INTRO
Quick optional background: In May of 2022, we left our home of Ann Arbor, MI to embark upon a 2-month road trip, with the final destination being our new home, Seattle, WA. We spent the first few weeks driving through Chicago, Iowa, Nebraska, and Colorado. We then entered Park City, UT, where we had our destination wedding with ~135 of our closest family and friends. The second half of our road-trip was “honeymooning” through Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
Colorado was a notable stop on our trip, because it was when we first felt that we had truly left the midwest, i.e., it wasn’t flat everywhere that we looked. We spent a week+ in CO, and broke our trip up into 4-stops: Denver, Black Hawk, Hotchkiss and Grand Junction. Black Hawk, Hotchkiss and Grand Junction were fairly remote “staycation” vibes.
If you’re just staying in Denver, this travel guide will have some useful tips. Like all cities, you can go either way on if you need a car while in Denver. Having ours was useful because we ventured to Golden, where we hiked.
DENVER LODGING
We stayed at The Art Hotel Denver, where price ranges, though we paid ~$265/night. It’s a 4-star hotel, by The Curio Collection (Hilton) and is in a prime museum and arts location. The hotel strives to be a form of art itself, with interesting light installations, and famous pieces flowing through the hallways, which was a huge attraction for us, i.e., something unique. It’s even been referenced by Conde Nast as a top place to stay in Denver. Unfortunately, this was our least favorite lodging during our entire road trip. While we usually stay at pet-friendly accommodations, we typically feel that the cleaning is so satisfactory that there’s no trace of the dog or cat that stayed in the room before us. This was not the case with The Art Hotel. Our experience could have been unique, but this was a big issue for us (we even switched rooms twice).
So, let’s talk about where I’d stay instead. For a hip stay in a cool neighborhood that is home to many breweries and restaurants, I’d checkout CatBird in the RiNo district. The boutique hotel describes themselves best on their website
“Catbird is a welcoming independent boutique hotel that’s full of art, heart, and good vibes. This is what happens when you blur the line between hotel and home and add a hefty dose of counterculture.”
CatBird
Catbird’s room layouts and sizes range, and thus prices do too. Seasonality also impacts pricing, and while I’ve seen rates as low as $150/night, I’ve also seen rates anywhere from $450-$1,500/night. Of course, they’re pet friendly. Check them out on google here.
Another RiNo option is The Ramble Hotel, a thoughtfully decorated boutique hotel known for its exceptional staff and a reputation for being one of the best in Denver. The restaurant and bar are also known to be good. Like Catbird, room layouts and sizes range and seasonality price surges are inevitable, I’ve seen prices go from ~$350/night-~$700+/night. The Ramble hotel is not pet friendly, but their google reviews speak for themself. Finally, you can never go wrong with a Kimpton and Denver’s, called Kimpton Hotel Born, is near Union Station and close to all the action. Prices (seem to) range from ~$270-$320(ish). Kimpton’s are pet friendly. Here they are on google.
There are two airbnbs that are close to all the action that I would book in a second. Both are dog friendly. The first is in Central LoHi district, is thoughtfully decorated and has a fantastic backyard area. It’s 2-bedrooms and 2-baths and is ~$296/night. The second, called The Norway House, is next to City Park and is close to downtown. It is also beautifully decorated and is 2-bedrooms and 2-baths. It ranges from ~$150/night-$350/night.
DENVER FOOD
Denver is a top tier food scene. We had time to eat at the two spots listed further down, but I thoroughly recommend visiting The Wolf’s Tailor, in Sunnyside, or Beckon, in RiNo – check it out on google here, for a tasting menu/chef’s counter-esque, meal. Ginger Pig serves up some creative, top-tier Chinese food. They also have a great, dog-friendly patio… check em’ out on google. The Comal Heritage Food Incubator , also in Reno, has an incredible mission, to serve as a heritage food incubator that supports immigrant and refugees entrepreneurs in the Denver community. It also serves up some world-class caliber dishes (the reviews agree) and has nice outdoor seating along their garden.
Levin Deli
Run, don’t walk here. These are some of the best sandwiches in the country and the deli offerings are equally good. The focaccia bread is top notch. The vibe is hip and there’s plenty of dog-friendly seating. AD’s Review: 4.99 (highest AD rating given thus far).
Jovanina's Broken Italian
Solid Italian, with notable dishes being the oak ember roasted rainbow carrots and elk bolognese. Great service, and dog-friendly seating. AD’s Review: 4.4.
DENVER ACITIVITES
While we were limited on our time, we enjoyed the Clyfford Still Museum (Google) and all of the galleries in the area. Most notable was the Mount Galbraith Loop via Cedar Gulch Trail that Leia and I did while Nick was working. It was the first hike west of Michigan that I got to share with her, i.e., her first time being in “big girl” mountains. **The Museum is not dog friendly, but many of the galleries are.
BLACK HAWK INTRO, LOCATION & TRANSPORTATION
Black Hawk is known for being one of the top casino gaming destinations in Colorado. Notably, we did not do any gambling and used our time here as more of a “staycation” after spending a few busy days in the bustling city. It is 38 miles west of Denver and sits between The Golden Gate Canyon State Park, where we spent most of our time, and Idaho Springs, which has a rich mining and railroad history. If you are passing through Colorado, Black Hawk is a pretty area with lots of hiking, but if you are not passing through, just go to Boulder instead.
Our airbnb was fairly remote, i.e., ~30+ minutes from downtown, so we stocked up on groceries before leaving Denver. The actual downtown of Black Hawk, presumably where the casinos are, has a few decent looking restaurants. But Black Hawk is spread out and mountainous to drive through, so unless you’re near the poker tables, I’d plan to bring some food.
The cell service was fairly spotty for us in many places. Download directions beforehand, e.g., we did at the airbnb, where we had good wifi.
BLACK HAWK LODGING
Two Wolves Cabin, Airbnb, ~$150-$185+/night
The “Two Wolves Cabin” is a cozy airbnb that I’d recommend to dog owners and non-dog owners that are traveling through Black Hawk, though the property is a bit north of Black Hawk. The space is remote, with a nice fenced in backyard. The interior is well stocked and has a peaceful, woodsy “escape” feel. I felt that the listing’s photos didn’t do the spot justice.
The surrounding Black Hawk area has many larger airbnbs that are beautifully decorated, look mostly new, and offer a “staycation” feel. Here’s an example of a fantastic 2-bedroom, 2-bath Lakeview spot that has kayaks. It ranges from ~$450-$850+/night.
BLACK HAWK HIKING
Maryland Mountain via Historic Gilpin Tramway
5.9 M | Moderate
really peaceful trek, with beautiful views
HOTCHKISS + GRAND JUNCTION
Our last two stops were directly before our wedding, so we used the time to have more R&R in both remote locations, Hotchkiss and Grand Junction. While we prepared all of our meals at the airbnbs, both stops had a few eateries worth checking out. If in Hotchkiss, for some good traditional bar food and burgers, I’d check out 133 BRGR (google). Where we stayed was closer to Paonia, which is ~15 minutes from Hotchkiss and has a few more options, including the notably reviewed Big B’s Delicious Orchards.
Grand Junction is known for having many wineries, but by the time that we reached the area, we were run down from all our travel. So, unfortunately we did no do much exploring, which will maybe result in an updated travel guide at a future date. Below’s the extent of information that I can provide based on our brief trips.
HOTCHKISS LODGING
The Solargon, Airbnb ~$107+/night
This tiny house is beautiful. The kitchen is fully stocked and the attention to detail is 10/10. The house sits on picturesque, remote land, with nice trails, which we spent time exploring. Note that the wifi is slow. All of the pictures below are from the property.
GRAND JUNCTION LODGING
Cozy, Rustic CO Cabin, Airbnb ~76+/night
This is a working ranch (with the cutest corgis and horses), the owner built the cabin, and charm and character is abundant. You won’t get an experience like this at many, if any, places. Be ready to embrace a more “roughing it” mentality and if you’re not able to do such, then this property is not for you.
MORAL OF THE STORY
When road tripping, especially on longer trips, add days to do nothing. We attempted to do this, but pushed ahead for too long before we gave ourselves those days. As my write up implies, by the time that we reached Grand Junction, we needed a break (and a break we took). It can seem nice to knock out more hours to get closer to a better end destination, but sometimes staying in the middle of nowhere is fun. “Staycation” locations can offer time to decompress, read, play games, etc. etc.
