Colorado Holiday Guide - UK English 2025
Get Into Nature: National Parks & Monuments
2025-05-08 04:12:55
Colorado’s four national parks and nine national monuments are home to some of the world’s most wondrous and diverse scenery. These protected lands offer everything from outdoor adventures and rich cultural history to breathtaking wildlife, star-studded skies and opportunities for relaxation in natural surroundings. Whether you’re seeking exhilarating hikes, peaceful retreats or a deeper connection to the past, these parks provide something for every traveler.
National Parks
Rocky Mountain National Park
With high-mountain lakes, waterfalls and streams, jagged peaks, thick evergreen forests and acres teeming with wildlife (elk, bighorn sheep, mule deer, moose, bears and more), this park is what most people imagine when they think of the Rockies.
Magic Moment Between May and mid-October weather permitting, Trail Ridge Road is the highest paved through road in the U.S. It winds over rugged mountain ridges, past ancient tundra and into the clouds, offering breathtaking views that feel like a journey to the sky itself.
Mesa Verde National Park
This special park is home to amazingly preserved Ancestral Puebloan dwellings. Tucked securely into cliff walls, the adobe-constructed homes are a novel sight. On rangerled tours (reserve well in advance), ladders give groups access to the cliff dwellings and glimpses into the daily lives of Ancestral Puebloans.
Magic Moment Step back in time by booking a walking tour of Cliff Palace. As you climb through its enclaves and peer into centuries-old rooms, let your imagination run wild picturing the vibrant community that once thrived in this aweinspiring cliffside sanctuary.
Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve
Sink into the highest mountains of sand in North America. These dunes have been building and shifting for eons — the result of the surrounding San Luis Valley’s distinctive wind patterns. A sandbox of epic proportions, the entire dune field encompasses 30 square miles (78 square kilometres) and the tallest dune towers 750 feet (229 metres) high.
Magic Moment Climb up the towering dunes to feel the soft, shifting sand beneath your feet. At dusk, the dunes come alive, glowing with a rich golden hue as the setting sun casts long shadows across the wind-sculpted ridges, creating a scene straight out of a dream.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
The Gunnison River began carving the canyon millions of years ago. It’s so named because the walls are often shrouded in shadows that make them appear black, and the canyon has some of the world’s oldest exposed rock.
Magic Moment When night falls over this quiet park, a parade of stars emerges to glisten and amaze. Named an International Dark Sky Park, this is one of the best places in the country to spy the Milky Way.
National Monuments
Browns Canyon National Monument
One of the nation’s most popular locations for whitewater rafting, this Arkansas River-carved beauty also hosts fishers, wildlife watchers, hikers and more throughout the year.
Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument
The mountainous conditions at this site forged the elite soldiers of the famed 10th Mountain Division, which fought to help free Europe from the grip of war in World War II.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument
This culturally rich area has the highest density of archaeological sites in the country. Come for the Ancestral Puebloan history and stay for the unspoiled land of Colorado’s high desert.
Chimney Rock National Monument
Once home to the Ancestral Puebloans, this is an area of great spiritual significance. There are more than 200 homes and ceremonial structures built by the Chaco people 1,000 years ago near the twin rock structures that give the monument its name.
Colorado National Monument
Take in stunning views of the Grand Mesa, framed by red sandstone cliffs and towering rock arches. Spot bighorn sheep, hike scenic trails and camp under the stars in this rugged, beautiful landscape.
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
Roughly 35 million years ago, volcanic eruptions covered this area in ash and lava, encasing plants and animals in preserving stone. Up to 1,700 different kinds of fossil insects make it one of the most diverse insect-fossil sites in the world.
Dinosaur National Monument
The Yampa River Canyon winds through sky-scraping redsandstone cliffs that were virtually unexplored until 1928. Today, see 1,000-year-old petroglyphs and pictographs left by Indigenous people.
Hovenweep National Monument
Remote and peaceful, Hovenweep is home to a remarkable collection of stone towers built by the Ancestral Puebloans. The site is known for its distinctive square, oval, circular and D-shaped structures, each offering a window into a fascinating past.
Yucca House National Monument
A quiet gem tucked away in the Colorado landscape, this national monument preserves the remains of an Ancestral Puebloan village. While much remains to be uncovered, the site offers a rare chance to explore its well-preserved ruins and imagine the lives of its original inhabitants.
Keep Wildlife Wild
To help keep wildlife and yourself safe, maintain distance. If unsure, follow the rule of thumb: If you can cover the entire animal with your thumb when your arm is stretched out in front of you, you’re safe. Colorado.com/Wildlife
Stay Hydrated
At our high elevations, you’ll need more water than you do at lower altitudes — as much as twice what you’d normally drink. Fill up a reusable water bottle and stay hydrated. Colorado.com/DoColoradoRight
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