a wrap! It was a great trip. We hope you get a chance to visit Denver with your family soon.
Yolanda Garcia is the Publisher for Macaroni Kid Elk Grove
Do you know of any family-oriented events taking place in our community? Share them with your Macaroni Kid Elk Grove family for FREE! List your events HERE.
Don't miss out on fun family events & giveaways, and MORE!
SUBSCRIBE to receive free weekly newsletters delivered in your inbox. Follow us on FACEBOOK for daily updates.
Check out our sister Macaroni Kid communities
LODI | SACRAMENTO | ROSEVILLE | FOLSOM | STOCKTON
