Denver Self Drive Tours
Get more from your Denver self drive with this suggested Denver fly drive tour.
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Suggested Self Drive Tour Itinerary For Denver
Day 1 Denver Arrival
Arrive in Denver pick up your rental car and transfer independently to your hotel. Depending on your time of arrival, enjoy a visit to the Denver Art Museum, Denver Museum of Nature & Science or Denver Botanic Gardens.Hotel: Red Lion Downtown
Day 2 Denver-Pike National Forest - Colorado Spring
Distance: 80 MilesBegin your tour by heading south to Colorado Springs. Perhaps take the Pikes Peak Cog Railway train, or go west on Hwy 24 to Cascade and take the Pikes Peak Toll Road (weather permitting) to the summit. Take a tour of majestic Garden of the Gods Park. A real chuck-wagon dinner and western entertainment at the Flying W Ranch is an option.
Hotel: Quality Inn Garden of the Gods
Day 3 Colorado Springs - Florissant Fossil Beds, Cripple Creek & Victor Historic District - Colorado Springs
Distance: 102 MilesVisit world-renowned, Florissant Fossil Beds, situated in a beautiful mountain valley west of Pikes Peak. Afterward, enjoy a jeep tour on the back roads to the historic gold mining towns of Cripple Creek & Victor. Activities abound: take a scenic ride on the Narrow Gauge Railroad; tour the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine; stroll historic streets; try your hand at gambling; visit the Historic District Mining Museum; or take a Ghost Walk Tour.
Day 4 Colorado Springs - Canon City - Alamosa
Distance: 201 MilesTravel southwest to Cañon City, home of the spectacular Royal Gorge of the Arkansas River. The panoramic vistas are as mesmerizing as the Grand Canyon. Spanning a quarter mile across the Gorge is the "World's Highest Suspension Bridge." Afterward, travel around the impressive Sangre de Cristo Mountains to Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge. A haven for migratory birds and other wildlife, 14,345 ft. Mt. Blanca provides a stunning backdrop.
Hotel: Best Western Alamosa Inn
Day 5 Alamosa - Great Sand Dunes - Taos Pueblo
Distance: 120 MilesToday visit a treasure of visual, geological, and biological surprises: Great Sand Dunes -a high mountain valley flanked by some of the highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains. In the afternoon, travel to Taos , New Mexico. Taos Pueblo is the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage Site and a National Historic Landmark, which has been continuously inhabited for over 1000 years. Artists produce handcrafted wares using techniques passed down through generations, including buckskin moccasins and drums, sculptures, paintings, jewelry and pottery.
Hotel: Quality Inn
Day 6 Taos - Santa Fe
Distance: 176 MilesContinue south along the historic Santa Fe Trail. Between 1821 and 1880, the trail was a commercial highway between Missouri and Santa Fe, an international highway used by Mexican and American traders, and a national road connecting the United States to its new territories. A short distance away, Pecos National Historical Park preserves 12,000 years of history including the ancient pueblo of Pecos, two Spanish Colonial Missions, Santa Fe Trail sites, 20th century ranch history of Forked Lightning Ranch, and the site of a Civil War Battle. Afterward, we'll follow the trail to New Mexico's historic and cultural capital, Santa Fe.
Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott
Day 7 Santa Fe
Enjoy a leisurely day starting at the Plaza downtown. See St. Francis Cathedral, the Palace of the Governors, Museum of Fine Art, the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, Loretto Chapel and San Miguel Mission, the nation's oldest church. Visit fascinating galleries, shops and restaurants.Day 8 Santa Fe - Northern Pueblos - Albuquerque
Distance: 75 MilesTravel southwest to Albuquerque. Between Santa Fe and Albuquerque along the Rio Grande River, visit one of the seven Indian Pueblos. Believed to be descendents of the Ancestral Puebloan people (Anasazi), these Pueblos include Tesuque, Pojoaque, Nambe, San Ildefonso, Santa Clara, San Juan and Picuris. In the afternoon, visit Petroglyph National Monument, featuring images carved by Rio Grande peoples for more than 12,000 years. In the evening, enjoy the heart of Albuquerque's heritage at Old Town. Some of the old homes are still standing and many have been renovated into businesses.
Hotel: Best Western Winrock Inn
Day 9 Albuquerque - Chaco Culture N.P. - Farmington
Distance: 220 MilesLeaving Albuquerque, embark northwest on a spiritual journey through the Four Corners area. Our first stop is Chaco Culture National Historical Park: Chaco is remarkable for its monumental public and ceremonial buildings and its distinctive architecture. Chaco Canyon was a major center of Ancestral Puebloan culture between AD 850 and 1250. It was a hub of ceremony, trade, and administration for the prehistoric Four Corners area. Late afternoon, visit Aztec Ruins National Monument: The Monument preserves structures and artifacts of Ancestral Pueblo people from the 1100's through 1200's.
Hotel: Best Western Farmington
Day 10 Farmington - Mesa Verde - Monument Valley
Distance: 241 MilesContinue north and explore Mesa Verde National Park. These past cultures reflect more than 700 years of history. From approximately A.D. 600 through A.D. 1300, people lived and flourished in communities throughout the area, eventually building elaborate stone villages in the sheltered alcoves of the canyon walls. The cliff dwellings represent the last 75 to 100 years of occupation at Mesa Verde. Afterward, visit Four Corners Monument located on the Navajo Nation. Four Corners is the only place in the United States where four states - Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado, intersect at one point.
Hotel: Holiday Inn Kayenta
Day 11 Monument Valley - Navajo Tribal Park - Arches-Moab
Distance: 155 MilesThis morning, tour Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. Sacred to the Navajo, Monument Valley boasts sandstone masterpieces towering 400 to 1,000 feet high. The monoliths, pinnacles, arches, and ruins are bordered by miles of mesas, buttes, and wind-blown sand - all comprising the magnificent colors of the Valley. Early this afternoon, visit Goosenecks State Park and Sand Island Recreation Area: The Goosenecks are world renowned for their entrenched meanders. Kokopelli, the humpbacked flute player of ancient Pueblo mythology, is represented by several figures in the petroglyphs. Arriving in Moab, tour Arches National Park: Arches preserves over two thousand natural sandstone arches, including world-famous Delicate Arch. Extraordinary features include balanced rocks, fins and pinnacles, highlighted by a striking contrast of colors and landforms.
Hotel: Moab Valley Inn
Day 12 Moab - Grand Junction
Distance: 113 MilesLeaving Moab northeast, follow the spectacular canyons of the Colorado River to Grand Junction. Overlooking the Colorado River, Colorado National Monument features sheer walled canyons, towering monoliths, and colorful formations. Rim Rock Drive offers 23 miles of breathtaking panoramic views and numerous overlooks. Then, tour Colorado's Wine Country - the fertile soils and moderate climate of the Grand Valley provide the perfect environment for growing fruit and grapes. Enjoy a tour and wine tasting at one of 12 distinctive wineries.
Hotel: Grand Vista Hotel
Day 13 Grand Junction - Glenwood Springs - Vail - Denver
Distance: 243 MilesTake a leisurely drive west to Denver through the colorful vistas of Glenwood Canyon. Later, enjoy the afternoon at Glenwood Hot Springs or take in the natural underground steam baths of the Yampah Vapor Caves. Take a tour of Glenwood Caverns or enjoy whitewater raft trip on the Colorado River. As an option, take an afternoon trip to the resort town of Aspen. Stop at the quaint mountain town of Vail or visit the Factory Outlet Shops in Silverthorne, for some last minute shopping, before driving through the Eisenhower Tunnel. Return to Denver for one night.
Hotel: Red Lion Downtown