Things to Do in Colorado and Santa Fe/Albuquerue

I'd avoid the amusement and water parks, as they're pretty standard no matter what city you're in.

Instead, see the amazing things that are unique. Go to Red Rocks Ampitheater and let your kids climb the steps and enjoy the views. Ride the Cog Railway to the top of Pikes Peak Mountain and eat the fresh doughnuts at the summit house at the top (bring sweaters or sweatshirts - it's almost always cold or chilly at 14,000 feet!). The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs is worth seeing, and so is the Garden of the Gods (also Colorado Springs). The Royal Gorge is breathtaking. At the base of Pikes Peak there's a trout fishing place where you don't need a license and the helpful staff will help you out with equipment, filleting, etc.

For cheesy fun and a real fun experience that every Denver kid has been to (not for the food certainly, but for the fun) is Casa Bonita in Denver. It's a Mexican restaurant with ok food and excellent sopapillas, but it has an indoor waterfall and deep pool designed to look very natural (not like a swimming pool) and indoor professional cliff divers who put on a fun show, involving diving, running through the crowds, etc. There are old time photo booths and games to play.

Another great place to eat is The Fort in Morrison. Delicious bison meat, and real old west food in a beautiful atmosphere.

If you go to www.foodnetwork.com, up at the top you'll see "Restaurants" (to the right of the logo, after "shows", "chefs", and "recipes". Click on Restaurants, type in the city you will be in, and there you'll see what restaurants in that city have been featured on Food Network and why. That might help you find some places that your family would like.

Sorry, can't help you with Santa Fe.

There are all those things within an hour drive. In Denver there is water world, elitches 6 flags, a big museum of nature and science right next to the zoo. The zoo in colorado springs is better. There are tons of hiking trails, devils head is a great one if you want some awesome mountain views. That is west of castle rock. The Renaissance festival is july 5-6, 12-13, 19-20 which is always a great time. and that is in Larkspur. There is so much to do in this great state! Also down in colorado springs there is cave of the winds which is really cool, seven falls (except it was closed due to flooding damage but it might be open by then) the pikes peak cog train takes you to the top of the mountain. So much more

Bishop's Castle is between Larkspur and Santa Fe and is a beautiful drive to a weird and wonderful place:

http://www.bishopcastle.org/

Cave of the Winds is an awesome attraction near Colorado Springs too:

http://caveofthewinds.com/

ETA: I forgot the most important one: The Colorado Renaissance Festival is in Larkspur!

http://coloradorenaissance.com/

Renaissance festival is in Larkspur
Go up to Vail - it's fun in the summer to have lunch, see if they have a concert going on...they usually do that time of year. You can rent bikes and bike on a number of trails
They usually have the ski chairs running (also Copper Mountain does too)
Water World is in Westminster...huge water park
Elitches amusement park is in downtown Denver
Go for a hike - tons of hiking trails in the mountains

In Colorado, White water rafting

Here's what I come up with for my state:

In Albuquerque. There is the balloon fiesta field, the science museum, tramway, Old Town, zoo, the aquarium, and minor league baseball.

In Santa Fe has the opera, state library, the Plaza and the square for native American jewelry, and historic downtown.

Enjoy yourselves and don't forget the sunscreen.

the other S.

Take a tour of the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. One of the best tours I've ever done. If your kids like sports they will love it. It's possible you might even see some big name Olympians there.

Hiking in the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs is also amazing. The Manitou Cliff Dwellings are near there, too. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is a small zoo. You can ride the Cripple Creek railroad. You can tour the Air Force Academy. The Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame is there.

The Denver Zoo and their Natural History Museum are nice. There is also a small aquarium, an air and space museum, museum of nature and science, Dinosaur Ridge, and a butterfly pavilion. Elitch Gardens is an amusement park and water park.

Estes Park north of Denver is a fun town to visit. It's beautiful in Rocky Mt. National Park. I was recently reading somewhere that they have a really great junior ranger program. You pick up a booklet at a visitors center and when you return it completed they get a badge.

I've never been to a Rockies game in Denver, but my parents have gone a couple of times and had a great time. Check into getting Rockpile seats. Adults are $4 and 12 and under are $1!

I live near Santa Fe, so I can tell you about things your boys will enjoy in this area. Bandelier National Monument is 30m away from Santa Fe: you can do a short hike with a guide book to see ancestral pueblo ruins, climb up the ladders into the cliff dwellings, see the kivas, and imagine what it was like for people to live here a long time ago. Albuquerque - our kids love taking the tram up to the top of the Sandia mountains and hiking. It's pricey, but we do it once each summer. It's a little cooler up there...with lots of flowers, trails, and a restaurant. Albuquerque will be hot...there is Cliff's amusement park which has a water park that your boys will enjoy, bumper cars, roller coasters etc. It's a small water park...have them wear swim suits. Bring lots of sunscreen. Santa Fe has a nice farmers market every Saturday. You can walk around the plaza with the other tourists, shop and get ice cream. Except for the ice cream, my kids find this kind of thing boring. Santa Fe has a lot of really good restaurants. The Jemez mountains are about an hour from Santa Fe...it's a gorgeous drive with lots of trails that your boys will love. Las Conchas trail is our kid's favorite...it goes along a stream with little bridges crossing back and forth. The town of Jemez Springs has restaurants where you can stop for lunch. You can make stops to see things along the way...Soda Damn, Spence Hot Springs, Jemez Falls (a 1/2 mile hike or so to see the falls) and the Valle Caldera (Giant volcanic valley/sunken crater) are along this pretty drive. Ghost Ranch is about an hour and a half from Santa Fe. Here you can hike, go horse back riding, there is a small dinosaur museum. This is where Georgia O'Keefe liked to paint. It's very pretty. Albuquerque has a great Natural History museum....it's a really good one. It also has a fun science/hands on/kids type museum called Explora. Albuquerque also has a nice zoo, small aquarium, and pretty botanical garden that is fun for kids. Have a fun trip!