Official Visitor Info

Colorado Indoor Winter Activities

Shake off the cold air and warm up with our suggestions for indoor fun in Colorado.

Woodward at Copper
By: Colorado.com Staff Writer
Updated:

1. Root, Root, Root for the Home Team

Population-wise, Denver is the smallest city in the country with four major professional sports teams. That should tell you something about the way Coloradans feel about their sports. Embrace this competitive spirit and catch a Denver Nuggets basketball or Colorado Avalanche hockey game while you’re in town. Regular season games begin in October and conclude in April; and the arena for both teams, the Pepsi Center, is conveniently located downtown.

Learn more about professional sports in Colorado >> 

2. Not Your Average Date Night

Up the relaxation factor on dinner and a movie with in-theater, full-service dining, an extensive drink list and luxurious leather chairs. Leave the kids with someone else and snuggle up to that special someone at RoadHouse Cinemas in Colorado Springs, Alamo Drafthouse in Littleton, Cinebarre in Louisville or Kress Cinema & Lounge in Greeley.

3. Get Your Shop On

Colorado shopping offers the best of both worlds, from chic and sophisticated to funky and fun. Take the time to check out Denver’s Cherry Creek — the perfect place for a little Rocky Mountain retail. Don’t miss other popular retail locales: Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, downtown Grand Junction, Old Town Fort Collins and the main drags in Breckenridge, Telluride, Aspen, Durango, Vail and Steamboat Springs. By the time you’re finished, you’ll need an extra bag to bring everything home!

Find more places to shop in Colorado >>

4. Have an Adventure

You don’t have to wait until it’s warm outside to get your family’s heart racing; Colorado is full of unique indoor activities that are sure to create special memories.

View complete listings for adventure sports in Colorado >> 

5. Visit Our Small Wonders

Home to more than 5,000 creatures, The Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster engages little ones with big experiences. Don’t miss the indoor tropical rainforest, where you can see more than 1,600 butterflies ruling the sky; or the Water’s Edge exhibit, where you can touch live sea stars, horseshoe crabs and other aquatic invertebrates from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Discover more aquariums and zoos in Colorado >>

6. Stargaze In Colorado

You don’t have to wait ’til evening — or be outside — to see the stars. Visit these two museums for spectacular daytime views: 

  • Denver Museum of Nature & Science: In addition to riveting exhibitions, activities and lectures that explore the wonders of science, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science is home to an incredible planetarium. When planning your visit, be sure to check out the upcoming exhibitions and films at the IMAX Theater, as well.
  • Fiske Planetarium at University of Colorado in Boulder: The planetarium offers a series of laser shows, as well as movies and space odysseys. Become immersed in spectacular views; the Fiske Planetarium star ball can display up to 20 million individual stars — a vastness not fully visible to the naked eye.

Read more about stargazing in Colorado >>

7. Fine-Tune Your Snow Skills

Woodward at Copper is a year-round snowboard and ski training camp. No matter your skill or comfort level, the experts at Woodward will help you polish your skills or master that new jump you’ve been working on. Check your fears at the door; if you fall, you’ll land safely in a foam pit! Schedule a lesson or attend a drop-in session for action sports, including trampolines, Skatelite, spring floor and skate and BMX features. You’ll leave ready to tackle any mountain!

8. Relax & Refresh

Colorado is home to dozens of spas, ranging from luxury hotel and resort spas to specialty stand-alone versions. Soak up natural resources with unique Colorado treatments and feel as fresh as our mountain air; you deserve it!

A few favorites:

Find more only-in-Colorado spa treatments >>

9. Explore Our Past

Colorado’s museums and historic sites offer fun and authentic encounters with our storied past. Experience Denver’s newest museum, the History Colorado Center, or visit the site of an 1835 fur-trading post at the Fort Vasquez Museum in Platteville.

Don’t forget to check out the upcoming exhibits and event calendar. Some you might not have come across:

Discover more museums in Colorado >>

10. Get Artsy

Colorado’s flourishing art scene will easily lure you in from the cold. Spend the day touring some of our world-class art museums, including the Denver Art Museum, one of the largest museums between Chicago and the West Coast, which houses a collection of more than 70,000 works of art.

Other ideas:

Learn more about art museums in Colorado >> 

11. Try to Escape

Colorado's on the escape room bandwagon! See if you can race against the clock to get out of these unique places.

  • At Glenwood Adventure Company in Glenwood Springs, those held “captive” must solve a mix of high- and low-tech puzzles and challenges to escape a variety of themed rooms before the clock runs out. The completion rate is less than 50 percent here, so you better bring your A-game.
  • In Pueblo, the five-star-rated SoCo Escape Room offers a series of live-action challenges requiring you to save the galaxy, rob the vault or halt the malware before it’s too late. 
  • The Frisco Escape Room offers three "all-ages" challenges — all dreamed up by their own in-house team.
     

12. Learn the Fine Art of Axe Throwing

It's hard to imagine that one city can sustain all its axe-throwing aficionados, but Denver's doing it with two venues: Bad Axe Throwing and Downtown Art Gallery and Axe Room. Visit to find out if you excel in this medieval-skills challenge.

13. Grab Your Controller & Headset

Go online where you can face thousands of cyber competitors at these local arenas. 

  • Check out Localhost Arena in Lakewood, the largest eSports arena in Colorado with more than 100 top-of-the-line gaming PCs in an 18,000-square-foot, digital-entertainment haven.
  • As North America’s first dedicated eSports facility, eSports Arena in Colorado Springs is a gamer’s haven, featuring souped-up PCs offering the latest challenges, plus weekly league and tournament play.
  • Grand Junction’s Split Screen Lounge also boasts high-octane, high-speed gaming with all the latest technology, consoles and platforms designed to spark virtual face-offs in a lively atmosphere.

14. Go Back in Time at an Arcade 

Maybe you’re the type who prefers a little old-school amusement? Retro arcades are making a comeback throughout Colorado. From penny arcades for the kiddos to arcade bars catering to an older crowd, plenty of nostalgia awaits.

  • With multiple locations in the Denver area, The 1Up Arcade Bar serves up wall-to-wall classics (think Donkey Kong, Frogger and Pac-Man) — along with cocktails and food — for a trip down memory lane. 
  • Just north of the city in Louisville, Tilt Pinball combines a vintage video arcade with comedy, trivia contests, live music, food, drinks and more for a rousing time with your group. Games dating back to the 1950s through today are constantly rotating on the floor, so there’s always something “new” to discover.
  • Traveling further back in time, the Manitou Springs Penny Arcade offers hundreds of classic pinball and arcade games. Some date back to the 1930s and some, sure enough, still cost just a cent to play. 
  • The Flipside in Loveland offers a full range of arcade games in a lounge environment seven nights a week, although popular Free Play Mondays give you unlimited games all night with just a $10 cover.

Want More?

Plan a Colorado winter getaway for a variety of interests >>

Check out our awesome ice scene >>

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