The Best of Golden, Colorado

Golden is a charming Colorado town just 20 minutes outside of Denver. Perhaps you’ve seen a photo of the iconic “Welcome to Golden” sign that arches over one of the main downtown streets? The downtown area of Golden offers a variety of shops, restaurants, and more. You’ll also find nearby parks and trails as well as the popular clear creek (which is flowing heavily in the summer from snow melt). Below we’ve listed some of the BEST things to do in Golden, Colorado!

Coors Brewery

Coors Brewery was founded in Golden, Colorado. Coors is the largest single-site brewery in the world, and the facility is still a live working factory. We were fortunate enough to get tickets to a guided tour of the facility. Tickets are hard to come by as they have to be purchased nearly a month in advance and they sell out quickly.

The guided tour at Coors begins outside, then ventures inside to where the brew-making process is occurring. At the beginning of the tour, our guide Jesse provided some information on the history of Coors along with other brands that are brewed at the facility. Along the way, visitors are able to sample 3 beers. The sampling is done intermittently with the tour so visitors can observe the brewing process as they sample. It was fascinating to not only explore the factory, but to also learn about the legacy of Coors.

Here we learned that Sandlot was an actual brewery that stood on the premises where Coors Field (home of the Colorado Rockies) now resides. So, the baseball field was built around the Sandlot and it still operates today. In fact, we made sure to stop in the Sandlot when we attended the Rockies game.

We also learned that two beers are only available in the Golden and Denver area. One is the Barmen Pilsner, which was the original style intended by Adolph Coors. Did you know this beer is served on draught but takes 7 minutes to pour? My husband was able to sample the Barmen at Capitol Grill in downtown Golden. The other unique beer is Herman Joseph’s private reserve, which is on tap at a few local spots in downtown Golden, including at Buffalo Rose.

We have participated in several well-known brewery tours across the United States and this was by far number one, hands down!

Lookout Mountain

Whether hiking or driving, visitors can reach Lookout Mountain for incredible panoramic views. Lookout mountain road is a scenic drive, but drive cautiously as there may also be bicyclists on the road.

Buffalo Bill’s Museum and grave-site resides at the summit of Lookout Mountain. Next to the museum is the Lookout Mountain observation deck. We toured the museum, which begins with a 20-minute film on the life and history of Buffalo Bill and his Wild West show. The museum also houses a gallery, artifacts, memorabilia, as well as exhibits of the American West and the American Indian culture. There is also a gift shop and cafe next to the museum.

In addition, Lookout Mountain also has a Nature Center where visitors can take a tour through interactive exhibits as well as walk through a nature preserve.

From nearby hiking trails to museums and tours, Golden features many popular attractions. And in the summertime you’ll find crowds river-tubing down the cool, naturally flowing waters of clear creek.

During our time here, we were staying at a VRBO in Denver, but there are many hotels and accommodations around Golden. To explore more on Colorado, you might enjoy Colorado Springs, Denver, and Fort Collins.

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