weekender.
Weekend trips from Colorado State
Hidden spots near Fort Collins, day trips and weekend road trips from Colorado State in November, scored 1–10 on price, timing and what's happening, with gas, park fees, a campsite or room and food included.
Plan your own trip from Colorado State →Local finds near campus
Horsetooth Reservoir
Fort Collins' lake in the foothills: cliff swimming coves and the Horsetooth Rock hike.
Day trips
Rocky Mountain National Park
Alpine lakes, elk in the meadows and the highest paved road in the country.
Boulder
Pearl Street's buskers and cafés under the Flatirons.
Boulder Flatirons
Tilted rock slabs above Boulder, with a classic hike from Chautauqua's meadow.
Denver
RiNo's murals and food halls, a free mile-high step at the Capitol and a show at Red Rocks.
Breckenridge
A Victorian mining town at the foot of a ski mountain, with a giant wooden troll in the woods.
Steamboat Springs
A ranching ski town with stone hot spring pools in the woods.
Weekend trips
Great Sand Dunes
The tallest dunes in North America under snowy peaks, with a beach creek in spring.
Denver
RiNo's murals and food halls, a free mile-high step at the Capitol and a show at Red Rocks.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Alpine lakes, elk in the meadows and the highest paved road in the country.
Breckenridge
A Victorian mining town at the foot of a ski mountain, with a giant wooden troll in the woods.
Steamboat Springs
A ranching ski town with stone hot spring pools in the woods.
Buena Vista & the Arkansas River
Riverside hot springs under the Collegiate Peaks, and Colorado's busiest whitewater.
Long weekends
Great Sand Dunes
The tallest dunes in North America under snowy peaks, with a beach creek in spring.
Dinosaur National Monument
A rock wall with 1,500 dinosaur bones still in it, plus petroglyphs and river canyons.
Arches & Moab
Over 2,000 stone arches (Delicate Arch at sunset), with Moab's mountain biking and jeep trails.
Canyonlands
Mesa Arch framing the sunrise over a maze of canyons the Colorado River carved.
Mesa Verde
Whole villages built into cliff alcoves 800 years ago; climb ladders into them on ranger tours.
Goblin Valley
A valley of thousands of mushroom-shaped goblins you can wander among freely (Galaxy Quest's alien planet).
Personalize it
Set your budget, how many friends are coming, your car (or no car: train and bus), and what you're into (hiking, beaches, camping, stargazing, food and more), and Weekender re-ranks every trip for you, with a day-by-day plan, directions and campsites.
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