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Recreation & Culture

Museums, theater, sports, parks, monuments, and mountains - the Centennial State has it all.  Colorado has long been recognized as one of the premier destinations in North America for recreation, and its residents will attest that its investment in arts and culture compare favorably to even the largest U.S. metropolises.   

Recreational Opportunities

Colorado's semi-arid climate, coupled with the splendor of both the mountains and the wide-open plains, gives the state-s recreational character an extraordinary sense of diversity.  A small sampling of the various activities available in Colorado includes the following:

National Parks and Monuments

Colorado's national parks and monuments provide an incredible variety of outdoor recreational opportunities.  These areas receive over 4.6 million annual visitors.

• Rocky Mountain National Park is 416 square miles of spectacular scenery and was designated a biosphere reserve in 1976.  Its 360 miles of trails offer wildlife viewing on 65 mountain peaks that are over 10,000 feet high.



• Mesa Verde National Park, a World Heritage site, contains some 350 cliff dwellings dating back to the twelfth century.



• The Great Sand Dunes was officially designated as a national park in September 2004.  This formation is over ten miles long and features the highest dunes in all of America. 



• Dinosaur National Monument, 60 miles west of Craig, is one of America's richest sites for fossils. 



• Colorado National Monument, west of Grand Junction, has over 20,000 acres of towering red sandstone monoliths, sheer canyon walls and a variety of wildlife.



• Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument offers glimpses of prehistoric life from volcanic eruptions 35 million years ago - petrified redwoods, ancient insects and plants.

Source: National Park Service

Two areas were designated National Landmarks in 2006:

• Camp Amache, Granada, Colorado.  This southeast Colorado site was one of ten Japanese American internment camps in operation during World War II.  The designation as a national landmark will assure that preservation efforts of community activists will go forward and enhance this important piece of our country's history.



• Colorado Chautauqua, Boulder, Colorado.  The Chautauqua movement of the late 1800's espoused "learning for all", and the Colorado Chautauqua was founded in 1898. It is the only continuously operating Chautauqua west of the Mississippi River.

State Parks

Colorado's 40 state parks and numerous outdoor recreation areas provide opportunities for boating, hiking, and such activities as bird watching, camping, swimming, picnicking, and fishing. Facilities are located throughout the state and range from metropolitan areas to remote wilderness areas, attracting over 12 million visitors per year. Colorado is ranked sixth in the nation for parks and recreation and surpasses each of its neighboring states in both number and acreage of state parks:

Source: National Association of State Park Directors

Skiing and Winter Recreation

Colorado boasts more than 35 winter recreation areas, offering such activities as snow shoeing, snow mobiling, snowcat tours, sleigh rides, ice skating, cross-country skiing, and, of course, the largest recreational attraction in Colorado: downhill skiing and snowboarding. 

With 24 ski resorts to choose from, all types of terrain are offered to suit all tastes and abilities, from "crash the bumps" thrills to easier, gentler runs for the family. Ski Magazine readers ranked six Colorado ski areas in the top ten in North America.   Colorado leads the nation in share of total ski trips nationwide:

State Shares (%) of Overnight Ski Trips, 2005

Source: Longwoods International, Colorado Visitors Study, Final Report, May 2006

Other Outdoor Recreation Opportunities

• Rock and Ice Climbing are becoming increasingly popular activities in the state. Eldorado Canyon near Boulder is ranked as one of the top ten rock climbing venues in the entire world.  In winter, several of the state's numerous waterfalls freeze, allowing for some spectacular ice climbing.



• Water Sports are plentiful, with premier whitewater rafting and kayaking on the upper Colorado, Green, and Arkansas rivers.  Many of Colorado's numerous lakes and reservoirs offer excellent water skiing, jetskiing, and sailing.



• Hiking Colorado's 11,000 miles of trails offer choices ranging from the 500-mile Colorado Trail linking Denver and Durango, to gentle terrain through Chautauqua Park at the base of the famous Flatirons in Boulder, and everything in between.



• Hunting & Fishing contribute over $1 billion to the state's economy every year.  Big game hunting is one of Colorado's traditional attractions.  Colorado is considered the best state in the nation for elk hunting and boasts one of the highest non-resident big game success rates in America.  High-altitude, cold-water streams teem with several species of fish, including the illustrious rainbow trout.



• Wildlife & Nature Viewing is abundant.  Colorado is home to 960 wildlife species and more than 230 wildlife areas for public recreation.  From bear to mountain lion to Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, visitors and residents alike enjoy observing these majestic creatures. 



• Mountain Biking has become one of Colorado's favorite sports in recent years. Bicycling magazine has named several Colorado towns among its Top Bike Towns.



• Dude Ranches located throughout the state offer visitors the opportunity to experience what life was like during the days of cattle drives.  Each of the 40 dude ranches has its own unique style with a variety of outdoor activities, gourmet meals and top-notch entertainment for their pampered guests.



• Golf courses abound in Colorado with over 250 public and private golf courses.  The number of new courses being planned or under construction places Colorado in the top states nationwide in terms of growth, according to Colorado Golf Association.

Professional Sports

Colorado is home to a large family of professional sports teams.  Denver is one of only ten cities in the nation with major league teams in the country's four major sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey). 

• NFL Denver Broncos: The voters in the Denver Metropolitan area approved a stadium tax in 1998 to help build the Denver Broncos a new stadium, Invesco Field at Mile High, which opened in 2001.  



• NBA Denver Nuggets: basketball franchise plays in the recently completed Pepsi Center.



• NHL Colorado Avalanche: moved to Colorado from Quebec in 1996 and won the Stanley Cup in their first season here.  They became champions again in 2001, bringing the Stanley Cup to Denver for the second time. 



• Colorado Rockies: Major league baseball came in 1993.  In 1995, the Rockies' new stadium, Coors Field, was opened in downtown Denver.  The Colorado Sky Sox, the AAA franchise for the Colorado Rockies, call Colorado Springs home.



• Other professional sports: teams include the Colorado Rapids Soccer club, the 2005 World Champion Colorado Crush arena football, and Colorado Mammoth Lacrosse, in their inaugural season in 2003.



• Rodeo:Colorado's western heritage and its location in the heart of America's cattle country make the rodeo a leading spectator sport.  The National Western Stock Show and Rodeo in Denver drew 641,033 spectators in 2006, its 100^th anniversary year.  Greeley boasts the world's largest 4^th of July Rodeo, beginning in late June and lasting through the first week of July.



• Denver Grand Prix: This three-day event held in August each year, on an exciting 1.6-mile course in downtown Denver, attracts race fans who pour over $20 million into the area economy.

Arts & Culture

Performing Arts

Colorado offers an abundance of top-notch performances in theater, concerts featuring all types of music, dance, and film festivals.  The Denver Performing Arts Complex is home to seven theatres and a concert hall that hold 9,300 people between them.  Several Broadway productions travel to Denver on national tours.  In recent years, "The Lion King," "Les Miserables," "The Phantom of the Opera," "Rent," and "Cats" have all made their way to the Mile High City.  Boettcher Concert Hall is home to the Colorado Symphony.   Newly renovated in 2003, Red Rocks Amphitheater is a world-famous venue for outdoor concerts in a spectacular natural setting.  Music festivals in Vail, Telluride, Aspen, Breckenridge, and throughout the state offer something for everyone.

Major Colorado Performing Arts Venues and Seating Capacities

Fine Arts

Impressive displays of fine arts can be found in every corner of Colorado.  The Denver Art Museum's 146,000 square foot expansion by renowned architect Daniel Libeskind brings the museum to more than 350,000 square feet of space.  It houses several collections that have never before been in display.  The new wing, Frederic C. Hamilton Building, opened in October 2006. 

Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, Sangre de Christo Fine Arts Center in Pueblo, and arts festivals and galleries in many communities statewide add to the selection and diversity of the arts.  Cherry Creek Arts Festival in Denver has become a summer tradition.

For additional information, visit Colorado Tourism's website www.colorado.com and Colorado Council on the Arts www.coloarts.state.co.us.  More information can also be found on local websites such as www.denver.org, www.experiencecoloradosprings.com, pueblochamber.org, www.bouldercoloradousa.com, and www.visitgrandjunction.com.