Travel: Notes on Denver

Steak Frites, Crowned with Arugula 

 

My wife and I recently took a (too) short trip to Colorado.  By "too short", I mean we didn't ride out the rest of August thus avoiding the exceptionally unpleasant heat wave here in Austin.  

We wanted to stay in Denver for a couple of reasons.  First, we had tickets to see a game at Coors Field. Second, while I have been through Denver many times in the past few years (on the way to various Colorado locales) I hadn't actually stayed in Denver in quite a while.  

Here are a few notes on Denver:

• We stayed at The Magnolia on 17th Street in downtown Denver.  It's an older hotel with small rooms, but it's in the middle of downtown.  It's also one of Marriott's Tribute Portfolio hotels, so Bonvoy points can be used/earned.  
• Generally I liked the hotel.  Staff was friendly and the service was good.  I enjoy some of the decor and quirks of older hotels, and this one was no exception.  
• We thought proximity to the 16th Street pedestrian mall would be good; we did not realize it is currently under construction.
• You can walk to LoDo and Coors Field from the hotel, but hotel staff suggested taking a car after dark.
• This hotel is valet only, so bring some cash for tipping.  
• The steak frites at the hotel restaurant is tasty (see photo above).
• Coors Field is a great venue for watching baseball.   We're a Cubs household (with the Astros in second), but watching the Rockies play in their home field is a lot of fun.  We saw them beat the Dodgers.  
• Coors Light tastes inexplicably good at the stadium.  I'm not making this up.  I'm convinced they have a secret reserve of special Coors Light set aside for the stadium, but of course this is a crackpot theory of which I have no proof.
• If you have Clear, you can go into the stadium using a special line on the first base side.  
• We visited a friend staying at The Rally.  This hotel is awesome.  I can't tell you about the regular rooms, but the penthouse he rented was nicer than most condos I've showed.  Our room from The Magnolia would have fit in the one of the bedrooms.  I definitely had room envy. 
• You can't beat this location if you want to go to a Rockies game.  It is across the street from the stadium.  
• I try to stay in the Hilton Honors or Bonvoy systems, and this hotel isn't part of either.  
• There is a Star Bar in the LoDo area of Denver.   It is very different from the Star Bar in Austin. Also, they refuse to serve Fireball (which, in my opinion is a plus).
• The Denver Beer Company brews up some delicious products.   We visited some friends in at the Arvada location and had a delightful time.  
• Bars in Denver appear to close earlier than those in Austin.  
• We didn't make it to Meow Wolf's Convergence Station, but our friends who went loved it.  
• I went to Meow Wolf's Omega Mart in Las Vegas on a trip in May 2021.  I recommend going to it and enjoying the Area 15 facilities as well.  
• If you are flying through Denver International Airport, I highly recommend having at least TSA Pre-Check if not Clear.   The general security lines can be quite long.  

Giant Can of Unusually Good Coors Light