Art & Culture

Set the Scene for Excitement

Colorado Springs’ welcoming culture makes it easy for budding artists or creatives to make their mark. More than 65 galleries across the region feature locally-handcrafted art and goods, while groups like the Rocky Mountain Women’s Film Institute and the Opera Theatre of the Rockies offer lively and unique cultural experiences.

Hit a high note with local music performances and venues. Local options range from the Colorado Springs Philharmonic, which is the only full-scale professional orchestra in southern Colorado, to intimate venues like The Gold Room, which hosts eclectic artists from jazz to bluegrass to live comedy. The Ent Center for the Arts, elevates art of all kinds with performance and visual arts exhibition space the University of Colorado Colorado Springs campus.

Meanwhile, our big-city amenities like the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center offer world-class art exhibitions and professional theatre performances, and museums like the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum and the Western Museum of Mining & Industry give visitors a look at the region’s western heritage.

Plan your outing by visiting PeakRadar.com. Find listings and details of local performances, workshops, exhibitions, and all that is arts and culture in the Pikes Peak Region.

Culinary Delights fit for Royalty

Start your day right with breakfast at Urban Egg, Snooze AM Eatery, or Denver Biscuit Company (yes, in Colorado Springs). This trio of morning must haves lend themselves well into brunch and afternoons.

For a more caffeinated start or a boost anytime of the day, order a cup of joe from one of the many Colorado Springs coffeehouses. Story Coffee serves up big brews in a tiny home voted the most beautiful coffee shop in Colorado by Architectural Digest. If you can catch him, sip on Sleepy Turtle, a mobile coffee shop run by Kristi Logan in her Volkswagen van.

Creativity meets cuisine at a number of Colorado Springs nosheries. Ivywild School is at the head of the class in a historic schoolhouse that has been converted into a local market with a brewery, coffee shop, and bakery. Top Chef favorite Brother Luck serves up tempting plates at two locations: Four by Brother Luck and Lucky Dumpling.

The south end of downtown Colorado Springs offers delicious dishes among a suite of new restaurants that include kimchi fries at Streetcar 520 or tuna poke fries and a salsa flight at Dos Santos. Wrap up your meal at Frozen Gold, where soft serve is topped with choices like Trix cereal, pop rocks, cotton candy, and Cheezit Crackers (not all on the same cone, of course). Both spots are among the prime patio dining experiences in Colorado Springs.

Close out the day with a nightcap. The Archives is an underground cocktail bar that mixes up classics. Head over to the haberdashery Brooklyn’s on Boulder and speak to the doorman about their selection of local libations. Dying for more? Descend the stairs to the Rabbit Hole for bites and beverages in the city’s once-used morgue.

Savor the full menu of Colorado Springs cuisine scene at the Visit COS website.

Exploration, Adventure and Never a Dull Moment

With annual events like the highly-anticipated Labor Day Lift-Off hot air balloon festival and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, to the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo that’s rooted in Western culture and history, a wide range of festivals and events in guarantee that Colorado Springs residents of all ages have plenty to look forward to on their calendars.

In addition to these major events and festivals, the Colorado Springs region is always buzzing with activity from numerous art walks, to out of this world experiences at the Space Foundation Discovery Center, to a pop-up holiday ice-skating rink downtown.

Visit our Buzz & Bulletin to explore more events happening in Colorado Springs.